MOTORWAY maintenance worker Chris Perks has a driving ambition to win a hat-trick of one of the top prizes in the Oxford in Bloom contest.

Mr Perks, 57, of Palmer Road, Wood Farm, has won the Best-Kept Small Front Garden category for the second year on the trot and is hoping he’ll win it for a third time next year.

Last year, he also won the Most Florally Attractive Window Box and Best First Time Entry categories.

Mr Perks said he was delighted to pick up his gold award at the ceremony at the Roman Way Sports and Social Club on Thursday, filled by 200 gardeners and their families and friends.

Mr Perks said: “I want to thank my wife Angela, who’s so good at flower arranging and colour coordination.

“I also came second in a national competition for front gardens in Garden News this year, but the Oxford in Bloom award is so pleasing because it’s local recognition.

“People walking past re-mark on my garden — some even take pictures.”

Father-of-two Mr Perks said begonias were his “stand-out” flowers this year, which featured in his hanging baskets and flowerbeds.

He added: “It can be a bit stressful looking after the M40 when there is a crash, so looking after the garden is a great way of relaxing.

“I also like carp fishing and have won national prizes for carrots, potatoes and onions.”

Susan Cadd Wright, 63, of Marsh Road, Cowley, won the Best-Kept Large Front Garden and Most Florally Attractive Window Box categories.

She said: “My husband Gerald, who’s 73, is thrilled for me. I entered four categories and won gold in two, so I think that is pretty good. I also got a merit in the Hanging Basket category and a bronze for the Large Back Garden.”

Mrs Cadd Wright said her bungalow was on a quarter of an acre plot and that her garden was “a funny shape”.

The mother-of-two said: “I mainly used marigolds, double petunias, tobacco plants and geraniums, planted in different layers, with the tallest at the back.

“I grow the flowers in the greenhouse in February and then plant them in May. I have already got my winter wallflowers in. The garden is quite big and we also have a fish pond with koi carp. I found the competition quite nerve-wracking and I’ll think about entering it next year.”

Mr Cadd Wright said: “This is a hobby for her — a labour of love — so it doesn’t seem like work at all.”

affrench@oxfordmail.co.uk Meet more winners in the Oxford Mail tomorrow and all this week