Your garden photos

Above, Eira from Oystermouth Primary
measures her seedlings

Your lockdown gardens

Many thanks to you all for sending in so many photos of your great gardens! But please keep them coming - we have plent of room for more...

And we've got another great scheme going as well.

We're aware that during these strange times, gardens are being used in many different and imaginative ways to suit the needs of those accessing them in 'lockdown'.

We thought that it would be fun and interesting to have some photographic evidence of this to add to our collection of Swansea in Bloom photos and act as a record of this unusual year.  

For example, teachers have been in touch telling how their children are building assault courses and fitness circuits in their gardens as part of their Home Learning. Other ideas include gardens being used as home gyms, yoga retreats, food production areas, workstations (as garden sheds are used as offices), classrooms, dog exercise areas, community bookshops, workshops, nature reserves, badminton courts and much more!

We've already had a couple of activity contributions from Oystermouth Primary which you can see here.


Above, Stephen from Penllergaer
sent in this contribution

So, please share with us your photos of how you are using your gardens in different ways in Spring/Summer 2020 by sending your snaps with short captions to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

And don't forget to keep sending us snaps of the flowers and vegetables in your garden as well - we love what you've sent so far!

You can see all your garden photos on our website here.

Have fun and enjoy your gardens!

Ian
SIB Secretary

SIB 2020 has been postponed

SIB 2020 has been postponed
But share your photos with us anyway!

Sadly this year’s Swansea in Bloom annual gardening competition for both the schools and the main event has been postponed until 2021.

The managing committee reluctantly decided there was no other option in the face of school closures and other wider restrictions as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic.

However, the committee is aware that many of you will continue to garden over the coming months and it would be a great shame if all your efforts were to go unseen because of the restrictions.

So we’re inviting all gardeners in Swansea, including any schools which are still open, to submit photos of their gardens to us and we will endeavour to publish as many as we can on this website.

The photos on this page were taken in my garden last year - but I'm sure you can all do better than this!

There will be no awards or prizes, but we feel it would be a fun activity to help keep us occupied while we’re all confined to our homes.

And the first photos are already coming in! See them here.

Please email your snaps to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. with your name and the area in which you live so we can add captions.

Please send the highest resolution photos that you can manage - it helps us at this end!

Meanwhile, stay safe and well, and we look forward to seeing your gardens!

Ian Norton, Secretary, Swansea in Bloom

 

 

A message from the chairman

This year of 2019 has been different and unusual for many reasons. 

At the beginning of the year a few people met to discuss the future of Swansea in Bloom.

 There was no competition in 2018 due to Swansea Council withdrawing support. 

In our first meeting it was felt we should restart the two competitions to see what response there would be. 

Looking back now I am glad the half a dozen volunteers took that decision and pulled their weight to manage both competitions.

There has been a tremendous amount of work just for the few, but we managed it, and according to many we shared enjoyable events.

I am very grateful to the committee members and the sponsors who made this possible.

We would like to expand the future of SIB but we cannot do it without the help of people like you as volunteers as well as major financial support. Please support us in whatever way you can for 2020.

If you have any comments please let us know, and I hope we can rely on your involvement in the future.

Have a happy Christmas and healthy New Year.

Paul Chillington, chairman

2019 SIB awards ceremony

Judging for SIB 2019 gardening competition has now closed, and we're preparing for our next big event - the awards ceremony on September 11th.

All entrants are invited to attend and to bring one guest.

The ceremony will be held in Swansea's YMCA theatre at 1 The Kingsway, Swansea SA1 5JQ, starting at 7.00pm, and there will be light refreshments.

The event will once again be officiated by well-known Swansea Sounds presenter Kevin Johns.

There is a pay and display car park adjacent to the YMCA on Newton street, minimum of charge of £1.20.

There is also an NCP multi-story car park further up along the Kingsway, minimum charge of £1. 

For further information email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

 

Kevin Johns is made president of Swansea in Bloom

Swansea in Bloom 2019 winners

The SIB 2019 winners, pictured with Kevin Johns at the award ceremony in Swansea’s YMCA theatre. 

 Swansea celebrity Kevin Johns has been made honorary president of the Swansea in Bloom Group.

The appointment was announced on Wednesday evening by chairman Paul Chillington at the group’s annual gardening awards ceremony held at Swansea’s YMCA on the Kingsway.

Kevin, who presented the awards and entertained the guests, is well known as a Swansea Sounds presenter and South Wales Evening Post columnist, and he’s also starring in Peter Pan, this year’s pantomime at the Grand Theatre.

Introducing the ceremony, which was attended by around 80 gardeners, Paul explained that the group had been started 25 years ago as a joint venture with Swansea Council, which had provided financial and admin support.

However, faced with austerity and having to make cuts to many of its services, the council was forced to withdraw its support in 2017, and the group was unable to hold the gardening competition the following year.

At the end of 2018 the group’s managing committee reformed, and successfully reorganised the competition, culminating in the ceremony last night.

Paul thanked the committee for their hard work and determination, but repeated his appeal for more committee members, more judges and more sponsorship to enable the competition to continue.

Winners of the various categories (pictured above with Kevin Johns) were presented with framed certificates, and an excellent light buffet, prepared by Mary Jones, was served after the ceremony.

The full results can be viewed here, and photos of the winning gardens will be posted later.

 

SIB schools awards

More than 60 people including  pupils, parents, teachers and governors attended the schools’ award ceremony for Swansea’s annual gardening competition on Tuesday July 9.

Organised by the Swansea in Bloom group (SIB), the competition was open to all primary schools and special needs units throughout the City and County.

The ceremony, officiated by well known Evening Post columnist and Swansea Sounds presenter, Kevin Johns, was held at the Swansea Scout and Guide headquarters in Brynmill.

Opening the ceremony, SIB Chairman Paul Chillington welcomed the guests and explained how until two years ago the event had been a join enterprise between the Group and Swansea Council, which had provided administrative and financial support.

However, due to financial constraints, this support had been withdrawn in 2017, and there had been no competition in 2018.

Now the Group had reformed, and was managing the event on its own.

He explained the 10 schools which entered this year had been divided into Swansea North, Swansea South and Special Needs.

There would be a gold award in each section, and all the rest would be highly commended. All entrants would receive a framed certificate, and the three gold awards would also receive a framed photograph of their winning entries.

Master of Ceremonies, Kevin Johns, explained how important the SIB annual gardening competition had been to the City over the years.

“The competition has always been a massive event in Swansea, and it really meant something to win an award,” he said. “And many winners went on to represent the City in Wales in Bloom and Britain in Bloom competitions.”

After presenting the awards he congratulated all the schools on having entered, and said they had made a real difference to their schools and to the community.

“You should all be very proud of your schools,” he said. “And what’s more important, your schools should all be very proud of you!”

The awards

Swansea North

Gold Standard : Penllergaer Primary School
Highly Commended: Clase Primary School, Glyncollen Primary School.

Swansea South

Gold Standard: Cila Primary School
Highly Commended: Newton Primary School, Oystermouth Primary School, Penclawdd Primary School, Sketty Primary School, St David's Catholic Primary School

Special Needs Units

Gold award: Birchgrove Comprehensive School

Photos courtesey of Paul Chillington 

Page 1 of 2