Finally, finally I have visited the Gardeners World Spring Fair. I have wanted to go since it first appeared in 2021 but one thing and another has got in the way. This year I was determined, I.was.going.
I will be transparent and say I was given a press pass for the show so I did not pay to go in. My words and opinions are as ever my own.
It is a bit of a schlep from where I live, so I decided to drive down the day before, do a bit of garden-bothering (more of this soon), stay over and get there nice and early on the Sunday morning. The plan was good and the plan worked. I arrived just before the show opened and by the time I had walked from the car park to the show it was open. Regular readers will know I love an organised parking experience. There were signs, wavers and pointers, I was very happy.
As I was there early there were not a lot of people ahead of me. So I decided to get as many pictures of the show gardens, beautiful borders, showcase gardens and all the garden inspiration elements of the show.
I enjoyed mooching around them.
The smaller displays are always very interesting to me. They show what is possible in a small space which makes them more relatable to many.
The Hillier Experience was large, as the headline sponsors of the show this is what I would expect.
The garden was split into four neighbourhoods, aiming to be opening a door to different types of gardening.
It was a good concept and worked well.
Even though the sky was a bit grey at first, the planting shone.
I beelined for the Beth Chatto Gardens display. They are not represented at a lot of shows so this makes them a 'do not miss'.
Several of the garden displays had 'do not sit' on the edges signs. I can understand this: the raised sleeper design looked great, but was just at the right height to perch your bum. I hasten to add there was seating around and when I was there it was not overly full. I imagine that lunchtimes might have been different.
The National Vegetable Society Hampshire District Association display was wonderful.
I am not a usual 'aren't vegetables beautiful' sort of person, but on this day I was.
I then wandered around the stalls and made a couple of purchases. Coleus Kong Mosaic and Cirsium rivulare 'Atropureum' jumped at me as I walked past. I paused for a coffee and then decided to have a look around the grounds.
Beaulieu has a long history. It is a huge estate owned by the Montagu family, currently the 4th Baron Montagu of Beaulieu. There is the Beauliu Palace House which opens to the public, the remains of Beaulieu Abbey, the National Motor Museum, formal gardens/kitchen garden and a monorail plus other attractions.
Had the monorail been running when I was there I would have gone on it. I might have to go back just to do this.
I admit I did not go into the National Motor Museum, I did think about it and nearly did, but the day was not that day. Of course I headed for he Victorian and Kitchen gardens. Entering through the wisteria tunnel was a joy.
They have some wonderful topiary. The Alice in Wonderland tea party is an acknowledgement that Alice Liddell lived near to Beaulieu and did visit the estate.
The garden has wonderful sight lines to draw you along the paths.
It is carefully designed so you have to move from one area to the next to see what there is to see. Natural curiosity is a great companion.
I made my way into the kitchen garden.
I admired the wonderful glasshouse. There was also a small plant stall which had a good range of cheap plants to buy. How I left without buying something is a miracle and, more accurately, probably a mistake.
The plots were gearing up to be productive.
There is good use of yew hedging throughout.
and I really wanted to go on the monorail.....
I was stopped, however, in my tracks (see what I did there?) by this abutilon by the side of the bothy. For a moment I could not identify it, I wondered what it was and just loved the size and statement of it. Then my brain kicked into gear and I realised it was an abutilon. I have an abuliton or five in my
garden, not this big (yet) and mine are blue. I had no excuse for not recognising it though.
I had a fabulous time. The Spring show is not huge, but it is big enough. It had a great range of plant sales plus other ephemera. That the ticket also gives you entry to all the Beaulieu attractions is a great bonus as it meant it was definitely worth my journey. It is now on my list of 'must visit again' shows.
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