The riots and tough economic climate failed to crush the spirit of Britain in Bloom gardeners, who rallied to make the 2011 contest a success.
Cricklade in Wiltshire was crowned 2011 Champion of Champions. Judges dishes out a record 20 gold medals, plus 36 silver-gilts, 19 silver and one bronze at a ceremony in Scotland, hosted by Rachel de Thame.
The event…
Rebel gardeners are planning to stage a major alternative to the RHS Chelsea Flower Show in 2012.
The Chelsea Fringe (19 May to 9 June) will be a London-wide festival of flowers, urban gardening, community allotments and parks – timed to coincide with the famous RHS event (22-26 May).
The new festival will see floral boats on the Thames and lorries loaded…
A new National Gardening Week aims to get Brits sowing, hoeing and mowing in 2012.
Set to take place on 16 to 22 April, nurseries, garden centres, garden clubs, charities, schools and the media are all being urged to get involved.
The initiative was devised by the Royal Horticultural Society, which will give away 20,000 gardening starter packs with free seeds.
Gardeners will…
The Royal Horticultural Society is experiencing a big upturn in its fortunes, according to its boss.
Director-general Sue Biggs told AG the RHS had achieved its highest-ever membership of 375,464.
Sue said it had been a bumper year at the RHS’s four main gardens: Wisley in Surrey, Hyde Hall in Essex, Rosemoor in Devon and Harlow Carr in Yorkshire.
Visitor numbers are up…
Alan Titchmarsh has claimed his new ITV series outperformed expectations, but brushed aside critics’ claims that it’s lightweight on horticultural content.
Speaking exclusively to AG, Alan said Love Your Garden attracted average audiences of 3.5million viewers, peaking at 3.8million.
As well as returning for four episodes this autumn, a second series will run in 2012.
“It’s quite scary to do a new programme,” said Alan.…
Anti-peat warriors are licking their wounds after suffering a devastating setback.
Campaigns to bring a peat phase-out forward from 2020 to 2016, and calls for a tax on peat-based compost, have been brushed aside by the Government.
It has even been confirmed that targets to wean gardeners off peat over the next decade will be voluntary.
A similar ‘voluntary’ deadline set by the…
The royal Horticultural Society has embarked on a fresh round of redundancies, pruning out directors and high-profile managers.
It comes just weeks after new RHS director-general Sue Biggs said: “I’m well placed to say that morale is great within the RHS. We are all facing forwards to an exciting new future.”
The surprise ‘restructuring’ effects eight management posts from the Society’s 751-strong…
NEW Royal Horticultural Society boss Sue Biggs last week vowed to make the UK’s most influential gardening charity appeal to everybody – even if they’ve only got a few patio pots.
Former Thomas Cook and Kuoni boss Sue, an executive with 30 years’ experience in the international travel industry, pledged to broaden the RHS’s appeal, making it “attractive to everyone –…
