Bloomin' lovely
Bloomin' lovely
The North East has a long cultural gardening tradition from leek shows to impressive parks. Tony Henderson reports on the best of the bunch from this year’s 60th Northumbria in Bloom
While a Northumberland town has a wealth of historic buildings, there are few green public spaces.
But Alnwick has overcome the imbalance with efforts which have seen it clinch the title of overall winner in this year’s 60th Northumbria in Bloom competition.
Judges said: “Alnwick has a population of just 9,000 but the tourists visiting the historic town increase the footfall to 1.5million per year and the town council and Alnwick in Bloom volunteers have their work cut out to keep the town, with its lovely, historic and listed buildings, looking smart with thoughtful planting in containers and beds.
“For a town with very few and quite small green public spaces, the area does not feel hemmed in.
“The Alnwick in Bloom team really understands what works for their town, its residents and their visitors. There is year-round interest in the planting schemes and artwork, all maintained to a very high standard.
“Where there is seasonal planting, the designs are all themed and are different every year. There are numerous examples of edible planting and passers-by are encouraged to pick and eat the produce.
“There are very strong community links, with volunteers, local schoolchildren and The Alnwick Garden all working together to produce a stunning entry.”
Alnwick also picked up a strong of other awards, including Best Town.
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The John Bull won the Best Pub category, while the Best Hotel/Guest House title went to the Cookie Jar, which is a former nunnery, and the Best Grounds of a Hospital, University or Public Building prize was awarded to the Willowburn Sports & Leisure Centre.
Best Residential Community was the town’s Robert Adam Court . The haul was completed by The Alnwick Garden’s success in the Best Tourist/Visitor Attraction/ Country Estate section, which was praised by judges as “a marvel of engineering, plantsmanship and entertainment.”
Durham also enjoyed a run of successes. It won the Small City award, and the Urban Community award went to Belmont Parish, the Best Schools prize to Gilesgate Primary in Belmont and Best Private Garden to 3 Dinsdale Drive, Belmont.
Wharton Park in Durham won Best Park, with judges saying: “A peaceful haven on the edge of the busy city centre. It provides the people of Durham with a venue for a range of events over 100 years since opening. The community garden creates a floral oasis in the parkland setting.”
Best Care/Residential/Convalescent Home, Hospice or Day Centre winner was St Cuthbert’s Hospice.
Robert Germany, chairman of Northumbria in Bloom said: “When people think of Northumbria in Bloom they often assume that it’s all about hanging baskets and the municipal flower displays on roundabouts.
“The reality couldn’t be further from the truth. This means that ‘in bloom’ communities tackle everything from litter, graffiti and mitigating anti-social behaviour through to conservation, biodiversity and improving horticultural standards, and that’s not to mention the positive impact on health and wellbeing, sense of place, community spirit and civic pride.
“Many groups are using Bloom to help to mitigate some of the effects of climate change through planet friendly gardening. It is wonderful to see all the excellent work that communities are doing to protect and enhance their local environments.
“These awards are all about recognising and celebrating this work and all that our communities have collectively achieved in enhancing the overall environment of the North East in 2024”.
Some highlights from rest of the Northumbria in Bloom awards:
Most improved entry: Bishop Auckland, which also won the Best Large Town award.
Best entry in Spring: Darlington, which also won the City Centre award.
Small village: Cowpen Bewley, Stockton-on-Tees
Best village: Washington.
Large village: Holywell, Northumberland
Small town: Greater Willington parish, County Durham.
Best Conservation: Friends of Valley Park, Cramlington.
Best Bus/Metro/Railway Station: Friends of Alnmouth Station.
Coastal resort: Seaham, whose Greenscape Community Garden also took the Best Allotments prize.
Judges’ discretionary Award: Southwick, Sunderland, of which the judges said: “The Southwick team made a huge effort.
“There was a beautifully decorated redundant phone box and many members of the community, old and young, had joined in painting stones with motifs depicting flora and fauna, red poppies and union flags to create a colourful and innovative scheme which decorated the Collieries and Shipyards workers Memorial Stone and the Southwick Green Remembrance Garden.”