Event organiser David Taylor from the Alnwick Garden Town Trust explains: “Even though the event is in its fourth year, the miserable weather in July and early August made us think there wouldn’t be much enthusiasm for this year’s festival - and that would have been a terrible shame as it is just two years since we were affected by Covid.
“However, I’m delighted to report that the gardens had a good number of visitors over the three days, meaning that all the hard work of the gardeners was worthwhile.
“As can be seen in the pictures here the patios and courtyards looked fantastic and produced a wonderfully colourful display.
“I must say thank you to everyone that showed their garden, the businesses that provided the prizes, the Tourist Information Centre at Alnwick Playhouse for giving out the maps, Alnwick in Bloom for the trophy and Tom Pattinson for judging the entries.
“Finally, a big thank you to the public that supported the event and have given us the enthusiasm to carry on. We will be announcing entry details for next year’s Festival soon so watch this space!”
Local gardening expert Tom Pattinson, who judged the entries said “It was delightful and revealing to judge the Courtyard and Patio Festival gardens, many of which were hidden from view. There were some superb displays despite the recent wet weather and as the innovation shown by some entrants confirmed, the town has some talented gardeners.”
The winners of the three categories are:
1. Best Private Courtyard/Patio. George Turner, 35 Swansfield Park Road. Prize- A voucher for a Friends Membership of Alnwick Gardens given by Mark Brassell, director of Alnwick Gardens.
2. Best Communal Courtyard/Patio. Chris Gibson, St. Paul’s Court. Prize, A voucher for £50 for hard landscaping from Jewson of Alnwick.
3. Best Pub, Restaurant, Hotel, B&B. Gus Odlin, The John Bull Inn, Howick Street. Prize, A £50 voucher for SherKhan, Indian Restaurant, Alnwick.
The overall winner was George Turner who was presented with the Alnwick in Bloom Trophy and a cheque for £50.
One of the entrants, Les Slater commented on social media: “It's been an absolutely great weekend. We opened our front, rear and side gardens for public access. It was fairly busy Friday and Saturday, but Sunday was non-stop…we even had to postpone Sunday dinner! There were lots of questions and interest with people from outside the area making the journey and Hazel and I enjoyed making them welcome. Well done to the organisers of this event.”
