The Garden Awards

The Garden Awards is an annual event to celebrate social housing tenants to create and maintain beautiful gardens.

What are the Garden Awards?

The Department of Communities (Housing and Homelessness Services) Garden Awards recognise the important role tenants play in improving their local community. The Garden Awards are held in partnership with the department and Regional Tenant Groups each year.

Can I enter the Garden Awards?

The Garden Awards are open to all departmental tenants, and tenants of community and local government-managed housing throughout Queensland.

You don't have to be an experienced gardener. It doesn't matter what size garden you have or whether it's a house, courtyard or balcony garden. It doesn't have to be the biggest or the most expensive to win an award.

What are the categories?

The area around each Housing Service Centre is divided into two sections – Town and Country. Within each of these sections, there are eight sub-categories that tenants can enter.

Town - Enter under the Town section if your home is inside the boundaries of the city or town where your nearest Housing Service Centre is located.

Country - Enter under the Country section if your home is outside the boundaries of the city or town where your nearest Housing Service Centre is located.

Contact your local Housing Service Centre or community and local government-managed housing provider if you are not sure which section to enter.

There are eight categories in each of the Town and Country sections:

House garden - Enter this category if you live in a detached house and your garden is not suited to any of the other special categories.

Courtyard/small space garden - Enter this category if you live in a unit, townhouse, bed-sit or apartment and have a small garden, or a cluster of pot plants in a courtyard.

Balcony garden - Enter this category if you live in a unit, townhouse or apartment and have a small garden or a cluster of plants on your balcony.

Children's garden - Enter this category for gardens that have been mostly made by young people less than 16 years of age. It doesn't have to be the whole yard; it can just be part of the garden.

Common ground garden - Enter this category if the garden is located in the common grounds of a complex - it may be the work of a single gardener or group of tenants and can be any garden type.

Native garden - Enter this category if your garden is mostly Australian native plants, which are drought resistant and suited to your region.

New gardener - Enter this category if this is the first time you have entered the Garden Awards.

Edible garden - Enter this category if your garden is mostly vegetables, fruits or herbs.

What can I win?

All entrants receive a certificate, a photo of their garden and a plant or voucher for garden products. Special prizes and certificates will be given to winners. There are three categories of prize winners – Winner, Highly Commended and Commended.

When are the awards?

The Regional Tenant Groups will co-ordinate the Garden Awards in their local area, in conjunction with the department's Housing Service Centres and community and local government-managed housing providers. The award presentations will be held at different times throughout the State to suit local needs.

Tenants who enter the competition will be notified when their garden is going to be judged.

All entrants will be invited to attend the award presentation and will be sent an invitation to advise the date, time and place. Prize winners will be notified by mail or telephone.

For more information, contact your nearest Housing Service Centre (PDF, 80 KB) (RTF, 33 KB) or community and local government-managed housing provider.