Events

RHS October London Flower Show: RHS Great Autumn Show
9-10 October 2007

Theme: Harvest Market

One of the highlights of the RHS Shows season, the Great Autumn show, now held in October is a wonderful opportunity to both see and buy plants with late season appeal, and admire the efforts of fruit and vegetable growers, thanks to displays of superlative produce in the competitions.

This year, changes to the format of the show made it better than ever. The nurseries selling ornamental plants were grouped together, filling the Lindley hall, while the Lawrence hall contained fruit and veg, the other floral competitions, as well as the Harvest Market, a new element for 2008, which offered the chance to taste various produce.

In the Lindley hall, flower and foliage colour was at its dazzling best, with displays of autumn foliage having particular impact, such as the one exhibited by Plantagogo of Cheshire with various Japanese maples and an impressive range of coloured-leaf heucheras. Edrom Nurseries of Berwickshire had a stand that stood out. The nursery specializes at this time of year in autumn flowering gentians, and the dazzling, sapphire-blue sheets of flowers contrasted perfectly with the reds and oranges of autumn foliage displayed elsewhere. There were however plenty of other flowers to be found.

Daphne transatlantica Eternal Fragrance ‘Blafra’ was offered by Foxgrove Plants of Berkshire. This compact semi-evergreen shrub reaches about 75cm (30in) in height and is unusual among daphnes in bearing new flowers on young growth, which allows the plant to continue blooming well into autumn. The flowers themselves are small and star-shaped and cream-flushed with pink and have a delicious perfume.

Lily specialists H.W Hyde and Son of Berkshire showed new Lilium ‘Veranda’, a soft yellow cultivar with large open blooms that have a strong scent. Also on display was a particularly eye catching selection, L. ‘C M Butter’ with glowing pink flowers.

The Old Walled Garden in Kent displayed some interesting plants. Perhaps most eye catching of all was climber Tecoma capensis with its flame-coloured blooms. It is a fairly tender plant ideal the cool conservatory or sheltered town garden. Buddleja ‘Pride of Hever’ is a seldom seen selection created by crossing familiar B. davidii and B. lindleyana - a species sometimes grown as a wall shrub. The resulting plant has quite slender silver tinged foliage and long, elegantly-poised open panicles of bright violet flowers produced late into the season.

Lovers of herbaceous plants were not neglected at the show. Saxifraga fortunei ‘Cotton Crochet’ offered by Mary Green, The Walled garden, Lancashire is a strange selection of this late season favourite, producing double flowers above typically fleshy foliage. Nerines are great autumn favourites and among those on show was a collection of hardy selections, exhibited by National Collection holder Mrs Margaret Owen, which gave a good idea of the diversity within the group.

In the Lawrence Hall, the fruit and vegetable displays were as impressive as ever, in particular the apple competitions. Some nurseries were to be seen in here too- Cookoo Box Nursery of Kent for one with its impressive displays of chilies, while there was floral interest too with the carnation competitions and displays of photographic and botanical art.

The Harvest Market evening event

At this new event visitors explored the Harvest Market after dark; sampling pears and apples from RHS Garden Wisley, freshly picked salad leaves and a whole host of other edible treats including herbal biscuits, fresh cheeses and infused oils.

Visitors to the show were also treated to a traditional jazz set by Sarah Rose and the Staves, as well as an irreverent performance by gardening experts James Alexander Sinclair and Nigel Colborn – making sure this Harvest market was a night to remember! 

The Winners

Gold

Cookoo Box Nursery:Chilli plants
Dibleys Nurseries:Gesneriads, begonias & other houseplants
Edrom Nursery: Autumn flowering gentians
Fernatix: Ferns
HW Hyde & Son: Lilies

Silver-Gilt Flora

Churchtown Nurseries: Restios
Devine Nurseries: Gladioli
Fibrex Nurseries: Ivies & ferns
NCCPG (Shropshire): Nerines
Norfield Nurseries: Japanese maples
Oak Tree Nursery: Ornamental grasses & grass-like plants
The Old Walled Garden: Shrubs from the Southern Hemisphere
Plantagogo.com: Heucheras & acers
Potash Nursery: Cyclamen
Harrods: Vegetables

Silver Flora

Jacques Amand International: Autumn flowering plants
Barnsdale Gardens: Perennials & shrubs
The Botanic Nursery: Plants for autumn interest
Choice Landscapes: Nerines
Foxgrove Plants: Mature ornamental grasses
Mary Green: Plants with foliage interest
Long Acre Plants: Woodland perennials & ferns
Newlands Nursery: Herbs & associated plants
Rougham Hall Nurseries: Asters
Trehane Camellia Nursery: Autumn flowering camellias
Wilford Bulb Co Ltd: Lilies

Bronze Flora

Hardy's Cottage Garden Plants: Autumn flowering herbaceous perennials
Southcombe Gardens: Seasonal plants
Pennard Plants: Edible plants (Bronze Knightian)

Photographic and Botanical Art awards

Gold

Niki Simpson: Botanical details (deciduous trees) 

Silver-Gilt Grenfell

Nigel Chapman: Plants in Abstract

Silver Grenfell

Bebb Art: The Bridal Bouquet
Blackpool and the Fylde College: Botanical photographs
Jan Cassidy: Botanical photographs
Deborah Husk: Infra red plant portraits
Dr John McCormack: What do bees see? (Silver Lindley)

Bronze Grenfell

Oliver Mathews: Australian Native Garden
Allan Pollok - Morris Ltd: Winter Walks
Magda Truszkowska Photography: Major Plant Remedies

The RHS Harvest Market forms part of the RHS Grow Your Own VEG Campaign 2007 , which aims to inspire everyone to grow their own vegetables with a series of family events, workshops, talks, walks and demonstrations at all four RHS gardens throughout the year.