Judging gardens

Press, 29 September 1988, Page 28

Judging gardens

Judging for the spring garden competitions will decide which are the most beautiful gardens in Christchurch. The Christchurch Beautifying Society will be judging gardens on Saturday, October 1 and the Christchurch Horticultural Society on Monday, October 3. While the aim of each organisation are much the same — to encourage people to take an interest in horticulture and to beautify their gardens — the way judging is done is quite different, said Mr Ron Proctor. He and his wife, May Proctor, are life members of the Christchurch Horticultural Society and he is a past president. He is the patron of the Papanui Beautifying Society and a long-time member of the Christchurch Beautifying Society. Beautifying societies judge gardens for their appeal from the street. This kind of competition encourages whole streets of neighbours to take pride in their gardens, leading to, a form of neighbourhood support, Ron Proctor said. “I find it wonderful that so many people, especially in Christchurch, take an interest in gardening. Thousands of people, even if they are not avid gardeners, have a neat and tidy property. They make a tremendous contribution to upholding the image of the garden city,” he said. The Horticultural Society judges the whole garden, awarding points for each area. A panel of three judges walks around each garden, making detailed observations. There are six categories of gardens — conventional, non-conventional (with a major portion as scree, pebble, courtyard, patio, wall or roof garden), flats and town houses, rock gardens, factory and hotel, motel and institution. Points are awarded for design and harmony, cultivation and maintenance, flowers, annuals and perennials, trees and shrubs, lawns, vegetables and fruit. Gardens should be lived in and enjoyed, featuring plants at their best at different times of the year. The vegetable garden should have crops planted in rotation so that the vegetables are at different stages of readiness. The judge would not be impressed by the man who had ’ his garden

crammed with vegetables all at their peak and insisted that his wife buy vegetables. Contrary to what many people think, prizes are not awarded to the gardens with the most impressive display of colourful annuals. The judges look for gardens that are attractive all year round. “We do not encourage transience,” Ron Proctor said. Flowers can of course be used to enhance the flowering shrubs, and forms and foliage. Tulips, polyanthus, poppies, pansies, violas and primulas add colour and beauty of the garden. Design is important. You have to take into account that the garden is on view from inside and outside the house. Harmony between house and garden is most important, he said. Preparation for a good spring garden begins in autumn when it is time to plant bedding plants. The colder winter months are when tidying, clearing and pruning should be done. Planning the garden would have been done well before this. Ron Proctor has been a judge for many years and has seen many changes in style. “Today’s gardens are better designed. They have more character and do not rely on annuals. Trees and shrubs are used more extensively. There is more emphasis on in-door-outdoor living and that is a wonderful idea. Many of these changes are attributable to the ideas, and imagination of landscape designers,” Mr Proctor said. Ron and May Proctor describe their own garden as a plant lover’s garden. "We grow the plants we like; unusual plants are a particular love,” they said. Ron Proctor’s love of gardens began early in life, probably sparked off by his grandfather who had been head gardener at Stirling Castle in Scotland. He came to New Zealand and established a nursery on five acres of land around the turn of the century. Later Ron Proctor ran the Papanui Garden Centre for 20 years. Gardens will go on evolving and in the future he can see more small gardens as more people live in townhouses, windowboxes on larger buildings, built-in watering systems so that plants will need less maintenance, and a greater use of container plants.