Contest to reward growing talent

Growers can win money with home garden contest, take a self-guided tour of past winners

The community has another week to register for a local residential garden contest and a chance to win up to $150 for their growing accomplishments.

The 8th annual Home Garden Contest is open to homeowners and renters who reside in the boroughs of Pottstown and Boyertown. Registration was originally set to close on June 26 but has been extended for another week until Friday, July 3. The contest has five categories and 20 prizes with the top winners receiving money.

Committee members of the contest have extended the registration deadline to give residents of the area another opportunity to enter the gardens they’ve been working in all season long. Gardening is an outdoor activity that people have been able to continue to enjoy throughout the COVID-19 pandemic.

“We have a good number of registrants, but not as much as what I would have expected from seeing all the flourishing local gardens,” said Daniel Price, Home Garden Contest committee member.

Price is also the Mosaic community garden manager of Pottstown. He said gardening helped him get through a challenging time.

“We kept hearing the message of stay inside initially, which was terrifying,” Price said. “People desired being able to smell fresh air and appreciate nature.”

Price said he was able to use gardening as way to connect with the outdoors and has noticed others doing the same.

“I’ve been running, walking and biking a lot during this pandemic and everyone’s gardens look great,” he said.

Pottstown and Boyertown residents can submit a free registration by filling out the online form at HomeGardenContet.com. The categories are young gardener, general garden, vegetable garden, outdoor oasis and pleasant porch. Printed registration forms are also available. For more information, Pottstown residents can contact Daniel Price at danielpprice@hotmail.com and Boyertown residents can contact Gretchen Lea at glea316@comcast.net.

Although the contest is only open for Pottstown and Boyertown residents, members of other communities can participate in a selfguided garden tour on July 18 from 8 a.m. to noon. Since participants will guide themselves through the gardens, they will be able to practice social distancing.

“This is an event that you can do by yourself or you can do with a few friends,” Price said. “We have all the precautions in place.” All tour participants walking through the gardens will be asked to wear face masks and maintain a sixfoot distance if they encounter others outside their household.

The tour will showcase past winners of the Home Garden Contest and include a People’s Choice judging. People who take the tour will have the option to vote toward their favorite one. Tickets are $10 if purchased in advance and $15 the day of the event. Participants can pick up their tour maps the morning of July 18 from two locations. One pickup location is in Pottstown and the other is in Boyertown. For more details about the tour and to buy a ticket, visit bit.ly/HomeGardenContestTour.

“It (the garden tour) continues to be a great way to highlight the region and the beautiful properties of some of our smaller spaces,” Price said.

Another way people who live outside of Pottstown and Boyertown can participate in the garden contest is by becoming a judge. Judging is planned to take place from July 10 through July 20. All judges will get an invite to the awards ceremony taking place on Sept. 13. The two municipalities have separate judging, but all contestants will be invited to a joint awards ceremony.

The Home Garden Contest is made possible through a collaboration between the Mosaic Community Land Trust and Building a Better Boyertown as well as the main sponsor, the Pottstown Area Health & Wellness Foundation. Representatives of each make up the contest committee which organizes the annual growing event. For more information about the contest, visit HomeGardenContest.com.

“This is an event that you can do by yourself or you can do with a few friends. We have all the precautions in place.”

MEDIANEWS GROUP FILE PHOTO A Pottstown residence includes an expansive home garden with many different features including a pond. The 8th Annual Home Garden Contest has two new categories including an “Outdoor Oasis” category.

MEDIANEWS GROUP FILE PHOTO Home Garden Contest judges view a garden in the backyard of a Boyertown home.

MEDIANEWS GROUP FILE PHOTO A Pottstown borough resident showcases her produce and plants while judges visit her home for the Home Garden Contest.

MEDIANEWS GROUP FILE PHOTO Bright, colorful flowers have water droplets on the petals after a rain shower. The flowers were planted at a Pottstown residence and were entered in the Home Garden Contest.