Plants at Malvern

Supersized vegetables, a fabulous Floral Marquee and perfect plants were all at Malvern

While summer was drawing to a close, there were plenty of plants at the Malvern Autumn Show in 2018 to keep gardens blooming throughout the colder months.

A whole host of nurseries exhibited at the show and visitors were able to quiz experts on the best plants to buy in autumn and what species to pick to bring some colour to the garden and jazz up borders.

Displays were marvelled at

The RHS Flower Show was inside an all-new Floral Marquee at the 2018 show. Located next to the South Entrance, visitors saw stunning floral displays from more than 35 nurseries. All competed for the Best in Show title and went all-out to take home an elusive RHS Gold medal.  

See the RHS Flower Show awards from Malvern Autumn 2018
See the Plant Village awards from Malvern Autumn 2018

Nurseries featuring at the show included Hampshire Carnivorous Plants, Roualeyn Fuchsias, Pheasant Acre Plants, Dibleys Nurseries, Hardy’s Cottage Garden Plants and H W Hyde, to name but a few.

Also within the RHS Flower Show were RHS Gardening Advisors. These experts were on-hand to offer free advice to help visitors' garden flourish. Whether guests wanted to plant up a shady corner or boost their pruning know-how, our team was there to answer questions and help visitors develop their skills and improve their confidence. 

There was a huge variety of plant shops on site, giving visitors all the tools required to grow the perfect garden. There was also a brand-new bulb market at this year’s show, with those exhibiting on hand to help visitors pick the perfect plants. 

Supersized veg stole the show

The Malvern Autumn Show saw the return of the CANNA UK National Giant Vegetables Championship. This competition is held at the show every year and 2018 saw four brand-new categories take to the stage including the heaviest three sticks of rhubarb, heaviest kohlrabi, heaviest aubergine and longest radish. 

Home to record-breakers, the show has seen many a vegetable tip the scale. In 2012 vegetable-growing star and Malvern Autumn stalwart, Peter Glazebrook (pictured) grew an oversized onion, weighing in at an eye watering 8.16kg world record, the equivalent of a Canada Goose. In the picture above, taken in 2017, Peter is clutching Britain's heaviest radish, weighing in at a whopping 10.38kg. 

The world record for the heaviest red cabbage was set by Cornishman, David Thomas in 2016, beating a 90-year record. The colossal cabbage weighed the same as the average seven-year-old child. 

In 2017, four world records and one European record were broken, including the world’s heaviest chilli, weighing 348g (almost the same as a can of soup). 

See Malvern Autumn's highlights