COMET country florists have put in a blooming good effort to plant themselves silver medals at the 2011 RHS Chelsea Flower Show.

Julie Cambridge, who owns her own Great Ashby shop A Passion For Flowers, won her medal in the Florist of the Year category.

The florist qualified through a heat in November, beating 40 others in her group to the final.

Her task was to create a jockey silk using mostly flowers and plants, with some material also allowed to be used.

Although some of the finalists used ready-made shirts, Julie created hers from scratch.

“I was hoping to win a medal, it would have been gutting not to really - it’s been a massive part of my life since I qualified in November,” said Julie, who lives in Letchworth GC.

“I put so much time, so much money, so much effort into it, that’s it’s nice to have been recognised.

“I wasn’t expecting to win - I actually ran out of time, and there were bits that I wanted to change. I’m really chuffed.”

Michelle Rigby and Gwenda Foster, who are both members at Hitchin Floral Club, also won medals for their display in the Garden Style class for flower arranging clubs.

They took their inspiration from the film Avatar, creating their version of the Garden and Tree of Souls.

Their success was confirmed last week, after they took part in the first session of the prestigious event.

“Everybody is really thrilled,” said Michelle, who lives in Letchworth GC.

“We were aiming for a gold, but we’re very pleased to be awarded a silver. The club has won a silver in the past, so we’ve carried on tradition.”

Hitchin Floral Club meets monthly at Church House, Hitchin, on the third Wednesday of every month at 7.30pm. Anyone interested in flowers is welcome to go along.