And the Winner of the 2012 Greenest Block in Brooklyn is...

In the residential category, the first-place winner of the Greenest Block in Brooklyn is.... (drumroll)...

Lincoln Road between Bedford and Rogers Avenues, in the neighborhood of Prospect-Lefferts Gardens!

Bedford-Stuyvesant took home second- and third-place titles in the residential categories, as well as won titles in three other categories!

The winners were announced today at a press conference on the winning block.

Macon/MacDonough/Stuyvesant/Lewis Block Association for MacDonough Street between Stuyvesant and Lewis avenues in Bedford-Stuyvesant tied for second place with 8th Street Block Association for 8th Street between 8th Avenue and Prospect Park West in Park Slope in the residential category.

And Bedford-Stuyvesant’s Bainbridge Street Homeowners and Tenants Block Association for Bainbridge Street between Malcolm X Boulevard and Stuyvesant Avenue took home the third-place title in the residential category.

Also, 700 Putnam Avenue Block Association for Putnam Avenue between Malcolm X Boulevard and Stuyvesant Avenue and Macon Street. Ralph/Howard Block Association for Macon Street between Ralph and Howard Avenues received honorable mentions in the residential category.

The Greenest Block in Brooklyn contest is an annual event of the Brooklyn Botanic Garden's GreenBridge, promoting streetscape gardening, tree stewardship, and community development in Brooklyn.

The contest is free to enter, and all participants are awarded a recognition certificate.

Blocks are judged on a variety of criteria, including color and total visual effect, citizen participation, variety and suitability of plants, soil condition and use of mulch, street tree and tree bed care, and all-around best horticultural practices.

A panel of more than 20 judges, including journalists and professional horticulturists from Brooklyn Botanic Garden, visits each contestant block from mid-June throughout July.

Other winning blocks included:

Commercial Category:

Cortelyou Road Merchants Association for Cortelyou Road between Westminster Road and Argyle Road, in Ditmas Park with Friends of Newkirk Plaza for Newkirk Plaza between Newkirk and Foster Avenues, Flatbush

Best Street Tree Beds

First place: Bainbridge Street Between Malcolm X Boulevard and Stuyvesant Avenue, Bedford-Stuyvesant

Second place: Sterling Place between Flatbush and 7th Avenues, Park Slope

Third place: Greene Avenue between Franklin and Bedford Avenues, Bedford-Stuyvesant

Best Community Garden Streetscape

First place: St. Marks Avenue Prospect Heights Community Garden, St. Marks Avenue between Vanderbilt and Carlton Avenues, Prospect Heights

Second Place: Bridge Plaza Community Garden, Sterling Place between Flatbush and 7th Avenues, Bridge Plaza

Best Window Box

First-place tie between Barbara and David Arky of 487 10th Street in Park Slope and Diane Kosup of 716 Macon Street in Bedford-Stuyvesant

Second place: Janet Clarke, 115 Bainbridge Street, Bedford-Stuyvesant

Third place: Lorraine Wilson, 99 Sterling Street, Crown Heights

The Greenest Storefront winner is Brooklyn Hearth Realty, located at 1207 Cortelyou Road in Ditmas Park.

This year, the judges paid special attention to the use of plants native to North America, particularly the Northeast.

Because of the city’s ever-expanding urbanization and a surge of invasive plants from other parts of the world, the city is challenged to maintain its native plant communities, judges paid special attention to how each block utilized native plants on the streets of Brooklyn—in containers, front yards, and street tree beds—as a way to strengthen and restore New York’s natural ecosystem.

To see the full list and photos of winners, visit the Brooklyn Botanic Garden's website here.