A New Look Malvern

For me, the mark of a good show garden is one which still looks good in the rain.
This is 'Bringing Nature Home' courtesy of the Graduate Gardeners Ltd.

I experienced two 'new looks' at Malvern Spring Show yesterday - the revamped look intended by the organisers, plus my first ever visit to a gardening show where it rained pretty much all day. I still managed to thoroughly enjoy myself, despite the squelchiness underfoot and having to reprogramme my mental map of the show's layout garnered from previous visits.

Views from the Show Gardens - I love that wooden wall in the main picture

The show gardens are in a different spot, so they now have the Malvern Hills as their backdrop which helped to set them off nicely. The Floral Marquee is now by the North entrance so I entered the show straight into horticulture. There's more room inside too, so it made it much easier to see everything and I could see visitors in wheelchairs were able to view the stands in comfort. The foodie side of things has been expanded too and I have to confess making a few purchases, so I didn't need to cook after such a long day.

Inside the Floral Marquee - the auricula display was awarded best exhibit

I leave you with my favourite school garden from the day. These are often the most innovative items on display - I don't think I've ever seen a football used in a water feature before. The Dr Foster Went to Gloucester garden was not only charming (and sans football), it also chimed perfectly with the day's weather.


Blog post extra - Meet at Malvern has a look at THE Plant of This Year's Show?


Comments

  1. Yolanda Elizabet Heuzen9 May 2014 at 13:15

    Hi Michelle,

    Good to see you were enjoying yourself at Malvern despite the horrible weather. It rained in Dutchland all day too.

    cheerio,

    Yolanda XX

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. VP9 May 2014 at 14:03

      Yolanda!!!!!! Lovely to see you :) If anything, the weather was even more horrible than the year you came ;) But you know what, judging by the smiles the people there were all enjoying themselves :)

      Delete
  2. Pauline9 May 2014 at 13:49

    It sounds as if you had a good day in spite of the rain. It's quite a few hyears now since I went to Malvern Show, the plants are all so tempting!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. VP9 May 2014 at 14:04

      There was an extremely good selection this year, so I was tempted ;)

      Delete
  3. CJ10 May 2014 at 07:35

    Everything looks amazing. Glad you had a good visit there, it's somewhere I'd love to go one day.

    ReplyDelete
  4. Janet/Plantaliscious10 May 2014 at 08:04

    Love the look of the planting in that first garden, as you said, looks beautiful despite the rain. I had to squint to see how that wooden wall was made but it looks amazing. Glad you had a good time despite the rain.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. VP15 May 2014 at 21:56

      I'm surprised at how something so open still creates an air of seclusion. Something to remember for the future methinks

      Delete
  5. Anna10 May 2014 at 16:18

    I still remember 'The Graduate Gardener's' show garden from 2011 - they are most talented designers. What a shame about the rain VP but still it could not have possibly been as cold as the year of the blogger's meet up. We looked at the forecast earlier in the week and thought that it looked like typical Malvern weather. Himself's work commitments meant that we could not get there this time. Dr Foster is brilliant - hope that you did not look like that by the end of the day :)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. VP15 May 2014 at 21:57

      Anna, I DID look a bit like Dr Foster at the end of the day. Luckily I'd taken the precaution of wearing my allotment shoes, so at least my feet were still dry :)

      Delete
  6. Anonymous12 May 2014 at 02:52

    Like the use of those open screens by the Graduate Gardeners. Shows how little substance it takes to create a sense of separation. And how prophetic was that Dr Foster?!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. VP15 May 2014 at 21:58

      Hi Catherine - it was a key learning point for me, shows that less can most definitely be more :) The show's not that far from Gloucester, which added to the charm of their choice and garden.

      Delete

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