Popular BBC Gardeners’ World spring fair returns to Beaulieu
GROWING inspiration, expert advice and local produce will be on the agenda as the popular BBC Gardeners’ World spring fair returns to Beaulieu.
Now in its fourth year, the top gardening team will be back this May for the three-day horticultural showcase featuring show gardens, advice from experts, and dozens of design ideas.
Visitors can enjoy a colourful array of plants and flowers, with morning entry tickets including admission to Palace House and the National Motor Museum.
New for 2024 is the Get Growing Stage, billed as an informal drop-in space dedicated to the joy of home growing and hosted by horticultural broadcaster, author and award-winning podcaster, Ellen Mary.
Well-known faces will be sharing their top tips, including Jason Williams (Cloud Gardener UK), flower farmer Kim O’Brien, mushroom growers the Caley Brothers, and chefs from The Pig and Lime Wood hotel.
Headline sponsor, Hillier, will present the spring fair’s central feature – a stunning woodland-themed seasonal show garden with shade-friendly planting, flowers and bulbs.
Plant information will be available throughout to inspire garden plans of visitors, with advice pods and a large retail area stocked with Hillier plants and garden accessories. There will also be expert horticultural advice from Hillier’s nursery team on the main stage.
Also new is the plant expert workshop marquee, where visitors can take part in a range of practical activities led by plant experts Lucy Chamberlain, Saul Walker and Rosy Hardy, founder of Hampshire-based nursery Hardy’s Cottage Garden Plants.
At the BBC Gardeners’ World magazine stage, special guests Frances Tophill (Friday), Adam Frost (Saturday), and – new for 2024 - Sue Kent (Saturday) and Rachel de Thame (Sunday) will be joining the editors to share seasonal gardening advice.
Seasonal plants get top billing as stars of the show, with more than 30 specialist plant nurseries and growers to browse, as well as stalls selling garden accessories, tools, equipment and furniture.
The fair’s showcase gardens include The Inner Dancer by Matt Le Gassick; The Retreat by Marc Buirski (2 Forks and a Spade), A Forest of Calm, by Leigh Johnstone (aka The Beardy Gardener), and a Garden of Life by Mountbatten Hampshire Hospice.
Beautiful borders will also return, including The Kettle’s On by Catherine Butcher (Plants For Design) and Tiffany Passmore, A New Leaf by Alison Firth and BCHA Learn (Bournemouth Churches Housing Association), and Once upon a time by Minstead Trust.
Other highlights will include a BBC Good Food Market, free hands on activities for children in the Budding Little Gardeners area, and a college garden competition featuring growers of the future.
Tickets for the show are on sale now, but we’ve teamed up with the organisers to give away three pairs of tickets for Sunday 5th May.
Readers can also book direct with an exclusive 10% discount code available in this week’s paper.
To book visit www.bbcgardenersworldfair.com
