Putney residents can enter not one but two garden competitions this year. The Putney Society’s Make Putney Bloom judges are walking the streets from next week, while the deadline for Wandsworth in Bloom is still five weeks away.
Last year, the Putney Society competition did not run, and Wandsworth in Bloom stepped in to fill the gap as the borough-wide option. This year both are back simultaneously: residents on 20 central Putney streets can be in the running for a local award and the borough-wide competition at the same time.
The Putney Society competition, launched in February with a mission to transform gardenless streets, requires no entry form. Judges walk the streets themselves, identifying the best front garden displays between 8 and 22 June. Gold, Silver and Bronze awards are available, with pots and window boxes counting where garden space is limited. The 20 streets include Oxford Road, Burstock Road, Lacy Road and Norroy Road.
Wandsworth in Bloom covers the whole borough, is free to enter, and runs a wider range of categories including best front garden, best balcony or container garden, best allotment plot, best business in bloom, and school and community food-growing entries. All shortlisted entrants are automatically considered for Best in Show, People’s Choice and Most Biodiverse. The deadline is Monday 6 July.
The Putney Society competition has been building. At the RHS London in Bloom ceremony last October, the Society’s Open Spaces Panel received an Outstanding rating, the highest of five levels. If they achieve Outstanding again this autumn, it would be year two of the three consecutive years needed to qualify for a National Certificate of Distinction.
How to get involved
If you live on one of the 20 Make Putney Bloom streets, the judging is underway and there is nothing to register. A well-tended front garden, a pot, a window box with something growing is what counts. The full list of streets is in our February launch piece.
For Wandsworth in Bloom, enter online before 6 July. The competition is open to residents, businesses, schools and community groups across the borough.
Winners of both competitions will be announced later in the summer. For now, the judges are out, and there are still five weeks to enter the other one.
