Daily Local News (West Chester, PA)
Get growing for a chance to win cash in contest
Registration opens May 3 for Pottstown and Boyertown residents
People who “grow for it” and enter the 9th annual Home Garden Contest could win a $150 prize.
Registration for the garden contest opens May 3 to homeowners and renters who reside within the boroughs of Pottstown and Boyertown. People who enter the contest will compete for cash prizes in several garden categories. The grand prize for most categories is $150, but there are also cash winnings for 2nd place, 3rd place and honorable mentions.
Contest entrants will receive more benefits than the chance to win a monetary award. The Home Garden Contest supports both beginner and experienced gardeners so they can enjoy the physical and mental health benefits of the activity. The contest also promotes community.
“Connection is why the contest was created,” said Daniel Price, Mosaic Community Land Trust executive director. “As we come out of this pandemic, people are excited to connect with their neighbors and community.”
The Home Garden Contest includes categories for people of all ages and abilities, including children. There are two new additions for the 2021 contest. This year’s event includes a best block and people’s choice category. The best block winner will get a summer cookout party. Price said judges of previous years noticed there were often multiple entries from the same neighborhood block.
“The purpose of this contest is so people want to beautify their space which leads to a neighbor wanting to beautify their space as well. Hopefully, this has a domino effect, so people are beautifying the community at large,” he said.
Price said the people’s choice category will help spread the word about the contest so more of the beautiful gardens in each borough are recognized. People who notice a lovely garden in their neighborhood can now enter the space into the contest.
“If you see a nice home garden you think is stunning, you can go onto the home garden contest website and enter the address,” Price said.
The garden contest committee will send a letter to that address to inform the owner their garden has been nominated.
The other five categories for the 2021 contest are general garden, vegetable garden, young gardener, outdoor oasis and pleasant porch.
To enter any of these categories, people can complete an online registration beginning May 3, 2021, at homegardencontest.com. People can also complete a registration in person at the Mosaic office in Pottstown or the Building a Better Boyertown office. Registration closes at 5 p.m. on June 25.
People who visit the contest website will also learn more about some exciting gardening events. Once again, there are self-guided garden tours in Pottstown and Boyertown this season. The remaining tours will take place on July 10 and Sept. 18. The rain date for each is the following Saturday. Individual garden tour tickets are $20 in advance or $25 on the day of the tour.
For more information about the tours, visit homegardencontest.com/events.
Judging for the contest will take place from July 9 to July 19. The two municipalities have separate judging, but all contestants will be invited to a joint awards luncheon in September.
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 including gardening tips and resources, visit homegardencontest.com.