Garden Media Guild

The British Garden Writers' Guild, (renamed the Garden Media Guild in late 2007), is a trade organisation for professional garden writers, photographers, broadcasters and members of allied trades. The Guild was established in 1991 to improve the quality of garden writing, photography and broadcasting by improving links between the gardening mass media and the horticultural industry. Full membership is restricted to those who have been published and are earning a significant level of income from their horticultural media activities, although Probationary membership can be given for up to three years to anyone seeking to establish themselves as professionals in this field. Associate membership can also be given to those employed in activities closely linked with horticulture and the garden media – examples being PR, marketing and publishing.

Guild activities

The Guild members organise Briefing Days, during which the horticultural trade and Guild members are made aware of new developments and exchange views; occasional Publishing Days are also held to discuss aspects of that subject. The Guild itself publishes a bi-monthly newsletter for members and an annual yearbook of members.

The Professional Garden Photographers' Association (PGPA) is part of the Garden Media Guild.

GMG Awards

The Guild has held its prestigious Awards Lunch since 1994. The annual ceremony (previously held at the Savoy Hotel) is currently held at the Royal Lancaster Hotel, London, each November. The number and titles of the awards presented at this lunch have varied over the years: three new multimedia categories were added in 2006; in 2008 a new Young Gardener Initiative Award was introduced, as was a category for Local Radio Broadcast of the Year, and a special award was made for Blogs in the Digital Media Award, because of the quality of the year's submissions.[1]

Awards are now made for outstanding contributions in the following categories:

Books

(for new hardbacks or paperbacks)

Seeds of Adventure, 2008; The New London Garden, 2000
How to Create a Wildlife Garden, 2008; Garden People, 2007; The Great Veg Plot, 2006
Clematis for Small Spaces, 2008; RHS New Gardening, 2007; Irises, 2006
RHS Encyclopedia of Perennials, 2007; Growing Bonsai, 2006

Press Awards

(the newspaper with the best gardening content) Garden News, 2008; The Telegraph, 2007; The Telegraph, 2006
(the magazine with the best gardening content) Gardeners' World Magazine, 2008; Gardens Illustrated, 2007; The Plantsman, 2006
(for the best three gardening articles in a magazine or newspaper) Roy Lancaster, 2008; Jane Boore, 2007; Ambra Edwards, 2006
(for the best column, single article or selected article from a feature or series in a magazine or newspaper) Helen Riches, 2008; Andi Clevely, 2007; Carol Klein, 2006)
(for a selected column or article from a feature or series published in a professional horticultural or trade journal) Matthew Appleby, 2008; Graham Clarke, 2007; Marc Rosenberg, 2006
(for the best news story published in a magazine or newspaper) Jean Stowe, 2008

Photography

(for a portfolio of garden and/or plant photographs published in diverse media) Jason Ingram, 2013; Andrea Jones, 2008; Andrew Lawson, 2007; Jonathan Buckley, 2006; Marianne Majerus, 2002
(for a themed assignment illustrating a book, feature, series or website) Marianne Majerus, 2013; Paul Little, 2008; Michelle Garrett, 2007; Jonathan Buckley, 2006
(for a book where the photographer's contribution comprises 80% or more of the total photographic content.) Mark Diacono, 2013
(for a single photograph from the Garden Photographers' Association exhibition) Jason Ingram, 2008; Jonathan Buckley, 2007; Derek Harris, 2006)

Broadcasting

(for national/regional TV/radio gardening broadcasts, either single programmes or selected programmes from a series or strand)

The Fate of the Cottage Garden (a Gardeners' World special), 2008; Grow your own Veg, 2007; The Gardener's Year, 2006
Slug Hell (for BBC Radio 4's Woman's Hour), 2008; Gardens of Faith, 2007; It's all Gone Pear Shaped, 2006
Gardening with Mini People, Daphne Ledward for BBC Radio Lincolnshire, 2008

Multimedia

(subdivided into Digital Media Award and Digital Media Blog Award in 2008)
Blogging From Blackpitts, James Alexander-Sinclair, 2008
(for an article or broadcast on an environmental or 'green' topic) Oliver Whaley, 2008; John Walker, 2007; Leigh Hunt, 2006
(for the best article in any medium by a new writer or journalist in their first year) Joe Reardon-Smith, 2008; Louise Zassy-Bang'em, 2007; Helen Billiald, 2006
(awarded in two parts: 1, to any person working in the media who has identified and promoted the best sustainable community or education project that develops and nurtures horticultural talent, locally or nationally; 2, to the nominated project itself[2]) 1, Dominic Murphy of The Guardian and 2, the Edible Playground garden (at Thornford School, Dorset), 2008

Special Award

Past winners include: Charles, Prince of Wales,[3] Rosemary Verey, Graham Stuart Thomas, Christopher Lloyd, Beth Chatto, Penelope Hobhouse, Roy Lancaster, Alan Titchmarsh, Geoffrey Smith, Jerry Harpur, and nurseryman Ken Muir. Garden photographer Michael Warren (a founder-member, past chairman and former President of the Guild)[4] won the award in 2008.

References

External links

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