Just back from the BBC Good Food Show/Gardeners' World Live show at the NEC. My absolute admiration to those who are there for the full five days of the show - I was only there three days and was losing the will to live by 3pm today. Being surrounded by stands selling burgers/bacon baps/buffalo steaks, I've spent the past three days smelling like a barbecue - oh, to have been stood in the floral marquee, to be gradually infused with the scent of sweet peas instead.
Key memories of the show:
1. Flotillas of ladies pulling lilac or pink plastic trucks. They lethally drag them behind them as they walk, occasionally performing emergency stops, so that you fall over them. That's when they're not ramming them into your shins. I expect I have some lovely bruises as a memento.
2. Spending three days in a small cube in which you couldn't swing a midget gerbil, never mind a small cat.
3. Must-have plants (judging by the contents of the pink/lilac trucks): fuchsias (the piece on Gardeners' World did its job), roses (hybrid teas and miniatures seemed more popular than English roses), Primula vialli (very popular), alliums and Clematis (as always).
This is the first time I've visited GW Live, and I have to admit that I prefer Malvern (although admittedly I wasn't working at Malvern, just visiting). GW Live seems a little, well, soulless. The floral marquee is good but there are a lot of stalls in the big sheds which don't have natural light, and quite possibly have their own weather systems as they're so huge.
I took some photos but I'm too tired to download them tonight so I'll post a few over the next few days.
I may have bought a few plants ;-)
Sunday, June 14, 2009
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
8 comments:
Primula vialli seem to be a lot more readily available this year, I discovered my local farm shop selling them for £1 each yesterday (I may have purchased a few).
Looking forward to your pictures :o)
Wow - that's rather cheaper than they were at the show. I forgot to add that other 'must haves' were red Achillea and all manner of coloured Zantedeschia.
Most importantly, did the cheese sell?
We weren't selling, just giving it away to all and sundry (though admittedly in very small chunks). we were there rying to grab potential students.
or even 'trying'
I know what you mean about those plastic boxes they are everwhere at Hampton Cort RHS show too and people are so thoughtless with them in a crowd.
Actually I get very cross there too with wheelchair users they seem to think they can just mow through the crowd. For the last few visits I have been extremely debilitated with Lyme Arthritis, that's when I managed to go at all, and it really made me so cross. People can have difficulties without disability gadgets/aides.
This year 100% well I am really looking forward to my visit. I have decided to go alone with just my camera, very selfish of me but then I won't inflict my desires on anyone else.
Looking forward to seeing you pics! Send a Cow were there with our garden and we won a silver award which we were really pleased with :-) The Send a Cow garden, had loads of tips about how the keyhole garden enables families in Africa to grow veg all year round. We've put up lots of pictures from the day and of our garden - http://www.sendacow.org.uk/bbcgwlblog (Send a Cow Blog)
Joanne, have a wonderful time!
SendaCow - your garden was fascinating. Thanks for visiting my blog.
Post a Comment