DURING the past 18 months, many people have found themselves furloughed, or shielding and not able to go out as much as usual – and they have turned to their gardens to keep themselves busy.

Here at the County Press, we have been inspired by the work of Oscar Stretch, who has created the most amazing Isle of Wight-shaped garden during lockdown.

Oscar, 77, used to be known for his beautiful garden and was a regular winner of the Wight in Bloom competition in the past.

He also used to create huge Christmas displays when he lived at Perowne Way in Sandown and raised £38,000 for charity through his winter wonderlands.

Isle of Wight County Press:

Oscar Stretch at his Perowne Way garden in 2017.

In more recent years, Oscar has moved to Foxes Close in Sandown and you can read more about his new Isle of Wight-shaped garden by clicking here.

If you have planted some beautiful flowers during lockdown, or you have been inspired to do a bigger gardening project, we would love to hear more.

We would also like to see pictures of your best veggies if you decided to have a go and grow your own produce this year – especially if you have been inspired by Isle of Wight projects such as the Green Island Veg Economy (GIVE) group on Facebook.

One of the key concepts behind Wight in Bloom is to the brighten up the Isle of Wight for passers-by and in the spirit of this, we would like to ask you to send us your best garden photos for our new Visit My Garden feature, where we will showcase your pictures.

If you have photos of your garden looking beautiful, you can send them to us by clicking on the submissions box below.