The search is on to find Oldham's ugliest garden!

Even gnomes get embarrassed by their garden!

There is still hope for homeowners with a phobia of gardening this summer, as the search is on to discover and transform Oldham’s ugliest garden.

Whether it’s a weed-infested mess, suffered from the summer heat or experienced years of neglect, gardens across Oldham in need of a desperate makeover can be nominated for the campaign launched this week by power tool manufacturer, Ryobi.

The search is prompted by its research, which reveals that gardening disasters plague 69 per cent of people in the North West.

Disasters range from not being able to get plants to grow (11%) to forgetting to water them (10%).

Around one in ten (9%) of people in the region have injured themselves while gardening.

When it come to the biggest gardening fears faced by people in Oldham, 23 per cent are scared of weeding, followed by 19 per cent who are frightened of being bitten by insects or confronted by rodents and other wild animals.

14 per cent dread making a mistake, such as killing trees or plants.

Andrew Trainer, marketing manager for Ryobi, said: “It’s not always easy for people to find the time or enthusiasm to tend to their garden, whilst many new homeowners can inherit a property with an empty shell of a garden.

"That is why we’re on the hunt across Oldham to find the outdoor space that badly needs transforming into an area that’s enjoyable again.”

Anyone with a garden they’re ashamed of and needs some TLC, can simply upload a photo of it to: https://uk.ryobitools.eu/garden-disasters/ before September 3, 2018, when it will be judged by a panel of gardening experts.

The gardener with the outdoor space deemed to be in need of the most help will win Ryobi’s entire cordless gardening tool range to help transform it into a green-fingered paradise.

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