About the famous Garden Competition
SPRING is a riot of colour in Toowoomba as the city’s gardeners vie for top honours in one of the world’s most extraordinary garden challenges, The Chronicle Garden Competition.
There are no garden competitions in Australia that can match the variety of categories, high standard of competition, professional independent judging and gala awards night.
But to top it off, all entrants in The Chronicle Garden Competition open their gardens to the public for 10 days at no charge.
A bit about the competition
In 2017, there are 110 gardens entered in The Chronicle Garden Competition.
Each year there are new entries and a different independent judge, so the results are rarely the same two years running.
It’s important to remember that it takes many years to grow a champion garden and visitors will appreciate that this year’s winners are very experienced entrants whose gardens have matured beautifully over time.
As you travel around the garden entries you will see every kind of spring bulb, blossom and bloom as gardeners try to earn those extra points needed for the big trophies.
Each year we welcome many new entrants to the competition and it’s an absolute joy to share their enthusiasm and vision as they embark on their gardening journey.
History
The first Chronicle Garden Competition took place in 1949 and was won by a Mrs Ruby O’Brien of 269 West St.
The competition was so successful in brightening the appearance of the town and lifting post-war spirits that it formed the inspiration for a bigger event, the Carnival of Flowers.
In 1950, the year of the first Toowoomba Carnival of Flowers, there were 53 entries in The Chronicle Garden Competition, with a total prize pool of 50 pounds.
The garden competition helped Toowoomba earn the title “Garden City” and still brings thousands of visitors to the Carnival each year.