Gloucestershire Garden Designer Reaches Final Of Chris Beardshaw Scholarship Competition 10th May 2011

A budding garden designer from Gloucester, with her sights set on a successful horticultural career, has reached the final stage of a national search for green fingered stars of the future.

Rhea Parkes, of Corse Lawn, entered the Chris Beardshaw Mentoring Scholarship (CBMS) competition, sponsored by Bradstone, which rewards one promising designer with a 12 month vocational scholarship created by the award winning garden designer and TV presenter.

Competing against 10 other aspiring finalists, Rhea has been assessed over the last five months by the CBMS team whilst working on her ‘Atom’ themed garden design ‘The Rain Garden’ which is being unveiled at the prestigious Malvern Spring Gardening Show in May.

The judging panel, comprising Chris Beardshaw, Biddy Bolsover from Aggregate Industries and Elizabeth Banks, President of the Royal Horticultural Society, will visit all CBMS show gardens before choosing the next scholar

Rhea said: “The CBMS provides garden designers with a once in a lifetime opportunity and I’m extremely excited to have reached this stage of the competition. I believe I am capable of creating great designs and I have lots of ideas, but I think mentored study will improve my confidence and give me the guidance I need to make sure I am on the right path.

I can’t wait to see my finished design at the Malvern Show and of course to find out whether I’m the successful scholar!”

Launched in 2007 to nurture up and coming garden designers, the CBMS offers one scholar each year the chance to work alongside Chris Beardshaw as well as receive invaluable business advice and technical support from Bradstone, an Aggregate Industries business, and gain work experience within the industry. The scholarship culminates in them designing and building a show garden for the RHS Chelsea Flower Show, the premier event in the horticultural calendar.

Chris Beardshaw, who has won a host of RHS Gold Medals and Best in Show awards, said: “The Chris Beardshaw Mentoring Scholarship is a unique vocational scheme which aims to raise the profile of the landscape design industry and highlight just what it takes to become a professional. The calibre of this year’s finalists has been extremely high so whether they’re the successful scholar or not they should all be very proud of their achievements.”

Mike Leeming, director of sales for Bradstone, adds: “The CBMS enables us to see our products at their best, with the show gardens demonstrating fresh ideas and creativity in how they’re used. The finalists have an excellent platform to showcase their work and visitors to the show will find plenty of inspiration and new ideas that they can apply to their own designs.”

The newly crowned scholar will gain work experience almost immediately by spending a day helping the CBMS team and outgoing scholar, Maria Luisa Medina, on the ‘Bradstone Fusion Garden’, part of the Urban Garden category at this year’s RHS Chelsea Flower Show. 

The Malvern Spring Gardening Show is being held at the Three Counties Showground in Malvern, Worcestershire from (12 – 15 May). For information call the Hotline on 01684 584924 or visit the website www.threecounties.co.uk/springgardening

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