June 2020 marked the first Tolworth Garden Festival where our communities celebrated the joys of gardening with a virtual garden festival showcasing the best (and oddest) of growing.
Many of our local green-fingered friends would have been helping in the community garden area of Hampton Court Garden Festival, which was cancelled due to the Coronavirus pandemic, so celebrating green lockdown achievements was much needed.
The Garden of Hearts illustration by Eloise (4) via Colouring in Kingston
The Categories
1. Best container or pot planting
2. Best outdoor planting
3. Best up-cycled garden DIY
4. Best lockdown improvements (before & after)
5. Young gardeners category (10 & under)
6. Young gardeners category (11-16 years old)
7. Oddest homegrown fruit and vegetables
(Photos from last year will also be accepted for this category)
8. Best greenery seen whilst on daily exercise
(Please do not email in for this category as it will be judged via a public vote on the Facebook Page @TolworthGardenFestival )
Garden illustration by Lashantai (7)
via Colouring in Kingston
The Judges
Simon Jakeman B.E.M BSc is the London Fire Brigade Green Champion Co-ordinator. Simon has exhibited at Hampton Court Flower Show receiving A Silver Gilt & 2 Silver medals. He has appeared on Gardeners' World & Love your Garden and inspired Fire Stations across the country to create gardens. Simon lives in Hook and is a keen local allotment holder.
121 Collective are a young and innovational design & build collective based in Tolworth. Their work focuses on craft and sustainability, driven through a curiosity to explore context.
121 Collective have collaborated with The Community Brain on the SHEDx project, including new planted seating in New Malden, interactive wayfinding for Tolworth Court Farm Fields Nature Reserve and are currently helping to set up a sustainable community hub in Tolworth called the Farm of Futures.
Janice is a garden designer based in Tolworth. She has worked on show gardens both at RHS Chelsea and at RHS Hampton Court but is usually found helping homeowners figure out how to make the best of their garden space. Janice is particularly interested in how green spaces can be therapeutic for children, vulnerable groups and older folk. In collaboration with SHEDx, Janice designed the planting at a new pocket park in New Malden and is working with the team on planting of new nature trails in Tolworth.
Lionel, now retired, has looked after our borough's green spaces for over 20 years as part of the council's landscaping team. He has been gardening since the age of 4, helping his mother to weed out the carrots, and has previously been on the judging panel for Kingston in Bloom. Lionel is a keen allotmenteer and has been a plotholder at Tolworth Main Allotments for 26 years, making him one of the longest standing residents (alongside Ray on plot 54).
Andy Robinson is Community Development Manager at Idverde UK Ltd, Europe’s largest provider of grounds maintenance services and landscape construction projects. Andy has been with Idverde since 2012 and working within Kingston since 2015 as a Grounds Maintenance partner to Kingston Council. He holds qualifications in both horticulture and conservation management, specialising in working with local communities and leading on volunteer events within public green spaces.
Insects illustration by Stella (5) via Colouring in Kingston
The Prizes
£99 Gift Voucher for Janice Horslen Garden Design
This gift voucher entitles the winner to a 30 minute garden consultation with Janice and a short report on design and planting suggestions. Janice tailors all of her packages to each situation, but every client gets a friendly chat and a garden assessment to work out what’s needed to create a space that’s manageable, good for the environment and a haven for you and your family. For more information & to book a visit www.janicehorslendesign.co.uk
£60 Sapling Tree Bundle
Your choice of 6 sapling trees (approx 40-60cm): Crab Apple (9m), Hazel (+10m), Elder (10m), Blackthorn (7m) or Dog Rose (1.5m). Prize supported by The Farm of Futures in Tolworth, which is currently looking for activity and event ideas via a short survey.
£25 Gift Vouchers for Court Farm Garden Centre
Court Farm Garden Centre (Old Kingston Road, Worcester Park, KT4 7QH) provides a range of high quality plants and garden supplies and have just reopened their fabulous cafe. This prize is supported by Court Farm Garden Centre and the Idverde Community Investment Fund, which aims to empower local people to deliver sought after projects that improve their local green space or the public realm, enhance the local environment, and boost the wellbeing of local people.
Prize Terms & Conditions
Please note there are 8 prizes available as follows:
- 1 x £99 Gift Voucher for Janice Horslen Garden Design
- 1 x £60 Sapling Tree Bundle
- 3 x £25 Gift Vouchers for Court Farm Garden Centre
- 3 x £20 Flower Seed Bundle (including 8 varieties)
Category winners will be put into a secondary draw to decide prize choice order and emailed directly, prior to agreed names being announced via the SHEDx blog on Monday 6th July. Please note that we won't share your personal details with anyone else and you can find our privacy policy at www.thecommunitybrain.org.
Gift vouchers and seeds will be posted to the winners, however the sapling tree bundle must be collected from the Farm of Futures, located at Tolworth Main Allotments KT5 9BG.
*All young gardener entrants (categories 5 & 6) are entitled to a digital certificate of participation to print for display at home. To request please email tgf@thecommunitybrain.org
£20 Flower Seed Bundle (including 8 varieties)
Seeds include Penstemon 'Mixed Colours', Antirrhinum 'Snappy Tongue', Clary 'Bouquet Mixed', Rudbeckia'Marmalade', Shasta Daisy 'Alaska', Marigold '(French) Red Cherry', Aquilegia 'Lime Sorbet', Stock 'Brompton Mixed'. Prize supported by Mr Fothergill's Seeds.
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