By ALESHA CAPONE
THE neighbours of the Bermingham family in Caroline Springs have every right to be green with envy.
Mother-of-two Alicia Bermingham has won a $25,000 garden makeover after she voted in the Australia’s Favourite Pharmacist competition, run by Priceline Pharmacies.
Ms Bermingham voted for Christina Hanciu from the Caroline Springs Priceline Pharmacy and also submitted a poem as part of the contest.
After Ms Bermingham’s poem was awarded best entry, a team from the ‘Better Homes and Gardens’ magazine spent eight days re-modelling her family’s garden.
Landscape designer Andrew O’Sullivan – a presenter on the ABC television show ‘Gardening Australia’ – worked with the team to install new plants and stepping stones, build a fire-pit surrounded by seats and create a herb garden.
“He’s made over our vegetable garden and I think it’s the best in Caroline Springs now,” Ms Bermingham said.
“There are a lot of herbs like bay-leaf and Vietnamese mint, and because it’s winter we’re getting a lot of lettuce, garlic and broad beans.
“We didn’t expect to win – we are still pinching ourselves.”
Ms Bermingham said her sons, aged five and two, love their new garden.
“It is more inviting now, although it is winter,” she said.
“My husband Daniel gets out there and he is fertilising everything.”
Ms Bermingham said her eldest son Bailey has taken photos of the new garden to school to show his classmates.
Even the family’s pet dog Rusty, a pomerian-red heeler cross, has been busy enjoying the new outdoor area.
“Our dog has been impressed as well,” Ms Bermingham said.
“Andrew designed a dog-run so he can run up and down – so the dog is happy too. He’s wagging his tail.”
