Mayor Martin J. Walsh has announced the winners of the Mayor’s 2014 Garden Contest that included Darcy Ertl from Charlestown who won a second place award for Porch, Balcony, Deck or Window Box Garden.. Now in its 18th year, the contest recognizes gardeners who have landscaped, planted flowers, trees, and shrubs, and, in the process, helped beautify Boston’s neighborhoods.
First Place winners will receive the coveted “Golden Trowel” award from Mayor Walsh and all winners will take home prize packages from the Boston Parks and Recreation Department, Mahoney’s Garden Centers, the Boston Flower and Garden Show, the New England Wildflower Society, the Institute of Contemporary Art, Tower Hill Botanic Garden, and other sponsors at an awards ceremony in the Public Garden.
All winners in this year’s Garden Contest are also entered into a drawing for a JetBlue Grand Prize consisting of a pair of roundtrip flights to any of the airline’s nonstop destinations from Boston. Terms, conditions, and blackout dates apply.
A team of distinguished judges viewed the finalists’ gardens over a two-day period. Judges included members of the Garden Contest Hall of Fame, Boston Elderly Affairs Commissioner Emily Shea, and Boston Parks and Recreation Department horticulture staff.
Gardeners who have won three or more times are automatically entered into the Hall of Fame and will be recognized at the awards ceremony. These distinguished Hall-of-Famers will be ineligible to enter as contestants but are welcome to return as judges.