Countdown to RHS Show Cardiff

13th April 2010

The RHS Show Cardiff, the first Royal Horticultural Society show of the season returns to the parklands of Cardiff Castle this weekend, (April 16-18) and features the best of the spring blooms from nurseries across the UK, with ideas and inspiration for the growing season ahead.

This will be the sixth annual show for the RHS in the Welsh capital, and it contains displays created by the finest Welsh horticultural talent, the ever-popular schools wheelbarrow competition supported by Legal & General, talks and demonstrations, expert advice and numerous plants and accessories for sale. The event has plenty of entertainment at hand, with nature trails, street entertainers and live music throughout the weekend. The beautiful parklands site also contains a Craft Village and a taste of Welsh produce in the Café Quarter.

Amongst the show gardens is Cardiff: Capital for Shopping a design by the host city council that first appeared at last year’s RHS Chelsea Flower Show – attracting the attention of BAFTA award winning actor Bill Nighy and Gavin and Stacey star Alison Steadman, along with a Silver Gilt medal from the judges. The garden is a celebration of the city’s major new £675m St. David’s retail development that opened in October as the largest shopping centre development in Europe last year, contrasting the Grand Arcade with Cardiff’s unique Victorian and Edwardian arcades.

A hugely popular feature of the show over the years has been the Schools Wheelbarrow competition supported once again by Legal & General. This year 61 schools across Cardiff, the Vale of Glamorgan and Caerphilly are getting their green fingers busy, giving youngsters the opportunity to be creative and colourful in learning about the soil, and the chance to win gardening vouchers for their school.

The Talks and Demonstrations covers topics as diverse as Green Medicines from Professor Turner at the Welsh School of Pharmacy, and New Whitebeams and the National Welsh Herbarium by Dr. Tim Rich of the National Museum of Wales.

Cardiff Councillor Nigel Howells, Executive Member for Sport, Leisure and Culture said: “The show is a real treat for a range of visitors from keen gardeners to the expanding number of vegetable growers, to day trippers who are looking for a great spring day out. Once again we are working with our partners at the RHS to deliver their first outdoor show of the season and I have no doubt it will be as good as ever.” 

For more information on this year's RHS Show, including ticket prices and how to buy, click here.

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