An aspiring garden designer will celebrate his community allotment’s 100th birthday in his debut show garden at RHS Flower Show Tatton Park.
Harry Dean, 19, a landscape architecture student at University Centre Reaseheath in Nantwich, will lead a team of 11 fellow vegetable growers from Over Allotments in Winsford on the garden build.
He hopes ‘A Gourd Time’ will inspire show visitors to grow their own vegetables at home or even become allotment holders themselves.
The garden will offer design ideas which can be applied large or small scale, and will showcase vegetables, fruit and flowers grown by plot holders at Over Allotments.
The inspiration for Harry’s design stems from 1990 when a pumpkin grown by former allotmenteer Albert Palfreyman weighed in at a massive 579 lb (262.6 kilograms), briefly holding the British heaviest pumpkin record.
The youngest plot holder at Over Allotments, Harry is a regular prize-winner with his own vegetables at the members’ annual produce show.
He was inspired to design and build a show garden for RHS Flower Show Tatton Park after being involved in the pre-show preparation of a gold medal winning garden there last year.
Over Allotments has been at the centre of Winsford’s ‘grow your own’ community since 1924.
It has over 60 plots with a considerable waiting list.
Harry, who lives in Winsford, said: “It’s a great honour to be able to mark 100 years of growing local produce, including a record breaking pumpkin, with a show garden at RHS Flower Show Tatton Park.
“Competing at such a high level will be a challenge, because every component of the build has to be perfect for judging.
“But everyone is very keen to help and I couldn’t ask for a more enthusiastic build team.”
Fran Johnson, chair of Over Allotments Association, said: “We’re all very proud of Harry.
“Competing at RHS Tatton will be a highlight in this special year of centenary celebrations.
“It will be a real communal effort, as all our plot holders are keen to help by producing the very best vegetables and flowering plants for the show garden.”
‘A Gourd Time’ is situated at TP245 in the Long Borders section, a category which offers a chance for gardeners and horticultural students to showcase creativity and win a prestigious RHS medal.
After the show, the garden will be relocated to Over Recreational ground in Winsford for the town’s community to enjoy.
This year is the last time the RHS Flower Show Tatton Park will run as an annual event.
The show will relocate to Wentworth Woodhouse near Sheffield in 2025 and to Sandringham in Norfolk in 2026, returning to Tatton Park in 2027 and from then on at three yearly intervals.
Recent Comments