Special to the Times-Free Press
Mayor Michelle Wu has announced the 27th annual Mayor’s Garden Contest highlighting the hard work of Boston’s urban gardeners. The competition provides the perfect opportunity to recognize the skills of all Boston residents who contribute to the beauty of the city’s landscape.
Boston’s green thumbs have until 11:59 p.m. on Wednesday, July 12, to submit their gardens for award contention. The contest recognizes gardeners who have landscaped, planted flowers, trees, shrubs, and, in the process, helped beautify Boston’s neighborhoods.
Gardeners or those nominating their favorite gardeners may find printable and online nomination forms at boston.gov/mayors-garden-contest. The preferred method of entry is to submit photos through the online application. Alternatively, contestants may request an application by emailing their name and address to [email protected]. Paper applications are also available in English and 10 additional languages.
Judges will fan out across the city visiting finalists the week of July 24. Once the votes are tallied, first place winners will receive the coveted “Golden Trowel” award from Mayor Wu while second and third place winners will be awarded certificates.
Gardeners who have won three or more times in the last 10 years will be automatically entered into the Hall of Fame. These distinguished Hall-of-Famers are not eligible to enter as contestants but are invited to return as judges.
First place winners are eligible for a drawing for a JetBlue Grand Prize consisting of roundtrip flights for two to any nonstop destination from Boston. Terms, conditions, and blackout dates apply. In addition, Mahoney’s Garden Centers will provide gardener’s gift bags to the top three winners in each category, as well as gift certificates for the 2023 Hall of Fame winners.
Stay up to date with the Mayor’s Garden Contest as well as news, events, and design and construction work in Boston parks by calling (617) 635-4505, signing up for our email list at bit.ly/Get-Parks-Emails, and following our social channels @bostonparksdept on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram.