What else could prise me away from my greenhouse in the first few days of May but a flower show and to be more precise the Malvern Spring Gardening Show. I have been fortunate enough to visit all the major flower shows over the years. There was the excitement of Chelsea, where our garden club entered the amateur hanging basket and window box competition for gardening clubs and came away with a silver gilt medal. Then Hampton Court on a most sultry summer's day, when we must have beaten the world record for eating ice cream and my friend's clematis seemed to grow about a foot, between her buying it in the morning and us getting home very late at night. Then there's the local show at Tatton Park, where my most vivid memory of the very first show was the uncomfortable journey there with my legs crossed, when a normal half an hour or so journey developed into a three hour endurance test.
Out of all the shows Malvern remains my favourite and the one that we have returned to several times over what must be the last fifteen years or so. Why is my favourite? There are several reasons for this including its glorious setting, excellent car parking facilities, the fact that although it is busy the crowds never seem overwhelming and its most friendly welcoming atmosphere. It has none of the pretentiousness of some of its other counterparts. You can see a glimpse of the showground from above in the photo below. We went for a walk in the Malvern hills last September and were able to peer down at the site from our lofty perch ~
Remember that if you can't make the show in May there is another equally enjoyable show in September, celebrating autumn which this year will be held from 25th -26th September. Further information can be found here.
The most heart skippy time of the day for me is the visit to the plant marquee which I usually make a beeline for as soon as I get to the showground. Here is spring captured in a gigantic tent with all its magic, colour and scent. There is also the opportunity to buy new plants grown by real plant lovers ~ impossible to resist. Then there is the expertise of the specialist societies, impressive show gardens, the open gardening section where amateurs compete against each other as well talks and demonstrations to fit in into one whirl of a day.
I have already had a peek at some of the nurseries who will be attending here over at the Three Counties website. The website also gives information about some of the other events and attractions which will be taking place during the show. There is plenty to keep non gardeners occupied too - himself is quite happy to while away some time doing his own thing. As well as the show itself we enjoy staying in the area and exploring local attractions. We usually round up proceedings by treating ourselves to a most delicious Chinese takeaway from nearby Upton on Severn.
This year though the icing on the cake is going to be the opportunity to meet more of my fellow bloggers and put faces to names - actually in some cases I don't know people's real names :) If you are reading this and have not yet decided about Malvern it is not too late to join in the fun. The enthusiastic and industrious Patient Gardener and VP have so kindly put a great programme together which you can see over at Meet@Malvern. Looking forward to meeting you all in May and for those who are too far away to make the trip, I am sure that there will be lots of blog posts on all the gossip and goings on at Malvern.
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