Pam Woodall Reaches Three Finalists in Best of the Best — Bournemouth Echo

Pam Woodall’s Poole garden has been named one of three finalists in Gardeners' World magazine’s “Best of the Best” competition, and bournemouth echo readers now have a local garden in contention for a national top spot. The winner will be chosen from past Garden of the Year winners by a panel of expert judges.

Pam Woodall’s Poole Garden

Woodall’s garden won “Wildlife Garden of the Year” in 2016, and it is now competing with winners from the past decade for the overall title. The public first voted for their favourite, and three finalists were selected from that vote.

The garden itself is split into two halves with contrasting settings. The upper part is tropical and filled with palms, bananas and cordylines, along with a wildlife pond and a rockery.

Wildlife and two contrasting halves

The lower segment was transformed from a bramble-choked space into a wildlife-friendly area. It now attracts badgers, sika deer, woodpeckers and rare stag beetles, and it includes five ponds.

Woodall said, “This drives out wildlife.” She also said, “In contrast, I have created a haven for both wildlife and humans.”

Gardeners' World October issue

The competition is part of Gardeners' World magazine’s 10th anniversary celebration for “Garden of the Year.” The overall winner will be disclosed in the October issue of Gardeners' World magazine.

For Poole, the practical change is simple: one garden owner is now through to the final stage, and the result will be settled by judges rather than by the public vote that narrowed the field to three.