Mayo school scoops prize in Woodie's gardening competition

A school in Mayo has scooped a prize in this year's Woodie’s Budding Gardeners competition. 

Ms Michelle Flatley and students from third and fourth class who are part of the school’s nurture group in Scoil Iosa, Ballyhaunis were announced as runners-up in this year’s Woodie’s Budding Gardeners competition, taking home a €250 Woodie's gift card. 

Now in its fourth year, the Woodie’s Budding Gardeners campaign encourages children across Ireland to flex their green fingers by taking on an exciting garden project at home or in school while learning about the importance of plants along the way.

This year saw a record number of entrants to the competition, with families and schools across Ireland taking part in the campaign. 

The theme for this year’s contest was ‘The Power of Plants’ and children were tasked to plant a patch of their choice between the months of March and May. Woodie’s garden expert and judge Brian Burke was impressed with this year’s entries and said judging the competition was the toughest job he’s done this year.

“The innovation, creativity, and imagination on display from Ireland’s young gardeners is phenomenal, and the level of work and attention to detail is so impressive,” said Mr Burke.

He continued: “Some entrants went for flower or wild patches and others went for edibles like fruit, veggies and herbs - it was amazing to see what could be accomplished during the allotted time.”

Rachael Williams, Brand and Communications Manager at Woodie’s thanked everyone who took part in this year’s competition. 

“We had an amazing response to the campaign, with a record number of entrants in 2024. It is great to see this campaign grow year-on-year as we know the importance of helping our young Budding Gardeners grow their knowledge about gardening and the importance of it, all while having some fun along the way,” she added.

For more information about Budding Gardeners, see the Woodie's website.