Tower Hamlets allotment wins Best Garden award

Award Ceremony. Pic: East London Garden Society

A Bethnal Green allotment was crowned the ‘Best Garden in East London’ in a new competition earlier this month.

The Cranbrook Community Food Garden (CCFG) won the competition- the first of its kind in east London- which was hosted by The East London Garden Society.

It attracted 30 entrants from various east London locations, including the Recipe Garden in Mile End, which was awarded second place.

The chairman of the East London Garden Society, Geoff Juden, said the competition aimed to “promote urban gardening and to make people aware of the ability to live in a better environment.”

Juden said: “The gardens were judged according to their colour, sustainability, being able to withstand drought and making maximum se of available space”.

Two gardeners from CCFG, Janet Burns and Laura Buckley, were chosen for the ‘tremendous effort’ they put into their community via the garden.

Local politicians were on hand to present the awards to the community gardeners, including two Tower Hamlets Labour councillors, Rachael Saunders and Rajib Ahmed.

Amongst those judging the competition was society member Lady Avebury, who was chief judge, and who has been an avid gardener for many years.

The CCFG allotment scheme started in April of 2009 using a £5000 donation from Tower Hamlets Homes, a not-for-profit housing service, and an additional £750 from the London Mayor’s Capital Growth project.

The group meets once a week and invites people with all levels of gardening experience to learn about growing food, such as advice on what to grow and when to grow it.

They also provide compost, seeds, tools and other resources so that local residents can try their hand and learn something new.

There wasn’t a nomination stage in the competition, leaving it up to the community gardeners to put themselves and their gardens forward.

However the East London Garden Society has decided to broaden its criteria for the 2013 contest to encourage more competitors.

More information on the East London Garden Society, including their upcoming events, can be found here

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