Garden enthusiasts and admirers alike can explore Canada and marvel at its splendid scenery while travelling by train along the VIA Rail Garden Route.

Now in its fifth year, the Garden Route highlights 18 of Canada's most magnificent feature gardens; 27, 5-Bloom Communities in Bloom destinations and a growing number of local garden attractions along VIA's Halifax to Vancouver Island network. Three new garden destinations have been added to this year's route.

Communities in Bloom proudly promotes responsible and sustainable tourism initiatives. The VIA Rail Garden Route, which showcases the beauty of our communities large or small, is the ideal and responsible travel experience, equally accessible to travellers from across Canada or visitors from around the world.

As a proud partner of Communities in Bloom, VIA Rail also believes in the importance of fostering civic pride and becoming more environmentally responsible.

For more information, please visit www.viarail.ca/garden 

From June 12th to September 6th, 2010, visitors to each participating feature garden along the Garden Route and the websites of the 2010 Communities in Bloom destinations can enter a contest for the chance to win a round trip for two in either Business or sleeper class (depending upon the winner's location) to Ottawa in the spring of 2011 to experience the Canadian Tulip Festival.

To enter the contest, please click on the icon below:
 

The participating 5-Bloom communities in 2010 are:

✻ Prince George BC
      - Connaught Hill Park 
      - David Douglas Botanical Garden Society Display Garden 
      - Fort George Park
✻ Kamloops BC
✻ Hope BC 
✻ Qualicum Beach BC
      - Milner Gardens & Woodland
✻ Edmonton AB
✻ Ukrainian Cultural Heritage Village, Edmonton AB
✻ Hinton AB
✻ Viking AB 
✻ Wainwright AB 
✻ Dauphin MB
      - Private Garden of Rachelle Sigurdson  
✻ Southwest Middlesex ON
      - Glencoe Train Station Gardens
      - Hosta Choice Gardens
✻ Stratford ON
✻ Brampton ON
✻ Woodstock ON
✻ Kingston ON
✻ Chatham-Kent ON
✻ Oshawa ON
✻ London ON
✻ Ingersoll ON
✻ Sarnia ON
      - Germain Park 
      - Canatara Park 
      - The Waterfront Linear Park System
✻ Toronto ON
✻ Niagara Falls ON
✻ Vieux-Montréal QC
✻ National Battlefields Park, Québec City QC
✻ Metro Moncton NB
✻ Halifax Regional Municipality NS

✻CN Tower Communities in Bloom Gardens, Toronto, ON 

The Gardens

✻ The Butchart Gardens (Brentwood Bay BC) (VIA -Victoria)
✻ University of British Columbia’s Botanical Garden (Vancouver, BC)
✻ University of Alberta’s Devonian Botanical Garden (Edmonton, AB
✻ Muttart Conservatory (Edmonton, AB)
✻ Leo Mol Sculpture Garden (Winnipeg, MB)
✻ Windsor Riverfront Gardens (Windsor, ON)
✻ Royal Botanical Gardens (Burlington/Hamilton, ON)
✻ Niagara Parks Botanical Gardens (Niagara Falls, ON)
✻ Casa Loma Gardens (Toronto, ON)
✻ Toronto Botanical Garden (Toronto, ON)
✻ Parkwood National Historical Estate & Gardens (Oshawa, ON)
✻ Mackenzie King Estate (Gatineau, QC) (VIA - Ottawa)
✻ Montreal Botanical Garden (Montréal, QC)
✻ Roger Van den Hende Botanical Garden (Québec City, QC)
✻ Domaine Joly-De Lotbinière (Sainte-Croix, QC)
✻ Reford Gardens (Grand-Métis, QC) (VIA – Mont-Joli)
✻ Kingsbrae Garden (St. Andrews, NB)
✻ Halifax Public Gardens (Halifax, NS)

2010 GARDEN CONTEST

With a fresh new approach, the
Scotts® Miracle-Gro® Garden Contest

introduces innovative garden ideas for 2010!

Contest Overview

 Residents of the Communities in Bloom network, provincial and national editions, are invited to take part in the 4^th edition of the Scotts® Miracle-Gro® Garden Contest.

Communities will select, either through local contests or a judging process, the best gardens within their community, pertaining to the new categories as follows:

v      Best residential in-ground flower garden

v      Best residential container flower garden

v      Best residential in-ground edible garden

v      Best residential container edible garden

v      Best child-run edible garden - open to children 14 and under

v       Best community edible garden – demonstrating community involvement and spirit

 
Contest Rules:

·         Contest is open to residents within communities in the national or provincial Communities in Bloom programs.

·         Communities will select, through either a local contest or judging process, the best garden in one or more category within their community.  These winners will qualify for entry in the national contest.

·         Criteria:

o         Best Residential In-ground: Consideration will be given to the variety of plants and overall esthetics

(i.e. neatness, landscaping)

o         Container Flower Gardens: Consideration will be given to the variety of plants and overall esthetics

(i.e. neatness, landscaping)

• Best In-Ground Edible Garden: Consideration will be given to the variety of plants, overall esthetics

(i.e. neatness, landscaping), incorporation into yard and health of plants. Bonus consideration will be given if crop is to be shared with others, food banks, etc.

• Best Container Edible Garden: Consideration will be given to the variety and size of plants, and overall esthetics (i.e. neatness, attractiveness of containers, incorporation into yard, balcony, etc.)

o         Best Child-Run Edible Garden (open to ages 14 and under): Consideration will be given to the number of children involved and their actual level of involvement, variety of plants, overall esthetics (i.e. neatness, landscaping), incorporation into yard(s) and health of plants. Bonus consideration if crop is to be shared with others, food banks, etc.

o         Best Community Edible Garden: Consideration will be given to the number of participants, variety of plants, overall esthetics (i.e. neatness, landscaping), sense of community involvement and spirit, and special events (i.e. potlucks, seminars, field trips, etc.). Bonus consideration if crop is to be shared with others, food banks, etc.

·         Each entry should include a maximum of 3 photos (jpeg – high resolution) and a few sentences highlighting the unique features of the garden, the property, homeowner, or community group.

·         All submissions must have been planted and maintained by the homeowners, youth or community groups with no professional involvement.

·         All contest participants must agree to have their photos published with their name and municipality as garden entries and/or winners may be promoted through future Communities in Bloom and/or Scotts® communication programs.

·         A Panel of judges will select a winner for each category.

Local winners will be automatically eligible for the National Awards. The national winning gardens will be announced at the Communities in Bloom National Symposium on Parks & Grounds and Awards Ceremonies in Halifax Regional Municipality, Nova Scotia, October 27-30, 2010.

Prizes:

Each Winner of the National Contest will receive a Miracle-Gro® Gardening Gift Basket (valued at $100) and be featured in Communities in Bloom and Scotts® Communications.
 
For more information, feel free to contact us at 514-694-8871 or at programcoordinator@cib-cef.com

2008 Residential In-Ground and Container Garden Contest Winners 

Container Gardens                            
Small Category: Rachelle Sigurdson, Dauphin, MB
Medium Category: Pat & John Zmetana, Brandon, MB
Large Category: Renita Eilertson, Edmonton, AB

In-Ground Gardens
Small Category: Bev Stanich, Merritt, BC
Medium Category: Ross Ashfort, Gravenhurst, ON
Large Category: Joan Le Feuvre, Kingston, ON

Special Merit Award  
Heather Doheny,Westside District Municipality, BC                                                         

Best Promotion of Contest
Charlottetown, PEI

Understanding how important Communities in Bloom is in small towns and cities across the country, Leeann Minogue, a playwright from rural Saskatchewan, has written a play featuring the program:  Bloom, which will premiere at the Edmonton Fringe Festival.

The synopsis and schedule of the play is detailed as follows:

BLOOM:

"When Alice Ridgeway, recently widowed Co-Chair of the Stony Valley Communities in Bloom Committee, takes a walk at her late husband’s farm, she’s horrified to find a marijuana grow-op in the old barn. Whose plants are they? And they could sure use some fertilizer."

Strathcona Public Library - BYOV #32 ( August 13 to 21)
5:30pm, Aug 13, Friday
10:00pm, Aug 14, Saturday
2:30pm, Aug 15, Sunday
9:30pm, Aug 16, Monday
3:30pm, Aug 17, Tuesday
3:30pm, Aug 18, Wednesday
8:30pm, Aug 19, Thursday
4:30pm, Aug 20, Friday
5:15pm, Aug 21, Saturday

Cast: Lori Biamonte-Mohacsy, Rebecca Starr
Director: Jan Taylor

Leann Minogue is a published author of two acclaimed plays: Dry Streak and Homecoming. She is a farm wife and mother in southeast Saskatchewan. She writes for the rural publication Wheat, Oats and Barley. Bloom is her third rural comedy.

www.leeannminogue.com

The 2^nd Annual Communities in Bloom Charity Golf Classic was held in St. Marys, Ontario on June 23, 2010.

Thank you to the organising committee of St. Marys, Woodstock, Stratford and Ingersoll for an outstanding event, and to all the golfers, sponsors, supporters friends and volunteers for their contribution to another successful event.

The Communities In Bloom Foundation was established in 2005 and is dedicated to funding, developing and disseminating education and awareness to a wide audience on the value, improvement, importance and sustainable development of green spaces and natural environment in Canadian society.

 Left to right: Ted Blowes, CiB National Chairman; Rebecca Parsons, summer student & recipient of a special CiB Foundation Bursary; Gerry Teahen (St. Marys), Chair of the 2010 Golf Classic Committee; Raymond Carrière, President of the CiB Foundation.