Get growing! Entries open for Victoria in Bloom 2025-2026

Get growing! Entries open for Victoria in Bloom 2025-2026

Love getting your hands dirty? Got a balcony full of colour or a veggie patch that’s bursting with life? Then the Victoria in Bloom garden competition is calling your name!

We’re celebrating the green thumbs of Victoria’s social housing community. It’s all about recognising the creativity, effort and pride that residents put into their gardens – big or small. 

Nominations are now open from Monday 25 August to Friday 21 November 2025.

Whether you’re growing flowers, veggies or something else, there’s a category for you:

• Best balcony or container garden – for potted plants and balcony blooms
• Best small enclosed garden – cosy courtyards with lots of charm
• Best young gardener (under 25) – for young gardeners making a difference at home, school or in the community
• Best household garden – front or back gardens that are larger than a courtyard
• Best sustainable garden – eco-friendly gardens. They may include features like compost, water tanks, worm farms, mulch or drought-smart plants
• Best community or common area garden – Shared gardens that can be accessed and used by all the residents on a property. They are often part of an apartment or unit complex.
• Best edible garden – for fruit, veg and herb lovers
• Best creative garden – a garden that has been designed using creativity, uniqueness and self-expression
• Best first-year entry garden – garden entered for the first time in the competition

Getting involved is easy: 

1. Nominate your garden between 25 August and 21 November 2025
2. You can enter by calling 03 8633 4362 or 03 8633 4357, or by emailing vicbloom@dffh.vic.gov.au
3. Include your name, address, phone number, email (if you have one), and up to 2 categories you’d like to enter.
4. Judges will first visit gardens in each division (North, South, East and West) before picking the statewide winners.