Practical Maurice is a gravel agent

MAURICE Cosbey describes his entry in The Hunts Post Garden of the Year Competition as a garden for the future . The 58-year-old from Coxon s Close, Huntingdon, designed it for the millennium and has been working on it for six years. One distinctive fea

MAURICE Cosbey describes his entry in The Hunts Post Garden of the Year Competition as a "garden for the future".

The 58-year-old from Coxon's Close, Huntingdon, designed it for the millennium and has been working on it for six years.

One distinctive feature of his garden is its gravel.

"I think gravel is the future of gardening," he said. "Lawns are becoming a waste of time - they always shrivel up in summer, and you spend a lot of time trying to care for them."

There is certainly no waste involved in Mr Cosbey's garden. Every year in late summer, he picks seeds and saves them for the next year.

"This year's display was very low cost - we spent almost nothing on it," he said.

His entry in the competition, which is sponsored by Admiral Windows and Conservatories, is in the "most colourful display" category.

He said: "I've put a lot of hard work into making it bright and colourful. It's 98 per cent colour."

Keen gardeners can compete against Mr Cosbey's garden or enter one of the two other categories: best design and best kept garden. Each category has £250 for the winner and the overall winner will receive an extra £500.

Mr Cosbey spent a lot of time designing his garden, which he "takes a lot of pride in". Most of his design ideas, he said, come to him when tending other people's gardens, which is one of his part-time jobs.

To enter The Hunts Post Garden of the Year Competition, choose the category you want to enter, fill in the coupon, write 200 words on why you want to win, and send this along with three pictures of your garden to: The Hunts Post, 30 High Street, Huntingdon, PE29 3TB by Saturday, September 30.