Take a tour on the garden side

Spend this spring, summer and fall walking through the Boyertown and Pottstown Garden Tour

The local Home Garden Contest is back for the 9th year and is returning with exciting tour events meant to inspire people to get growing.

Registration for the Annual Home Garden Contest opens May 3 to homeowners and renters who reside within the Boroughs of Pottstown and Boyertown. People who enter the contest will be competing for bragging rights, as well as cash prizes up to $150. The two municipalities have separate judging, but all contestants will be invited to a joint awards ceremony in September.

Residents can get inspiration for their garden by participating in the Boyertown and Pottstown Garden Tour Series. Three self-guided tours will take place in each borough throughout the gardening season. Daniel Price, Mosaic Community Land Trust executive director, said this is the first time there will be multiple tours with one happening in the spring, summer and fall this year.

“It will be great to showcase as many homes as we possibly can” he said.

Price said the tours are a great way for people to get ideas of what to do with their own gardens in preparation of the garden contest. Tour attendees will once again get to participate in a People’s Choice judging. The home garden with the most votes will be recognized during the contest award banquet in September.

The garden tours will take place on April 24, July 10, and September 18. The rain date for each will be the following Saturday. The April garden tour also has an option to include a lunch at Gracie’s 21st Century Café.

Individual Garden Tour tickets are $20 in advance or $25 the day of the tour. People can attend all three tours for $50. Tickets are on sale online at bit. ly/2021GardenTour. Tickets can also be purchased in person at the Mosaic office in Pottstown or the Building a Better Boyertown office.

Price said organizers are still looking for a few home gardens to showcase during the Sept 18th tour. He said gardens included in the tour don’t have to be within Pottstown or Boyertown, but can include residents in neighboring areas. Anyone interested in showing their garden as part of the tour can contact Mosaic at info@mosaicclt. org or call 484-214-5046.

The garden tours are a great way for people to get out in their community and witness the beauty of nature, after a challenging year with the COVID pandemic.

“This year we kept hearing we should stay inside, and that was a confusing message,” Price said. “Being outside in nature, in any way, is important.”

In addition to the tours, Pottstown and Boyertown residents can get outdoors by preparing a home garden to enter this year’s contest.

The contest has categories for experienced gardeners, beginners, and even kids. The mission is to encourage people to experience the benefits of gardening and promote community pride.

“Starting a garden with flowers or vegetables is great for your health, great for the environment, and just gives you that clear mind to help you relieve stress,” Price said.

He said gardeners can experience these benefits no matter the size of their gardens. Mosaic is available as a resource to anyone starting a garden for the first time or people who need help in general. For more information about the contest, visit www.homegardencontest.com. To connect with Mosaic for gardening tips and resources, visit mosaicclt.org.

MEDIANEWS GROUP FILE PHOTO Below: Community members look at the growing plots of the Barth community garden in Pottstown.

MEDIANEWS GROUP FILE PHOTO At right: A Pottstown home garden uses decorations that say “Grow” to add to the creativity. The fruitful area was entered in the Home Garden Contest.

MEDIANEWS GROUP FILE PHOTO At right: People stand outside a Boyertown residence and view the planted area as they judge it for the Home Garden Contest.

MEDIANEWS GROUP FILE PHOTO Above: 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.