Dresden Allotment Garden Club wins the coveted 2025 cup!

Dresden Allotment Garden Club wins the coveted 2025 cup!

The hottest days have just begun, and while many Dresdeners are longing for refreshment, Beate Schumann was mowing her lawn and filling her inflatable pool with water before breakfast on the weekend. A successful start to a new chapter, because the Robinienhain allotment garden association on Hammerweg was awarded the trophy for the most beautiful allotment garden in Dresden in 2025. Mayor Dirk Hilbert presented the prize during the summer festival of last year's winner, the Dresden-West allotment garden association. Beate Schumann herself was busy working in the garden that day, where a small delegation from the prize winner admired her plant.

The Robinienhain allotment garden association is not only known for its flowering plots, but also for its charitable spirit. With 104 members and 86 plots, the facility offers a vibrant community. The soil, sandy and originally from a former military site, is a challenge but also an opportunity for creative design. A working group led by Claudia Goetz has set itself the goal of transforming a sandy slope into a butterfly meadow with native bushes and wildflowers. This not only promotes nature, but also creates an educational path for anyone interested.

Closeness to nature and community

The allotment garden boasts insect hotels and information materials that help users create hedgehog-friendly gardens. Matthias Pinker, an active member, is already preparing the annual honey festival at the display apiary and looks after five bee colonies with dedication. This year, 17 passionate gardeners are on the waiting list for additional plots - a sign of the popularity of this blooming oasis.

The competition, organized by the city association and the state capital of Dresden, evaluates not only the individual gardens, but the entire allotment garden area. Criteria such as compliance with the Federal Allotment Garden Act and the framework allotment garden regulations are taken into account in the jury's evaluation. Detlef Thiel, the chairman of the jury, emphasizes that being close to nature also requires specialist knowledge in order to meet the challenges of modern times. In order to further promote the existing beauty of the gardens, the winners will receive further support, including 1,000 euros, which last year's winners will use for meaningful projects in the club.

An extensive network

But that's not all - the importance of allotment gardens is also recognized in the neighboring Erzgebirgskreis. A competition for the most beautiful allotment garden takes place here every four years, and this time it was announced for 2024. The competition emphasizes the promotion of ecological gardens and the creation of natural habitats. All allotment garden associations are invited to apply by June 30, 2024, and the best systems can look forward to attractive prize money: 2,000 euros for first place, 1,500 euros for second and 1,000 euros for third place.

The unifying power of allotment gardens brings people together, opens doors to integration and promotes social contacts. It's more than just a hobby - it's a lifestyle that is very popular in Dresden as well as in the Erzgebirgskreis. And with the launch of these competitions it becomes clear once again how important a natural design of allotment gardens is for the community and the environment. These developments show that a good hand at gardening not only brings one's own joy, but also enlivens the community and deepens one's experience of nature.

The city association of Dresden Garden Friends offers further information about the competitions at dresdner-gartenfreunde.de and details about the allotment garden operations in the Erzgebirgskreis are available ehrenamt.erzgebirgskreis.de to find.

An exciting year for all allotment gardeners in Dresden and the surrounding area - let's enjoy the green oasis!