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The GFGS Stand at the Autumn Show 2013

At about 2 pm on Thursday 26th September 2013 along with Martin Davis, Syd Reed and Stuart Rowe we started to put together the GFGS Stand. With the frame for the GFGS Banner erected, the banner in place and five tables covered in black material, it was then time to bring in a few young gardener’s baskets and other items including numerous onions, shallots and garlic, all well-presented and compliments of Martin Davis, a man who knows his onions!

At about 2 pm on Friday 27th I returned with more props and young gardener’s baskets and set up the final display, or was it?

I arrived bright and early on Saturday 28th to find everything where I had left it, although the beetroot fairy appeared to have visited the stand during the night. Two exhibits of five beetroots each had appeared and been very nicely placed on the stand!

We had decided to run a small competition for young gardeners groups and schools who were asked to fill a basket with flowers, fruit and/or vegetables and we would ask members of the public to vote for their favourite basket during the show. We are grateful to the following young gardeners groups, who entered the competition:

Belmont School Gardening Club, Cheltenham, Gloucestershire.
Bourton on the Water Primary School Gardening Club, Bourton on the Water, Gloucestershire.
Chesterton Primary School Gardening Club, Cirencester, Gloucestershire.
Chosen Hill School Gardening Club, Churchdown, Gloucestershire.
Mickleton Young Gardeners, Mickleton, Gloucestershire.
Naunton Park Primary School Gardening Club, Cheltenham, Gloucestershire.

Bourton Primary School Gardening Club	Mickleton Young Gardeners
Naunton Park Primary School Gardening Club

During the day the stand was visited by a number of people including Effie MacDonald from Naunton Park Primary School and the Headmaster of Chesterton Primary School and by the end of the first day over 400 members of the public had voted in the competition and the stand had been awarded a ‘First’ prize, thanks to our involvement with the young gardeners.

I arrived even earlier on Sunday 29th so I could get my vehicle as close as possible to the Stand, but didn’t quite get it into the marquee!

During the day we were visited by Perlin Paudyal from Naunton Park Primary School and Tina Brimson who helps run the Chosen Hill School Gardening Club. Matthew a member of Mickleton Young Gardeners also came to see how their entry was doing; it was Matthew’s idea to hang the runner beans up!

Perlin Paudyal

Matthew

At about 4.30 pm we started to take the stand down and by this time the total number of votes over the two days had reached 1334.

And although in our opinion everyone was a winner, the peoples’ choice was Mickleton Young Gardeners, so congratulations to them.

Mickleton Young Gardeners Basket

Second place went to Chesterton Primary School Gardening Club and third place to Naunton Park Primary School Gardening Club.

Chesterton Primary Schools Basket	Chosen Hill Schools Basket
Belmont Schools Basket	Bourton on the Water Primary Schools Basket
Naunton Park Primary Schools Basket

My thanks to all involved in supplying exhibits, setting up, stewarding, getting the public to vote and taking it all down at the end.

Rod Wells.

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You can also see pictures from earlier shows: