Your Gardens Competition
Welcome to Your Gardens, the local gardening competition!
- The Aim of the Competition
- Categories
- How to enter
- Judging Process
- Judging Criteria
- Discretionary Awards
- Your Gardens Awards
- Important Dates
- Competition Sponsors and Partners
The Your Gardens Competition recognises the efforts of the community in enhancing the local landscape and providing a quality environment. The action by the community links in with the Council's commitment to sustainable development and improving the visual environment.
The competition aims to:
- Support the Bracknell in Bloom campaign
- Improve the appearance of Bracknell Forest
- Promote positive environmental behaviour
- Develop community pride
- Encourage wildlife
As always, the emphasis is on participation not competition!
- Front Garden
From balconies to containers gardens and everything in-between, all must be visible from a road or footpath. - Community/Neighbourhood Garden
Communal areas, community centres, churches, parish offices and so on. If you are part of a winning team let us know! - Commercial Premises
Calling on all local businesses, pubs, shops, and offices to make the most of your outdoor spaces and gain some valuable publicity for your efforts! - Young Gardener
If you’re a budding gardener then this is the one for you. Gardens have to be created by young people but can be any size, from a postage stamp sized patch to a whole landscape! You must be under 16. - Young Gardeners
If you are part of a gardening club or team, put your horticultural skills to the test and be in with a chance of winning some great prizes. You must be under 16. 
Tallest Sunflower
A bit of fun for everyone! Judged purely on height, sunflowers will be measured in early September.
The main categories are now closed. However there is still time to enter the Tallest Sunflower competition which remains open until the end of August.
- Call us with your details on 01344 352000 or
- Email us your details to yourgardens@bracknell-forest.gov.uk or
- Download a paper form and return it to the address on the right and side of the page or
- Follow the link to complete an online form on the right-hand side of this page
Please note that the following applies to all categories EXCEPT Tallest Sunflower.
- Application
An application form MUST be completed in order for the garden to be considered a valid entry. It is not sufficient to supply name, address and category details. - Preliminary judging
All valid entries are visited and scored against the judging criteria listed below. Photographs will be taken. No appointments are made for visits and no prior warning is given. The only exception is for all young gardener(s) entries where visits are pre-arranged. - Shortlisting
On the basis of the completed application forms and the preliminary judging scores, entries are shortlisted to proceed to final judging. - Final judging
Final judging is done by committee at the end of July. The results are announced at the awards ceremony in September. - Tallest Sunflower Category
Once we receive your completed application form we ask you to send us the measured or estimated height of your sunflower by a date towards the end of August. We visit and verify the height of the tallest five sunflowers in early September.
Front Garden, Community/Neighbourhood Garden, Commercial Premises:
- Quality of floral display - Colour, form, composition, and horticultural practice.
- Quality of permanent planting - Variety, year-round interest, and scent.
- Quality of design and use of space - Imagination, use of colour, and depth.
- Contribution to the visual environment - impact on streetscene.
- Environmental consideration - Use of native plants, encouragement of wildlife, water conservation, peat free, chemical free, composting, and energy conservation.
Young Gardeners:
- Quality of plants and planting.
- Concept, design and use of space.
- Horticultural knowledge and skill
- Environmental consideration
- Effort and enthusiasm
Tallest Sunflower:
- Purely judged on height.
Please note that we can only accept entries growing within Bracknell Forest Borough.
In addition to the main category winners, the judges' have a number of discretionary awards up for grabs!
These awards allow the judges to recognise individual areas of outstanding merit or innovation and include a special award for the Most Environmentally-friendly Garden.
The lucky winners are announced at the 'Your Gardens Awards' in September. Two guests per valid entry are invited to attend.
- End of March - launch of competition and entry forms available
- Mid June - closing date for entries (except for Tallest Sunflower category)
- End of June - preliminary judging
- End of July - final judging
- End of August - deadline for Tallest Sunflower competition
- Early September - measuring sunflowers
- September - Your Gardens Awards
Competition Sponsors and Partners
Your Gardens is generously sponsored by the Bracknell Regeneration Partnership (BRP) with media support from the Bracknell Forest Standard.
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