Halesowen
The Heart of England’s community gardeners clinched a top prize and took home a haul of medals at the Royal Horticultural Society’s (RHS) annual Britain in Bloom awards ceremony in Belfast last Friday night.
Six finalists were chosen to fly the flag for the region following success in the Heart of England in Bloom competition the previous year. A total of 76 groups from across the UK competed in 12 categories with each also vying for a gold, silver gilt, silver or bronze medal.
Halesowen won the urban community category while market town Newcastle-under-Lyme scooped a gold medal in the prestigious ‘best of the best’ Champion of Champions category. Shrewsbury and Upton in Worcestershire both earned gold while historic riverside town Tewkesbury and border town Oswestry walked away with silver gilts. All battled what judges have declared the toughest year on record with communities nationwide fighting to keep blooms alive.
The town of Halesowen, built on a network of canals, impressed the RHS judges with its floral displays nodding to the area’s industrial heritage, colourful pub frontages and tree planting efforts. In Leasowes Park, a major restoration of the historic 18th-century walled garden is underway with a new orchard in the outer ‘slip garden’ boasting over 120 pear and apple trees.
Newcastle-under-Lyme was deemed outstanding, just missing out on the competition’s top prize to Truro in Cornwall. Highlights included beautiful Queen’s Gardens in the town centre, the fragrant Italian herb garden and Silverdale Country Park, a former colliery site that is now an important wildlife hotspot.
The full results for the RHS Britain in Bloom finalists representing the Heart of England are:
| Entry | Category | Award |
| Halesowen
|
Urban Community | Silver Gilt and category winner |
| Newcastle-under-Lyme
|
Champion of Champions
|
Gold
Joint winner of Wild About Gardens award |
| Oswestry
|
Large Town | Silver Gilt |
| Shrewsbury | Small City
|
Gold |
| Tewkesbury
|
Town | Silver Gilt |
| Upton | Large Village
|
Gold |
Finalists are judged on their horticultural achievement, community participation and environmental responsibility with the RHS judges visiting communities from the end of July after months of hot and dry weather.
Darren Share, Chair of the RHS Britain in Bloom judges, said: “This year’s finalists faced the most challenging conditions the competition has ever seen with much of the country under snow and ice at the start of spring followed by the joint-hottest summer on record.
“That so many groups have walked away with top medals is remarkable and a reflection of communities’ hard work, ingenuity and horticultural know-how.”
The Heart of England finalists collected their awards from Chris Bavin, presenter of BBC Two’s Britain in Bloom TV series and guest speaker at the awards ceremony.
The full results for RHS Britain in Bloom 2018 are here: www.rhs.org.uk/bloomawards2018.
