RESIDENTS challenged the weather and won as they produced dazzling displays for a contest organised by Malvern in Bloom.

The group’s annual Residents Competition was a big success, despite large parts of the summer being a washout, with plenty of entries and high standards across the board giving the judges some very difficult decisions to make.

People could enter their gardens and hanging baskets into any of six categories, and judges were kept busy for a full day visiting all the entrants and inspecting the results of their hard work.

Maggie Williams, one of the organisers, said: “We were so impressed by how lovely every garden looked and we fully appreciated how hard everyone had worked.

“In fact choosing the winners was a very difficult task.”

Fellow organiser Cynthia Palmer said: “The competition was a remarkable success considering the too dry, then too wet and often cold weather that the gardeners had to contend with this year.”

Judges were so impressed with the entries that, as well as naming category winners, they also handed out eight special “highly commended” certificates.

They also picked out an overall winner, Pam Cubberley, of Watkins Way, whose hanging baskets and tubs were described as “absolutely fabulous”.

Mrs Cubberley, aged 66, looks after the garden with her the help of her husband Don, who she puts to good use “doing all the heavy lifting”.

She was delighted to find out she had won the competition, after finishing as runner-up a couple of years ago.

“It was a lovely surprise and I had to let it sink in for a few minutes when I got the phone call,” she said.

“I wasn’t expecting it at all, with the weather this year making things so difficult.”

All the winners have been invited to the Malvern Town Council chamber, in Belle Vue Terrace, for a presentation ceremony on Wednesday, September 12.

Organisers have thanked Malvern Town Council and the competition’s sponsors for their support.

WINNERS Best front garden – Martyn Dack, Geraldine Road, Best rear garden – Angie Tinnion, Sycamore Close Best vegetable and fruit lover’s garden – Peter Foster , Poolbrook Best courtyard/limited space garden – Betty Mills, Worcester Road Residents who garden with assistance – Jane Millwood, Britten Drive Best hanging baskets and/or container displays – Pam Cubberley, Watkins Way Highly commended: Ollie Marks, Debbie Davies, Martin Lawrence, June Jones, Celia Goldswain, Sue Wright, Joan Tebbutt, Mrs M Reed.