The Heights nursing home in Downley hosts ‘Fremantle in Bloom awards’ to recognise green fingered talent

L-R: Ewa Banaszcyk, Junior Walker, Guy Houlton, John Ashby, Blesson Thomas, Cllr Paul Turner, Elizabeth Britnell, Samantha Anns.

The Heights nursing home in Downley hosted the 2019 ‘Fremantle in Bloom awards’ on Wednesday 10th July 2019.

Cllr Paul Turner joined residents and employees from local charity and care provider, The Fremantle Trust, for a ‘blooming’ good day at its annual gardening awards, which took place at The Heights nursing home in Downley.

More than 50 entries were submitted to the Fremantle in Bloom competition from keen gardeners across the Trust’s older people services in Bucks, competing in five hotly contested categories.

Residents came together to open the event by singing ‘All Things Bright and Beautiful’, which set the tone for the rest of the afternoon.

This year’s competition featured a discerning panel of judges, including Cippenham based Barbara Clark who is a relative from Lent Rise House, an experienced gardener and member of the Royal Horticultural Society. Leon Walton, a representative from the floral division at the local Sainsbury’s branch in Taplow also cast a vigilant eye over the submissions as part of the judging process.

The winners and runners up are as follows:

Best floral garden

• Winner: Sir Aubrey Ward House, Marlow.
• Runner up: Icknield Court, Princes Risborough.

Best sensory garden

• Winner: Lent Rise House, Burnham.
• Runner up: Carey Lodge, Wing.

Best balcony / courtyard

• Winner: Chesham Leys, Chesham.
• Runner up: Sir Aubrey Ward House, Marlow.

Best indoor garden

• Winner: Fremantle Court, Stoke Mandeville.
• Runner up: Mulberry Court, Chalfont St Peter.

Best vegetable / herb garden

• Winner: Farnham Common House, Farnham Common.
• Runner up: Chesham Leys, Chesham.

Outstanding garden (overall winner of the Stan Flowers Cup)

• Cherry Garth, Holmer Green.

Winners and runners up were presented with certificates and trophies for attentively nurturing plants, gardens and displays for all to enjoy in their living environments.

Junior Walker, leisure and lifestyle manager for the Trust, added: ‘It’s always a joy to see the incredible submissions from across our services, and the level of talent and enthusiasm that is put into this event each year. Gardening is a wonderful way to express creativity and can naturally bring people together as a social activity, or equally allow quiet contemplation for individuals.

We’d like to thank everyone for their involvement in Fremantle in Bloom 2019 and hope we continue to enjoy the rewards of our collective gardening efforts throughout the rest of the summer.‘

Further information on The Fremantle Trust can be found on their website at https://www.fremantletrust.org.