RHS launches Olympic competition

The Royal Horticultural Society (RHS) has joined with London 2012 to launch a competition for Britains amateur plant enthusiasts.

With the Games a little more than three years away, entrants are being asked to design a Great British Garden for the Olympic Park.

The quarter-acre site should be an interpretation of a quintessentially British yard, with a Pierre de Coubertin oak tree (named after the founder of the modern Olympic movement) incorporated into the plans if possible.

Entries should be made on an A4 sheet of paper with an explanatory note attached and the closing date is July 31st.

One adult and one young gardener will see their designs turned into a reality.

The RHS advises entrants begin by deciding on an overall theme before thinking about how to incorporate British plants into the design.

It suggests gardeners can feel free to add a water feature and hopes the winning design will become part of the Olympic legacy in London.

Canada is gearing up for the next instalment of Olympic competition, with the Winter Games due to take place there early next year.