Last year, Mount Green started its partnership with national housing provider, Stonewater. This strategic move has opened a number of doors for Mount Green residents – and a few garden gates too! As a result of the partnership, Mount Green residents have been able to take part in the annual Stonewater Garden Competition, and there are plenty of green thumbs in our community proud to take part and show off their gardens.
A community for residents and wildlife
One of the entrants to the Stonewater Gardening Competition 2025 was Mount Green resident, Diane Warwick. Diane grew up in Putney, London, without access to a garden. So, as soon as she moved out of the area and had access to her own outdoor space in her mid-twenties, she began honing her green thumb.
When Diane moved in nine years ago, she wanted to put her own stamp on the garden at her home at St John’s Close. Since then, she’s grown her garden into a thriving home for local wildlife to enjoy.
“One of my favourite things about my garden is the wildlife that comes to visit,” said Diane. “I have a hedgehog box, so I get a visit every day from one of the local hedgehogs as well as foxes that stop by. The animals have particularly been enjoying my sunflowers this year. I’ve got hundreds of sunflowers and the bees, birds and squirrels have been making the most of the seeds. I’ve even spotted a woodpecker in the garden this year!”
Diane’s garden is also helping build the local community of residents. She’s been putting her past allotment experience to excellent use growing vegetables like cucumbers and tomatoes, which she shares with her neighbours in nearby flats. Diane is also playing an active role in bringing the community together.
“We have a coffee morning among residents,” said Diane, “and I recently hosted a barbecue for 14 of the regulars in my garden. We can’t barbecue in the communal areas around the flats, so it’s great to have a place like the garden where people can come together. We’ve got a great community and I’m really happy to share my garden with them. I even share plants and cuttings with neighbours.”
Diane says her garden is one of the key things that helps keep her physically and mentally healthy and would encourage everyone with access to a garden to make the most of it. Her advice for budding gardeners – “Just do it!”
Small but mighty
Another garden in the competition mix that is catching the community’s attention is the potted plant garden outside Nick and Roz Cutter’s flat in Leatherhead. Nick and Roz moved into their flat nearly five years ago, and they haven’t let the fact that it doesn’t have a garden stop them! They have made the most of the space outside of their flat and used upcycled materials to build a potted plant micro garden that everyone who walks by can enjoy.
“Everyone comments on how nice our little garden looks and how it brightens up the area,” said Nick. “We’re keen upcyclers, so we’ve built up the garden on steps we’ve made out of old pallets. We’ve also made some of our own planters with pallets. It just shows how much you can do without needing to spend a fortune. A lot of our plants and pots have come from the community shop at our local tip, where all the proceeds go to charity, so we’ve been able to grow something special even on a budget.”
Nick and Roz have been married for 35 years and tending to their plants is one of their favourite ways to spend time together.
“It’s a therapeutic thing to do together,” said Nick. “We can watch our plants grow and flower and we have enough space to sit out the front together and chat to passersby. It’s a lovely community here, so we enjoy spending time in our little garden space.”
Not that the limited space is going to stop Nick and Roz. They’re planning to try out a process next year to refresh their hydrangeas – changing them from pink to blue flowers! And if that’s not enough, even when they go indoors, they can enjoy their plants, watching their orchids flower.
“I’d encourage everyone to grow something,” said Nick. “You don’t have to spend a lot of money and it’s a great way to show your pride in where you live. It’s something everyone around you can enjoy too.”
Nick and Roz are waiting to see if they are winners in the Stonewater micro garden category, while Diane has entered her garden in the individual garden category. Winners will be announced in the beginning of September.