Volunteer gardeners at The Kirkwood in Dalton have struck gold and there have been a barrowful of blooming awards for communities elsewhere in Kirklees.

The Kirkwood’s beautiful and peaceful gardens won gold in the Charitable Establishment section in this year’s Yorkshire in Bloom Awards and shared top spot with Barnsley Hospice for the second successive year.

The volunteer gardeners work hard throughout the year and continued during the pandemic, when restrictions allowed.

The Kirkwood garden was judged on criteria such as horticultural, environmental and community factors and head volunteer gardener Linda Roberts collected the award at the Yorkshire In Bloom awards ceremony.

Linda said: “We are delighted to pick up the award. It is much deserved as all the volunteers have worked incredibly hard to make the garden the peaceful and tranquil place that it is, for patients and staff to relax and enjoy.”

Volunteer gardener Val said: “To win the award is fantastic. As a volunteer team we work very hard to keep improving the garden all the time.

“It has been hard this summer particularly with the heat and so we’ve had to manage that carefully. One thing I love about our garden is that there are so many parts to it, but one of the best bits is the vegetable patch and the compost area.

“It is a working garden, so the vegetable patch feeds the people within the hospice and the compost area helps to grow the garden in several ways.”

There were more accolades for others in Kirklees including Huddersfield Irish Centre which won a gold award in the Small Business category.

Pete Fawcett with a hattrick of gold awards for Huddersfield Irish Centre. Pic by: Gordon the Gardener

Mirfield in Bloom won gold in the Large Town category and Best Overall Town and there was a host of other Yorkshire awards too.

Mirfield represented Yorkshire in the Britain in Bloom finals in London and came away with a silver gilt and there was a Community Champions Award for Christine Sykes.

The team from Mirfield in Bloom at the Yorkshire in Bloom Awards with Mayor of Mirfield Clr Vivien Lees-Hamilton. Pic by: Gordon the Gardener
Mirfield in Bloom volunteers at Britain in Bloom in London

Other Yorkshire in Bloom awards included: Large Village – Roberttown in Bloom, Gold; RHS ‘It’s Your Neighbourhood’ awards: Mirfield Railway Station, Outstanding; St Mary’s Neighbourhood, Mirfield, Outstanding; St Paul’s Lock Neighbourhood, Outstanding; Sunnybank Neighbourhood, Thriving; Roberttown Grange Tenants and Residents’ Association, Outstanding; and Cleckheaton in Bloom – Library Garden, Thriving.

Also, The Old Colonial, Mirfield, (small business) Silver Gilt; Mirfield Co-op (medium business) Gold; Camira Fabrics (large business) Silver.

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Harrogate Flower Show Young People’s Award – Church House Pre School, Mirfield, Gold; Crossley Fields Junior and Infant School, Silver; Holly Bank Trust, Silver

Discretionary Yorkshire Rose Awards 2022 – Best Commercial Entry Supporting the Community, Mirfield Co-op; Best New Entry Award – Roberttown in Bloom; Best New Entry into It’s Your Neighbourhood Award – Cleckheaton in Bloom; and Community Champion Awards Ruth Edwards – Mirfield in Bloom.

We’ve had the harvest – and frosts won’t be far away so plant winter bedding now to give it a head start says Gordon the Gardener