Our Facebook Ideal Garden Competition Winners – Double The Prizes, Double the Smiles

Well. What an exciting week and weekend it was.  Not only have we seen a man scale a building to save a four-year-old hanging from a balcony, some of the world’s worst goalkeeping mistakes from the Liverpool keeper (what was he meant to be keeping actually? It certainly wasn’t ‘the balls out of the net’) and a man drove from Lands End to John O’Groats in nine hours, around the time it takes to talk to customer service at Virgin Media.

But topping all this news was the recent announcement of the winner of the 2018 MowDirect Spring Facebook Competition. The BAFTAS, the OSCARS, the Golden Globes? Chicken feed compared to this.

SO exciting, and made even more exciting because we decided, after a technical miscount of words in the winning entry, pointed out by Shakespearean sounding competition entrant Richard Olivier, to give away TWO prizes. Yes. TWO Einhell GE-BC 33 AS Low-Vibration Brushcutters are winging their way to the successful competition WINNERS.

We asked entrants to tell us about their ideal gardens, and we had a flood of great responses. They ranged from funny, touching, yearning, in rhyme in prose and in all sorts of styles.

Our two winners were Anna Stimpson and    Eileen Bowdin. Congratulations to both of them and very well done for the two top entries.

As usual, we had a difficult but enjoyable time judging the entries and have decided to publish our top ten favourites including, of course, the two happy winners.

So here we go. The first winning entry picked was Anna’s so we’ll go with her first.

Anna Stimpson

Ode to my garden

I wish I had a garden that was small and neat and pretty.

Instead, I have a garden that resembles the Serengeti.

My friends have vegetables and pretty pots of seeds,

I have piles of chalk and rather stubborn weeds.

Perhaps one day I’ll get my way and have flowers instead of sand

but for now, I’ll do my best with my sorry plot of land!

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I know the feeling, Anna. My garden is also in need of some TLC. Next chosen was Eileen Bowdin’s tribute to her grandparents.

Eileen Bowdin

‘My ideal garden would have a patio area with a wicker sofa surrounded by a rose garden with roses named after my grandparents so I could think of them every time the roses bloomed. Beyond that would be various fruitful trees and bushes to enjoy!’

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Lovely thought Eileen. Another worthy winner. One of my personal favourites comes next, smart and well thought out, this was a real contender.

Richard Olivier

‘My ideal garden should be…

Organic. No nasties on my veggies.

Wildlife-friendly. Somewhere for the badgers and foxes to play.

Delicious. Lots of fruit trees and berries to pick.

Insect friendly.

Retreat. Somewhere to escape.

Entertaining. You’re all invited for a BBQ.

Calming. Somewhere to relax.

Tranquil.’

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See? It spells out MowDirect. Clever man. Here’s another sweet and simple entry, Mary J Heald is looking for some peace and quiet. Aren’t we all?

Mary J Heald

‘A place to be the whole year round which is full of interest, colour and wildlife. A sanctuary from the outside world where I can retreat, refresh and de-stress. Somewhere to observe the changing seasons and new growth.’

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Lovely. Brian Crosset is looking for some colour in his garden and a ‘nicely cut lawn’. Brian, you need a good, decently priced lawn mower

Brian Crossett

‘Tulip beds and pansy heads

crocus and daffodils too!

flowers and trees, to attract the bees,

purples, reds and blue!

A nicely cut lawn that’s rid of weeds!

Maybe a vegetable bed!

An array of budding bulbs and seeds

And perhaps a little shed!’

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I love that last line ‘and perhaps a little shed?’ it’s so plaintive, like Rupert Brooke’s ‘and is there honey still for tea?’.

Emma Louise Chapman next, who gets a special mention for her use of the words ‘titivating’ and ‘furtive’. I can honestly say that’s the first time I have seen those slightly ‘Carry On’ words used on facebook. They sure beat ‘LOL’ and ‘Like’.

Emma Louise Chapman

‘The titivating of all of my senses pushing away that black dog. Sitting with my feet firmly on the ground just looking about at my surroundings whilst listening to the running water of my fountain. The warm sun on my skin the smell of furtive herbs and flowers. Time for reflection.’

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And one of Drew’s favourites, Julie Roberts, is going back to nature.

Julie Roberts

‘I love gardens that look natural so lots of natural products like cobblestones curved paths natural ponds with lilies borders full of colourful plants that attract bees and butterflies. Add Bird Bee and Insect Boxes and feeders for the Wild Birds. Lastly, add a place to sit. Heaven.’

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And Mo Hook is a girl after my own heart who loves a water feature.

Mo Hook

‘My ideal garden would be a weed and bramble free with luscious green grass to please the eye. A trickling ball waterfall set in pebbles on a rounded patio surrounded by marigolds and busy lizzies in coloured pots. A table with a sunshade and two chairs. Such harmony!’

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Emily Williams Beer is rhyming and scanning nicely and thinking about the birds and the bees… well it is that time of year

Emily Williams Beer

‘Less of a jungle with nice trimmed trees, a sanctuary for bugs, birds and bees. A nice clear lawn with room to run, somewhere my kids could have lots of fun. Flowers and shrubs full of colour and scent, this piece of kit would be money well-spent!’

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And last but not least, and again one of my favourite garden pastimes, Brenda Melaniphy has got her eye on some barbecuing…mmmm…sausages!

Brenda Melaniphy

‘I would love a brick built BBQ with table & chairs & a hammock in the back corners. In the front, a hot tub under an awning so you can look up at the stars. In between all these sections would be a winding path bordered with shrubs and flowers.’

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And that’s your lot. Ten tip-top entries from ten of our Facebook friends. Thank you all SO much for entering and watch this space, there is bound to be another competition soon.

Don’t forget, if you need any advice on garden machinery DO call our friendly and fabulous team on 0345 4588 905. They are there from 9 am to 5 pm Monday to Friday and from 10 am to 4 pm on Saturdays. They will offer you impartial advice and try to get you the right tool at the right price.

‘Great advice and service. MowDirect were more than happy to chat to me to make sure the product I had spotted on the website was actually the best for my needs. They spent quite a bit of time chatting with me to find out what I was hoping to achieve. It arrived well packaged and ready to use and I am delighted.’ D. Coffey (TRUSTPILOT)

See Yea.    Holly.