A FARMER'S daughter, who can talk about gardening until the cows come home, has been rewarded for her dedication.

Mrs Grace Hunter's enthusiasm so impressed the judges in Darlington's rural gardens competition that they awarded her the top prize, the Richardson rose bowl.

Her one-acre garden at Merrybent is a labour of love which reflects her hard work and constant striving for improvement over 24 years.

"When I look back to my childhood on the farm, the interest was there. Even then, I used to clean out stream beds and make little rockeries," she said.

Spring was the busiest time, but she said: "If I can get out in January, I will make a start on clearing up.

"It is a stony soil, so I make my own compost and I don't mind the hard work of digging and weeding."

She goes to the Chelsea flower show every year as a member of the Royal Horticultural Society and can never resist ordering something new.

The garden has a large, natural pond which is a magnet for wildlife and she encourages more by allowing shrubbery to spread and plants to seed.

"I love hostas and friends often ask how I keep the snails away from them. But I think we have so many toads and thrushes that they are kept under control."

Out of her hobby has grown into a small sideline in decorative flower arranging for weddings which is where the hostas, ferns, helibores and other greenery come into their own. The flowers are obtained from a Dutch supplier.

Mrs Hunter strives for striking effect in her borders and tries to keep a photographic record of what has worked best.

Constant reading of books has helped over the years, as have recent visits to stunning gardens such as Sissinghurst, the former home of Vita Sackville West.

l A woman who refuses to mollycoddle her plants won the Middleton St George challenge cup for the hanging basket section and was also runner-up in the overall competition.

Mrs Margaret Clemence, warden for the Dinsdale Court sheltered accommodation at Middleton St George, said: "I started about five years ago when I put in a patio and started to cultivate the garden around it.

"I am not really a gardener. I buy plants and they have two choices - they either live or they die. I never do anything special and I can't tell you half of their names.

"But I do look after them and I dead head and water them every day, even if it is raining. My husband has set up an irrigation system so I can do them all at once. I think you can over-mollycoddle plants"

She confessed: "The biggest problem I had was getting rid of the weeds in my lawn."

OTHER WINNERS

Hurworth & Neasham. - Mrs Carole Clamp, Hurworth Green, Miller cup for gardens and third planters. Brian Fisher, Hurworth Road, Hurworth Place, Darlington rose bowl for planters and second gardens. Henry Nicholson, Hurworth Road, third gardens. Robert Wrightson, Woodlands Way, Hurworth Place, second planters.

Sadberge & Bishopton. - Matthew Lingard, Abbey Road, Sadberge, Dorothy Dent trophy for gardens. Mrs Carine Banks, The Green, Bishopton, second gardens. Arthur Sanders, the Post Office, Sadberge, second planters and third gardens. Mrs Marie Ruddick, Top Cottage, Sadberge, J and B Cuthbertson cup for planters. James Vogwill, Church View, third planters.

Middleton St George. - Stuart Short, Palm Tree Villas, Nancy Hutchison cup for gardens. Mrs June Hall, Thorntree Gardens, second gardens. Carol Darrah, Pounteys Close, third gardens. Mrs Susan Evans, Alexandria Drive, second planters. Mrs Valerie Porter, Alexandria Drive, third planters.

Area No 1. - Mrs Lorna Herron, Walworth Gate, second gardens. Mrs Maureen Wind, The Meadows, Houghton le Side, third gardens. David Thompson, Merrybent, Jubilee cup for planters. Thomas Elliot, High Coniscliffe, second planters. Robert White, High Coniscliffe, third planters.