A PLEDGE from a Rhuddlan Community Orchard to donate its first crop to a Rhyl charity has impressed judges of a national competition.

This year's harvest from Rhuddlan Environment Group's (REG) Orchard Project at Abergele Road Rhuddlan, will be donated to the poverty, hunger and homelessness charity Hope Giver.

The new initiative caught the eye of Royal Horticultural Society 2018 judge Jon Dolan - who is judging the town's bid for their sixth consecutive win in the Wales In Bloom It’s Your Neighbourhood awards - on his Wednesday, July 4 visit to the town where he met volunteers and the project's organisers Terry Meigh and his parents Kath and Harry.

Brenda Taylor, chair of the REG said: "We met the Neighbourhood judge and Terry explained the idea behind the orchard. Jon was very impressed, Terry explained his parents fully support our community, and backed the idea of giving back to the community in kind."

The project was set up with trees sourced by Mark Pottle and planted by Gary Bourne, with fellow Rhuddlan resident Maggie Godard planning to add to the donation with apples from her mature orchard.

The volunteers of REG have been busy working hard ahead of the competition, with the town's children maintaining a ten year tradition of planting dwarf morning glories, petunias, begonias, marigolds, royal blue lobelias, violas and pansies around the town's trees.

This year, in addition to competing for the Wales in bloom awards, the REG will also compete in the UK wide UK in Bloom finals, which will be judged on Wednesday, August 1