Curtain Up (almost!)

Show Gardens in the making in the lee of the Malvern Hills
(all images were taken on Wednesday 1st May during
the build-up to the Malvern Spring Gardening Show)

As the final touches are put to show gardens and stands around the Three Counties Showground, I come to the end of my Spring Gardening Show previews. Thankyou for joining me on this journey, particularly if you have been with me from the beginning, back in the cold days of February; you’ve been a marvellous audience, if blog visitor numbers are anything to go by. Producing these posts has been a challenging experience;  and a real joy and privilege to have been leading you scene by scene through the various stages from imagination to reality.

Nostalgia appears in many forms

It’s been a strange adventure, too. Although I have posted so many times on various other blogs since I first discovered Malvern shows (in 2005), I have always felt on the outside, looking in; gradually, over the last twelve weeks, I have come to realise I am now on the inside, looking out. It has certainly changed my perception of what makes the Showground tick.

A long way to go yet -- but it will be ready on time

I walked around for quite a while on Wednesday (1st May), soaking it all in; the atmosphere, the busyness, the building of stands and show gardens, the camaraderie of everyone working together to bring you a magnificent Show. For first-time visitors it may appear bewildering as you walk through the gate; others may know exactly the direction in which they are heading, but you? I won’t take you by the metaphorical hand, but suggest instead that you head for one of the many coffee courts, relax for ten minutes or so and take a look at the show guide to get your bearings. With the spectacular hills behind you, orientate yourself … time well spent towards an enjoyable day.

This really IS - or will be - a Show Garden

Children participate as well

Waiting in the wings is this enormous cast of experienced and dedicated people, each with their own story to tell. There isn’t space to list them all, but the main features, with Show Guide pages to help you plan in advance, now follow:

Plants are delivered by the lorry load

* Show Gardens p22-37 (RHS awards and medals explained on page 123)
* Plants and People Theatre and programme of events (p47), highlights of which are outlined every day (Fri to Sun) at 10.30am by host James Alexander-Sinclair. (Thursday at 11.00am are the Malvern Young Gardener Awards)
* School Gardens and Education including the Discovery Zone and Theatreworks Arts Lab (p38-45)
* Malvern Spring Sportive Cycling Challenge - Sunday only (p49)
* Floral Marquee (7,000 square meters with more than 100 of the best nurseries from the UK and abroad (p53-61)

Just one section of the Floral Marquee - by 9th May it will be
crammed full of plant displays, plants for sale - and people
(don't forget your trolley, or buy one on site)

Indoor Halls & Pavilions:
* Wye Hall (p62-79) - Crafts and Craftsmen’s Guild displays; Garden Societies and Food Hall
* Gardeners’ Shopping Pavilion (p80-84)  - numerous stands PLUS ‘Dig for Prosperity’ (a new feature for 2013 highlighting the importance of creating a sustainable future for the countryside).
* Allotment Theatre (p86-87) located in the Shopping Pavilion and featuring an excellent programme of talks and demonstrations alongside ‘Grange Cottage’, a stage / garden.
* Avon Hall (p88) Floral Art.
* Three Counties Centre, Linden Suite (p89) – RHS Botanical Art Exhibition.
* Country Living Magazine Pavilion (p117-120) – an eclectic selection of stylish products from British independent designers, artisans and craftspeople.
* The RHS Stand (p50-51) – discover what the RHS can do for you: sharing knowledge and expertise, information on the various RHS initiatives such as Campaign for School Gardening; plus books and gifts.

Plants are appearing in the Show Gardens; soon all of them
will be planted to perfection

Outdoor Stands:
* ‘The Open’ (p93-115) – a huge variety of horticultural equipment, sundries and activities, plus nurseries (Plant Pavilions), plant crèche and porter service.
* Elgar Avenue (p106) – high-class shopping, alongside the RHS/TCAS members’ pavilion.
* Plaza Bandstand, by the Three Counties Centre, Row 7/Avenue F (p131) with performances by the seven-piece band Indigo Blues of vintage-style tunes inspired by jazz, blues and swing beats of yesteryear: each day between 1.30pm and 4.00pm. Sunday only (at 11..00am and 12.30pm), students from the Elgar School of Music will be playing their own blend of folk, jazz and world music.
* Catering facilities (p130) – are available throughout the Showground (indoors and outside).

Maybe you will spot me
around the Showground,
notebook in hand
scribbling or sketching.

As I write, the Show is still building. I will continue blogging during all four Show days, offering a kaleidoscopic scrapbook of Show news, activities and images. “All the world’s a stage, and all the men and women merely players, they have their exits and their entrances …..” (from As You Like It, Act II Scene VII). Hackneyed through over-use but still so very true, and nowhere more so than at The Malvern Spring Gardening Show. Everyone here, or visiting, is a part of it. We all hope you will enjoy your day in this most lovely of settings.

WHY NOT ALSO TAKE A LOOK AT THESE PAGES, TOO?  (Just click on the links):

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The International Orchid Show

Malvern Autumn Show

"Overture and Beginners"

This is how most Show Gardens look when work starts
(all the images in this post were taken on Mon 22nd April)

My theatrical analogy used throughout many of these posts is apposite, and will perhaps be apparent to anyone who has been involved in stage or concert hall. In the gardening fraternity, too, here at Malvern, even though the performance is on such a large scale and, basically, an outdoor event. You have the Hills as a backdrop and the Showground as the stage, with so much action taking place simultaneously that you, the Theatregoer / Show Visitor, will be hard-pressed to organise your day. What you do will depend to a large extent not so much on what is put before you, but on what you most want see; and on the Programme in your show guide.

Another 'beginning' - a bare plot of ground from which a 
spacious garden is being created

Outside there are the immaculate Show Gardens and ingenious School Gardens, each and every one telling their own story. And under cover two Theatres: the Allotment Theatre in the Gardeners’ Shopping Pavilion, and the Plants & People Theatre in a large and spacious marquee. The scene will have been set; you will wait in eager anticipation for the show to begin – will there be music? Visuals? There is no script and you, the visitor, are not just audience, but vital participants.

A garden takes shape - buildings and 'props' are moved into place

Special effects are called for by many a playwright or composer - Shakespeare's Prospero initiates a tempest, in The Tempest: (ACT I SCENE I: a tempestuous noise of thunder and lightning heard)! Or the atmospheric music depicting a storm in the last of four Sea Interludes composed by Benjamin Britten in his opera, Peter Grimes. At Malvern, whatever weather the Showground is blessed with will be entirely natural, not conjured out of the imagination. Everyone concerned in any way, exhibitor or visitor alike, hopes and prays for sunshine and perfect temperatures.

Think sunshine and hot weather - these olive trees create a
restful atmosphere

There: after all these posts, I have at last alluded to it: WEATHER. I am not being pessimistic; but this is England, in Spring. Forecasts need not deter you (did you know you can obtain a Met Office  forecast specifically for the showground?) Gardeners are used to weather! Come prepared - sensible shoes anyway (ladies) for there is a lot of walking, a lightweight raincoat and maybe a brolly. None of these precautions may be needed and there are plenty of under-cover activities should the heavens open. I am of the opinion that it is better to be prepared than disappointed. I have visited the Spring Gardening Show on all four days for the last seven years and nothing would stop me from continuing to do so; the weather is a part of it, but in the immortal words of Morecombe and Wise, "Bring me sunshine."

All hands as the Show approaches: the Showground is kept in immaculate condition

'Overture and Beginners': the call to actors or musicians to make their way to the stage or orchestra pit. Some will be waiting in the wings, some will be backstage staff, some ‘front of house’; and innumerable others going unnoticed, yet without whom the Show could not go on. It is a huge logistical event when everyone and everything dovetails to bring delight, fun and happiness, to make you smile as you joyfully fill your trolley with plants, plants, plants, gardening sundries, art, elegant clothes, local food, anything and everything connected with a splendid day out in the Malvern countryside. And perhaps, first and foremost for you, listening to expert advice in the two theatres, chatting to experts - don't forget the helpful and knowledgeable RHS staff in the RHS / TCAS members' pavilion.

Gardens ARE finished on time -
though this is one of the permanent
gardens through which I love
to wander.

I, too, am waiting in the wings and one more pre-Show visit before writing the final pre-Show post – and then 'Curtain Up' on 9th May: the most magnificent occasion, long anticipated, months in preparation and production. Keep up-to-date by visiting the Show Website. I look forward to saying hello again in my final pre-Show post next week, and then I will be blogging live throughout all four days at the Show.

I'm contemplating the
theatrical feel I want
to convey, and how to pull
it all together

Helpful Informtion: Opening times - 9am - 6pm; FREE Car parking.Children go FREE (0-15yrs) – it is recommended that children aged 12 and under are accompanied by a responsible adult. FREE Shuttle bus from Great Malvern Station to the Show on Friday, Saturday and Sunday runs continuously from 9am - 6pm. Bus stop just outside station entrance. Show bus stop is by Red Gate. SatNav Postcode: WR13 6NW.

WHY NOT ALSO TAKE A LOOK AT THESE PAGES, TOO?  (Just click on the links):
Love our Shows, Like our Facebook Page - Facebook.com/threecounties
Malvern Autumn Show

On Show - On Stage ....

The Malvern Hills provide the perfect backdrop
to the Malvern Spring Gardening Show

Theatre is very much in evidence at the Malvern Spring Gardening Show. Look around you, and you will see how carefully and lovingly everything is staged. Nothing haphazard, nothing left to chance. From the backdrop of the stunning hills, to the immaculate presentation of nursery displays in the Floral Marquee to the innovative and inspiring Show Gardens. Even to the way tools and gardening equipment and sundries are displayed, everything is all so very carefully stage-managed. Breathtaking. 

If it weren't for all the visitors, you would think you were in an alpine rock garden

Regular visitors will know that expert advice is always available from stall holders, whether it is how to grow a specific plant to perfection, or how to nurture edible crops. For general advice, RHS staff on the Royal Horticultural Society stand are a mine of information on both mundane and esoteric topics; pick their brains; their help is invaluable, as I have discovered personally more than once. The enjoyment factor is much in evidence with knowledgeable experts to inform and entertain. Scheduled talks and question and answer sessions will feature throughout the fours days within TWO theatres – both with alluring ‘sets’ to beguile you - created by established garden designers. As I write, the designs are still under wraps but are sure to be as amazing as ever. 

Mark Walker (left) alongside his 'Somerset Pride' show garden, 
for which he received a 'Best Edible Garden' award in 2011 
- presented to him by Mike Warner, TCAS Chairman of the Board
and Elizabeth Banks, RHS President

A facelift is being given this year to the ‘Allotment Theatre’ in the Gardeners’ Shopping Pavilion  (on Row 2), with a theme of ‘Dig for Prosperity’ and a garden to match, designed by Mark Walker of Walker's Garden Retreats. Mark is no stranger to Malvern - his ‘Dig for Victory’ garden at the 2012 Autumn Show was a show-stopper, as was his 'Somerset Pride' (above) in 2011, for which he was awarded 'Best Edible Garden' and an RHS Silver-Gilt medal. Both gardens were overwhelmingly nostalgic, with such attention to detail, that I just wanted to stand and stare and drink it all in. 'Somerset Pride' depicted a rural farmyard setting with the use of authentic rustic materials - a trade-mark of Mark's garden designs. As a sneak preview for his 2013 theatre design, Mark says, “Grange Cottage is closely based on my mum’s childhood home in Oddingley, near Droitwich, where they grew veg, had chickens and worked the local land. We believe every garden has a story to tell, and its purpose for the allotment theatre is for talks on all things veggie, chickens and horticulture in general.”

Mark Diacono last Autumn, 
discussing culinary herbs 
with Kim Hurst of
The Cottage Herbery

Hosting all the entertainment in the ‘Allotment Theatre’ will be Reg Moule, gardening guru for BBC Hereford & Worcester. Reg comes from a family that has been involved in horticulture for several generations, and before this they were all farmers, back to the 1740s. So he knows his stuff. As does Mark Diacono who will be joining him at specified times every day. Mark D. says, “I am lucky enough to spend most of my time eating, growing, writing and talking about food. At my smallholding, Otter Farm in Devon, I grow unusual and forgotten food along with the best of the more familiar.” 

James Alexander-Sinclair (left, nearest camera) hosts
a question-and-answer session in 2012 in the 
'Plants & People Theatre'

As for the spectacular and tented ‘Plants & People Theatre', this is where you can listen to, and meet, more celebrities, each with a widespread knowledge on a number of subjects. The theatre seats fill fast, so check your show guide when you arrive for exact times, and grab a coveted front-row spot for some fantastic live entertainment. Your compères during the four days will be the elegant and amusing James Alexander-Sinclair, an established garden and landscape designer, writer, television presenter and speaker.

Katie Johnson in the 
P&P theatre

And when James is not on stage, sit back and enjoy the friendly interviews conducted by Katie Johnson, a farmer turned broadcaster and writer, and also a presenter at food, drink, and gardening events. 

Carol Klein, 
vivacious and ebullient

Specific and more general topics have yet to be announced, but you won’t want to miss either Chris Beardshaw on Thursday and Friday or Carol Klein on Friday and Saturday. Both are highly entertaining and of course, expert. Carol works as a television presenter and newspaper columnist and will be familiar to TV viewers of Gardeners’ World and Life in a Cottage Garden (her own).

Chris Beardshaw talking to a group of schoolchildren

Chris Beardshaw is also well-known to TV viewers, with a pedigree that includes BBC Two’s Hidden Gardens and The Flying Gardener, amongst many others. (Remember him leaping in and out of a helicopter?) He is also a regular voice on the weekly Radio 4 Gardeners' Question Time panel and will be joining the team at Scotland’s Beechgrove this Spring,  putting his unique horticultural mark on the garden. But Chris is also passionate about passing on his love of horticulture to youngsters, and at the Show on Thursday he will be involved in the theatre with a children’s presentation.

“All the World’s a Stage,” wrote Shakespeare in 'As You Like It' in 1599, “and all the men and women merely players”. Mere players? Everyone involved with the Malvern Spring Gardening Show is dedicated to staging an event ‘par excellence’. 

Don’t miss it. 

Why not book your tickets now?

AND PLEASE ‘KEEP VISITING’: I’ll be blogging again in two weeks time, but meanwhile, I recommend regular clicks onto the Spring Gardening Show website for regular updates and more breaking news.

WHY NOT ALSO TAKE A LOOK AT THESE PAGES, TOO?  (Just click on the links)


Malvern Spring Gardening Show
Love our Shows, Like our Page - Facebook.com/threecounties
Malvern Autumn Show

A Show with Feeling

Quintessentially English is the wild foxglove (Digitalis purpurea), which this year symbolises the Malvern Spring Gardening Show – and the Malvern Hills themselves. Come the actual Show (from 9th to 12th May) they will be flowering on the steep slopes, and down sequestered lanes of Gloucestershire, Herefordshire and Worcestershire. Displayed on Show posters and leaflets, their presence speaks of late-Spring, and Summer-to-come; and on the Showground, too, their pink spires will remind us of lazy days cycling in rural places, as I did as a child.

Foxgloves in a
Malvern  showgarden

Their flowers beguiled me (and still do) – as a little girl, I would collect the fallen tubular blossoms, each speckled in their throat, and place them upside down on my fingertips. A handful of the countryside, and many childhood memories; and, without realising it, a life-long love of plants. So often, what you learn as a child stays with you forever.

The new Three Counties Agricultural Society chief uses pedal power

Pedalling allows one to absorb so much more of one’s surroundings, and by now, the new Three Counties Agricultural Society chief, Ken Nottage, is proving that pedal power is just the ticket, when it comes to circumnavigating his new working domain. Ken, who officially took the helm at the Society’s Three Counties Showground  on December 1st, is not fazed by the 90 acre perimeter site at the foot of the Malvern Hills, and is literally getting on his bike – astride a fully restored 1957 Royal Enfield. He said: “I was reading a copy of  ‘Three Into One’ – John Lewis’s excellent chronicle of the Society - and was amused to read that years ago, a former company secretary carried out his ground inspections astride a pony! I was inspired to follow suit, but with no equine prowess to my name, opted for an arguably safer, and definitely less temperamental, mode of transport. This is a beautiful place to work, but it’s also a large area to cover on foot, so a bike is a great way of getting from A to B quickly, without polluting the fresh air.”

It's easy to find your way around

How I wish I could give all first-timers to the Spring Gardening Show a quick guided tour by bike, a leisurely and gentle introduction to all that you will find once you arrive; but instead will outline what I term the four main ‘quadrants’, each with a distinct characteristic. The Showground is divided by hard-surfaced roadways – Rows and Avenues, and all sections are clearly signposted with large-scale maps at most intersections. Avenues run north to south, parallel with the Malvern Hills (good for orienting yourself), and Rows run from east to west. Stand in your imagination (map in hand) at the junction of Avenue 5 and Row 5 (Elgar Avenue) facing the hills:

Bikes are 'in' this year!

The quandrant to your right is ‘home’ to the RHS/TCAS Members’ Pavilion, The Severn Hall and the new Three Counties Centre, the RHS Botanical Art Exhibition), the Bandstand, Show Office, Artisan Food Market, excellent trade stands, and lots of catering venues.

Ahead of you will be the magnificent ‘Malvern Floral Marquee’ and to your left, Plant Pavilions galore (many are specialist nurseries); undercover, the Avon Hall (floral art`), the Gardeners’ Shopping Pavilion and Allotment Theatre, the Wye Hall – home to plant societies, food and wine stalls, and the Three Counties Guild of Craftsmen’. Plus the Eco Art & Garden area and innumerable trade stands related to horticulture.

The Plants & People Theatre always draws a large audience

Swivel on the spot with the Hills at your back and walk slowly away from then down Row 5. To your immediate right is the ‘Country Living magazine Pavilion’ and lots more useful trade stands.

One of many excellent School Gardens:  the children are so knowledgeable, and keen to talk to visitors

Whilst to your left (with your back to the Hills) are the eclectic School Gardens, the Learning Garden and Discovery Zone and Spring Gardens Coffee Court and then – across Row 7 the Show Gardens (including the Themed Garden category inspired by the Tour de France), RHS Life, an Art Market and the Plants and People Theatre. So much to absorb, so many activities, and in my next posts (during March), I will be describing some of these in more detail as news emerges. Click on all the links to keep up-to-date with all that is happening.