Pershore College Wins Gold at Hampton Flower Show

Pershore College have won a gold medal and Best Exhibit in the Plant Heritage Marquee at the RHS Hampton Court Flower Show. This is the 6th medal for the College this Summer, following on from their success at the Malvern Spring Show (3 medals), Gardeners World Live and the Chelsea Flower Show.

The winning garden was based on the concept of re-creating the nursery of James Veitch (& Sons) a renowned horticulturist during the 1800’s. The idea for the garden developed when the Plant Heritage (the NCCPG) asked the College to be involved in their celebration of the bicentenary of plant hunter William Lobb. Lobb was sent on may expeditions to North and South America to collect plants and seeds for Veitch’s nursery.

These plants were then grown on, for sale to the Victorian public, who loved novelty -  Berberis darwinii and Escallonia macrantha which are now staple garden plants, exotic climbers like the Chilean Bellflower and Flame Creeper, and new trees like the Monkey Puzzle and giant Wellingtonia.

The garden display shows the techniques used by the Victorians to propagate these plants, and how these are the same techniques that we use today, but our propagating equipment has changed. This snapshot of the Veitch nursery also features a Stove House ( heated glasshouse) bench, with orchids and Chilean exotics which Lobb introduced, through to the potting bench with Monkey Puzzle cones and seeds being sown,  cuttings in wooden 'flats' or trays, and a despatch area with plants ready for sale and despatch in clay pots and rootballs in sacking.

In front a brick path with wrought iron drains leads between two raised beds of nursery stock  - young plants, liners and trays of seedlings.  The nursery worker has left his hoe - and weeds - at the front of the stock bed.  There are pots of cuttings covered by glass bell cloches and a lantern cloche.

The concept of the garden was devised by Head of Horticulture at Pershore College, Tony Davies, as well as a list of plants and a general design which lecturer and designer Steve Boxall took on and developed. The garden was them built by Boxall and Phil Oakley, another College tutor.

Janet Prescott, garden design tutor sourced the plants and period details like clay pots, tools, and authentic potting mixes - woodash, sand, soil and leafmould.

For more information on courses in garden design or horticulture at Pershore College call 01386 551187