Scottish Rock Garden Club Forum
SRGC Shows and Events => SRGC Shows Questions and Answers => Topic started by: ChrisB on March 27, 2010, 08:23:19 PM
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Hi Everyone,
Just got back from a wonderful day at this show. It seemed even bigger than ever, with lots of amazing plants exhibited. The nursery stalls were heaving with plants when I arrived at 8am but by 3pm, many were gone completely.
I took a few pictures, but not of the obvious cup winners, I'm sure others will provide pictures of the biggest and blousiest plants.
Here are a few of my personal choices:
First, Diane Clement let me watch her as she prepared her cut alpines for exhibit, and I learned a lot about how to present them. She won a first - of course.
Then I spotted a N. bulbocodium that was much smaller than I had ever seen before, a beautiful sight and the flowers were upright and looking their best I thought
Brian and Shelagh were there, and Brian agreed to pose with a super fern, sorry Brian, I've not written down its name, but it was just lovely, as was its owner of course ::)
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One view of the benches
Darren Sleep's tropeolum was a lovely thing
Couple of corydalis - too many to take pictures of, but these are a sampling of the range on exhibit
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Lovely Cyclamen coum, pewter leaf form
Nice yellow dionysia
There were loads of hepaticas for sale and on exhibit, this one grown from seed by David Boyd One sale plant nearly sent me reeling - £180!
An unusual narcissus, the nodding flower heads won't be to everyone's taste, but I liked their simple elegance.
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Glad you had a good day, Christine.... looking forward to more of your photos.
A telephone caller tells us that the Forrest Medal was won by a venerable potful of Trillium nivale, shown by Alan Spenceley..... to whom warm congratulations are in order.
We used to see Alan at some Scottish Shows and he often used to attend the Discussion Weekends.... you are welcome back any time, Alan!
Christine: what happened about your primulas?
Good to see the young Hepatica cross raised from seed by David Boyd... that man is one good grower and I'm used to seeing much larger plants from him, cyclamen etc.... 8)
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I loved the colour of this pulsatilla
And this Saxifraga was just exquisite
No spring show would be complete without a soldanella, this one beautifully presented
I'm not a townsendia fan, but this one was very tidy
And that's about it. I'm sure others will provide more pics....
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I put my primula 'David Valentine' into the general primulaceae class, but it lost out to some very showy dionysias that looked like they had been grown by a professional. I decided not to exhibit my Barbara Midwinter, she looks nice, but didn't want to do the wrong thing. Advice was that, as you quite rightly said, when a region is mentioned, they mean *species* from that region, not cultivars or crosses. For newbies like me, it would be nice if it was spelled out in the literature though.... Its ok for more experienced exhibitors who know the ropes, but for greenhorns like moi ......
Seven item breakfast for £3.20 at Tesco's across the road, went down well with a number of forumists......
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A little birdie has told us that Clare Dower achieved her Gold Merit Medal at Hexham Show ... our HEARTIEST congratulations to dear Clare.
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I have asked for this to be discussed at the Show Secretaries' meeting in Edinburgh, Christine, so we should have clearer wording in future.
Not at all surprised that a breakfast like that would go down well...... sounds good value.
Hurrah!
What good news about Clare's medal.... well done Clare .... perhaps medals should be worn for saturday dinner at the Discussion Weekend??? 8)
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Good news, Maggi. Thanks for that. Not that I now need it, I've learned a great deal this week. I suppose I should have known, but I really didn't. Ah well. It was such a good show, and all those responsible for it should get a hearty thank you. Its the same with all the shows though, everyone pulls together and they really work a treat. The only down side is I seem to have a lot less money in my purse on my return home.... there were some wonderful plants there. I wonder how many of my precious purchases I'll manage to kill in the forthcoming year. I'm quite good at killing things through ignorance. Its an expensive hobby, this rock gardening lark. Mind you, I've seen a lot of germination this last two weeks on seeds sown in 2009, so Ian is quite right, the snowmelt has helped.
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Tell me, Christine, did you see Shelagh in possession of any Birthday cake?
I would have thought that a combination of a birthday and a show day would have lead to a mass munching by those travelling Pudsey Piglets?
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Nope, no cake that I know of. We did know it was her birthday though. I was doing things so didn't really get a chance to find out if any celebration took place. But I did hear that some were going out for lunch a bit more up market than the Tesco cafe....
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Nope, no cake that I know of. We did know it was her birthday though. I was doing things so didn't really get a chance to find out if any celebration took place. But I did hear that some were going out for lunch a bit more up market than the Tesco cafe....
Ah, the burger bar by the station, eh? That Brian knows how to give a girl a good time..... ::)
We did know it was her birthday though
Yes, well, the party hats and balloons will have been a giveway, I expect!
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Let's put the record straight. Well prepared piglets sometimes bring appropriate items in their car boot, in preparation for any eventuality. Today, a bottle of bubbly and glasses had been stored away inbetween pans of ferns, sedums and a Brazen Hussey.
The joint celebration of Clare Dower winning her gold medal, AND Shelagh's birthday led to popping of corks in the car park before noon.
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And the plant that did it for Clare, was Primula "Wharfedale Village"
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Lots more pictures to follow tomorrow, but I must now go and catch up on much needed sleep (after 4a.m. start this morning and 450 mile round trip to Hexham)
Farrer Forrest medal winner Trillium nivale, shown by Alan Spenceley, reputed to be about 40 years old
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Farrershown by Alan Spenceley, reputed to b e about 40 years old
Nay, nay and thrice nay ... Alan is certainly older than 40! :D :D :D
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Lots more pictures to follow tomorrow, but I must now go and catch up on much needed sleep (after 4a.m. start this morning and 450 mile round trip to Hexham)
Crikey, is it that far? That's about the same as the trip there would be for us.... and one which we sadly feel is too far. :'(
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Crikey, is it that far? That's about the same as the trip there would be for us.... and one which we sadly feel is too far. :'(
I would guess it's a tad further for you, Maggi. But not so far for Jean and Glassford, and a mere hop from Glasgow or Paisley or wherever it is those lads come from ;)
Yes, it is too far for me to drive there and back in a day, but luckily I have a sister who lives about half way so I drive to Carol's then she does the rest. 8)
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Glad that birthday was properly celebrated Diane. ;D
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when a region is mentioned, they mean *species* from that region, not cultivars or crosses. For newbies like me, it would be nice if it was spelled out in the literature though.... Its ok for more experienced exhibitors who know the ropes, but for greenhorns like moi ......
I have asked for this to be discussed at the Show Secretaries' meeting in Edinburgh, Christine, so we should have clearer wording in future.
It is in the handbook, but like lots of other things, I still think that it's often best to confirm on the day if you are not sure
From AGS Shows Handbook - Rules and Regulations
Geographical classes are those which include the words from or native to followed by the name of a country or region, e.g. ‘one pan rock plant from Asia’. Geographical classes are for species and/or natural hybrids, excluding garden hybrids. (the boundary between Europe and Asia - as defined by Kew - is shown inside the back cover)
So if it says ‘One pan rock plant from Asia’ you can’t include cultivars,. If it says one pan primula, Asiatic you can, so for example Primula “Tantallon” or “Netta Dennis” would not be allowed in “One pan from Asia” but they would be allowed in “One pan Primula, Asiatic”.
It can be confusing to beginners, and so are many other things but there are always people around on the day to help and advice. It not unusual to see quite experienced growers consulting others about geographical areas their plant comes from, and NAS cards do occasionally get given where these plants haven’t been spotted before judging.
The one that catches some out (including judges) is when cultivar-type names are applied to natural selections, e.g. Rhododendron ‘Yaku Fairy’ or Colchicum szovitzii “Tivi”. These would both be allowed in “from Asia” classes as they are not cultivars but natural selections. So long as the judges know that, we are OK!
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Just a few to post, lots more later (unless VV gets in first ;D )
General view of bench1
ditto2
ditto3
Large 6 pan AGS medal winning entry from Mark Childerhouse
Super Gold medal winning display from the RBGE and John Mitchell
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Super shots Di ... did you have your tripod with you, because the lighting is often difficult in that show hall?
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Super shots Di ... did you have your tripod with you, because the lighting is often difficult in that show hall?
Of course, tripod is essential for me, especially after lunchtime celebratory tipple ;D
Actually, I found the lighting very good, no over-bright low sun coming in from the side which is often the case and impossible to manage, and no energy-efficient orange lights such as at Loughborough. Any dodgy ones I take two: spot metered and general metered. If the spot metering is a little dark that can easily be tweaked and the colours are better saturated.
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Well I sure am glad that someone had a camera unlike me who was up and away at 5am then went to pick up Cyril who took 3 plants we really enjoyed the day and a huge thank you to the Newton family ( Victoria was especially just ACE) they looked after everybody at lunchtime, I got a super doggy bag full of goodies for Ann,( must mention Trevor and Angie) you should have seen her face when it was opened, Maggie you missed out this time sorry. I am still Christmas crackered today but it was well worth the effort to visi Hexam, Cyril had a great day as well meeting people he has only heard about, cheers Ian the Christie kind.
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I'll start the pictures rolling
3 pan shown by Ian Kidman Saxifraga "Coolock Kate" and Primula "Joan Hughes" at the front
Dionysia curviflora the back part of the 3 pan
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Sebaea thomasii shown by Tom Green
Primula "Mars" part of a 3 pan shown by Frank and Barbara Hoyle
Primula "Miniera" also part of the same 3 pan
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Still on primulas
Primula "Netta Dennis" shown by Don Peace
Primula megaseifolia shown by Terry Mitchell
Primula petiolaris shown by Joan Bradbury
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Continuing the primula theme
Primula "Lismore Sunshine" shown by Alan Spenceley
Primula "Tantallon" shown by Ian Christie
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Corydalis integra shown by Darren Sleep
Corydalis popovii shown by Cyril Lafong
Corydalis solida Penza strain shown by Don Peace
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3 pan Narcissus from Anne Wright
(Front left: N watieri x gaditanus, Front right: N rupicola x asturiensis "Jim Lad", Back: N jonquilla var henriquesii)
Narcissus "Jim Lad"
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Viola jooi shown by Don Peace
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Hepatica acutiloba shown by David Boyd
Hepatica japonica
Hepatica "Millstream Merlin"
these last two were part of a 3 pan, I think shown by Ian Christie, apologies if they were not ::)
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Mini gardens: right Carol Kellett's, left John Dower's
Cut flowers
Primula class
Androsace class
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a tiny form of Narcissus bulbocodium shown by Barry McWilliam
Narcissus alpestris shown by Alan Furness
Narcissus triandrus x cyclamineus shown by Anne Wright
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Really good pictures Diane, you must have done more than just talk you way round the show after all. There will be no pics from me, seemed to be tied up all day doing 'official' stuff, should be fine for next week. The hepaticas were by Ian Christie, a nice three pan. Spent part of the day humping Mr Kidmans v v large and heavy pans back into his alpine house, the quicker he gets better the better it is from my point of view.
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Shortia uniflora shown by Ian Christie
ditto
Berneuxia thibetica
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The one that catches some out (including judges) is when cultivar-type names are applied to natural selections, e.g. Rhododendron ‘Yaku Fairy’ or Colchicum szovitzii “Tivi”. These would both be allowed in “from Asia” classes as they are not cultivars but natural selections. So long as the judges know that, we are OK!
Which is why (in my opinion, and from a great distance) the Joint Rock insistence on cultivar names for WILD plants, put up for awards, is so damn silly!
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Super images Diane, enjoying them all.
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Fritillaria aurea shown by David Millward
ditto
Fritillaria davidii
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Daphne blagayana "Brenda Anderson" shown by John Richards
Tropaeolum lepidum shown by Darren Sleep
Asteropyrum cavalerei shown by Trevor and Angie Jones
Asarum campaniforme shown by Wilma and Jim Wright
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Trillium rivale shown by Alan Spenceley
ditto
Scoliopus halleri hallii shown by Darren Sleep
Scoliopus bigelovii shown by David Boyd
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and to finish, a couple of specials for the croconuts
Crocus cvijicii cream form shown by Tommy Anderson
Crocus veluchensis white form shown by George Young
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Super photos from a grand show, Diane. Thank you so much.
Some real gems there.... I'd have 'em all!
The dainty Scoliopus is S. hallii, rather than halleri, by the way ;)
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Super photos from a grand show, Diane. Thank you so much.
you're welcome!
The dainty Scoliopus is S. hallii, rather than halleri, by the way ;)
oops, sorry, that's because I've just been looking up primulas!
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Those Corydalis are all very smart.... did Darren's win?
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Those Corydalis are all very smart.... did Darren's win?
Yes, Darren's C integra won the class, beating Cyril, wow!
Don's was part of a 3 pan from Europe.
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Good for Darren... that's a great plant!
So much for those folks who say it's impossible to beat Cyril's plants.... it isn't, you just have to have a better one...' seemples'!!
Cryil knows that, he is very sporting.
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Thanks for showing these wonderful Show pictures Chris and Diane!
450 miles driving and up so early was worth it Diane. And you got used to summer time in advance 8)
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Still somewhat stunned by the success of that Corydalis, thank you Maggi. It looked so lovely planted out in my bulb frame last year (on the day of the Blackpool show - it is normally over by the end of feb) that when I tidied the frame last summer I collected up all the corms & popped them into a pot which i then plunged in the same frame. I was hoping for another cold winter so I could take it to Blackpool but the weather had other ideas and was so cold it delayed the plant by yet another fortnight. It did look great on saturday even if I say so myself.
Incidentally - the Frit davidii pictured was also mine, and won the 19cm pot frit class. And i won both Pleione classes too - what a day!
Oddly there were few comments on the corydalis on the day but numerous people asked me how I flowered the frit davidii. Of course I can't answer beyond saying 'total laziness' in that I don't repot it, just topdress it each year. Perhaps it is the lack of disturbance that suits it? I didn't actually know it was supposed to be hard so no doubt I will not see another flower now. ;)
I would like to mention our group members Tony Taziker, our treasurer, and his wife Margaret, Very talented growers and propagators who have only recently started showing. Tony won the prize for the most first prize points in section C. This echoes their success at East Lancs last week. I was very envious of Tony's Pulsatilla vernalis. Only one flower yet, but it had been grown from surplus SRGC seed bought at the 2009 Blackpool show. So only 12 months old. I can't flower this species at all ( i get buds but they never expand), let alone germinate dry stored Pulsatilla seed! Knowing Tony, no doubt by next year it will be as big as that shown by Dave Riley!
Congrats to Peter and his team for another enjoyable Northumberland Show. Susan was delighted that it coincided with the farmers market again and we spent a fortune on food!
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I would like to mention our group members Tony Taziker, our treasurer, and his wife Margaret, Very talented growers and propagators who have only recently started showing. Tony won the prize for the most first prize points in section C. This echoes their success at East Lancs last week. I was very envious of Tony's Pulsatilla vernalis. Only one flower yet, but it had been grown from surplus SRGC seed bought at the 2009 Blackpool show. So only 12 months old. I can't flower this species at all ( i get buds but they never expand), let alone germinate dry stored Pulsatilla seed! Knowing Tony, no doubt by next year it will be as big as that shown by Dave Riley!
Darren, I am so glad you have mentioned Tony and Margaret Taziker and their plants..... at too many shows it is a struggle to get many or even any entries in Section C, (as it is in AGS Shows) or SectionII (in the SRGC).... to hear of folks who are growing from seed and having fun entering their plants is something that should make not only ancient Show Secs like myself happy, but should delight every member of our two clubs.... without these keen people getting involved in the shows we are in grave danger of the exhibits dwindling over time and thus losing our shows altogether.
Believe me, there is nothing more important for our shows (no matter how magnificent the displays from the experienced growers and exhibitors, which are of course inspirational) than the sight of a strong entry of plants in the C and II sections, for this indicates the hope of a healthy future for our shows.
My hearty congratulations to all those who enter the "beginners"Sections.... may you "live long and prosper"!
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My hearty congratulations to all those who enter the "beginners"Sections.... may you "live long and prosper"! [/color]
I assume this applies to the plants exhibited as well as the people, it's certainly the thing I've struggled most with!!
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My hearty congratulations to all those who enter the "beginners"Sections.... may you "live long and prosper"!
I assume this applies to the plants exhibited as well as the people, it's certainly the thing I've struggled most with!!
Quite so, Sue... sincere Vulcan wishes to plants and people! ;D ;)
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I also worry about the lack of new exhibitors. I also wonder how many experienced showers drop out of the show scene even though they keep on growing great plants? They may be bored with the competition part of it but we (our clubs) use the shows as a shop window and I'd like to think that a large part of exhibiting, especially at a show like Hexham where the location means a lot of public attendance, is to turn folks on to the plants we love. Far more use could be made of non-competitive classes in this resppect. And even those of us who enter plants in competition sometimes (not this year perhaps) have too many plants for the eligible classes - it would be nice to be able to bring the 'spares' even if it was just to put them on a 'non-competitive' bench for the public to admire.
I admit i often think about packing it in, especially when spending a day tarting up plants in the cold when i'm not feeling too good anyway (Blackpool this year for instance!). I am not a competitive person either and my main reward is when someone expresses interest in the plants themselves - one reason why I grow a lot of 'weird' stuff. I was really pleased when Christine B popped over to admire the tropaeolum on Saturday, as I was when Sue G approached me about a Wachendorfia at the same show some years ago.
John Good visited our group recently and saw some plants of mine on our display table. He told me he knew straight away that they were mine and that when he is judging at shows and finds something on the bench he has never heard of I am in his mental list of likely suspects for ownership. ;D
Incidentally - I noticed with pleasure that the show was advertised around the town as a 'Spring flower show and plant sale', with nary a mention of 'alpine' or 'rock garden'. It made me realise again that often the names of our clubs suggest a limited scope which, in reality, is not reflected in our shows, in our gardens, or on this forum. I was chatting with a lady in our bank last week who admitted to being a plantaholic and I recommended she looked on the forum. She was very wary as she was 'not really into alpines' and had to be reassured that the forum especiallly is now so broad in scope that it is, IMHO, the best resource for PLANT information anywhere on the www. I feel that advertising our shows to the public as 'SRGC' or 'AGS' shows is automatically going to limit attendance to those already converted. The Hexham team are doing the right thing by pitching the posters slightly differently and i think the rest of us involved in running shows could learn from this. They are going to bring in anyone with even a passing interest in flowers or gardening - then we can work on converting them!
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Yes, Darren, yes, yes, yes!!
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Here are a few that Barry and I took, apologies if I duplicate any earlier ones. The flowers on the saxifrage were at least 2cm across.
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Very well done Darren, it looked a great Show.
Just a few reflections from the South West Show in respect of exhibitors and visitors.
Exhibitors in Section C were thin on the ground and possibly so because of the difficult season this year. My absence from the benches was simply because I had nothing ready this year and others I spoke to had the same problem (but, I SHALL be back!!). I do think though that some of the experienced growers tend to forget that they were once novices and could spend a little more time encouraging beginners. Having said that Shows; getting ready for them, and the act of benching plants on the day is busy and time consuming, and on the day time is of the essence. I do think though that the Judges could offer more help here. For example, at the conclusion of judging if they were to gather together the Section C exhibitors and talk them through the judging process and how decisions had been made, and why one plant in a Class that got a First differed from the plant that got a third or no award at all; and how the grower might make his/her own plant a winner the following year.
I've always been of the view that without "losers" there would be no Show and especially in Section C, where the future of Shows lies, encouragement is a must rather than simply leaving them to it.
Similarly with visitors, fine, they will wander about in an un-directed way, looking at the plants perhaps with the minimum of understanding of them. We need to do more to spot the visitor who wants to learn a bit and actually spend time in guiding them, and talking to them about how they might get involved in the future. They will rarely come to us, we need to do more to go to them.
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John Good visited our group recently and saw some plants of mine on our display table. He told me he knew straight away that they were mine and that when he is judging at shows and finds something on the bench he has never heard of I am in his mental list of likely suspects for ownership. Grin
Darren,you have hit the nail on the head,the judges know who owns the plants and if you are not on their Christmas list you have no chance. I am not saying that this happens at every show but it has been my experience and is the reason I give up showing. One Judge even disqualified my plant, a primula( because he said that there was more than one plant in the pot ) so that his own plant got the award. I cannot find that rule in the book Re. Primulas.
I used to take part in the judging and because a certain individual who usually wins almost everything did not win a certain class,and disputed same, but lost in sunsequent decision in which I had the deciding vote, I was never asked to judge again.as a matter of fact I was never asked to do anything at the show again. I dont even go to the show anymore.
If you look at my web page you see I am capable of growing a few plants. I hope this answers your question about the shows.
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I do think though that some of the experienced growers tend to forget that they were once novices and could spend a little more time encouraging beginners.
Hi David
I could not agree with you more, though sometimes I think they don't mean to be offputting (which does imply that sometimes they do, I realise). Comments like 'when are you going to grow proper plants' or 'judges don't like plants like those' both of which have come my way, do not fall into the encouraging category I feel. Happily these were the minority.
(Actually I rather like the thought that my plants are improper in some way ;D ;D)
They also assume that winning is all that a show is about. I can only speak for myself, it's much more about the people for me, yes the plants are a real draw but that's to see them, not to win at any cost. I'll take along any of mine that look decent and I won't turn down a first place if given one; but what really matters is talking to people, finding out advice and information, seeing new plants and adding them to the list of things to grow or avoid and meeting and making friends.
Afterall so what if I don't win, no one has died (as they say), I've had a good day out, met people, bought a plant or two (ahem ::)) and hopefully had a nice lunch.
I also know what you mean about talking to visitors - maybe we need to start a movement of people who when they hear visitors making a comment about a plant will join in and encourage conversation with them rather than sniff loudly and push past them as I've also seen. That way we can point them to where the free leaflets are, the nursery stands with something similar etc etc. Afterall if you've paid to get in, you are probably reasonably interested already.
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All good points being made here about the encouragment of novice exhibitors and visitors.... .and something which I believe we spend a good deal of time on in SRGC Shows in Scotland.
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Folks,you obviously have a different environment at your shows than we have this side of the pond. It is win at all costs, and I don't know where the advice comes from, I have never been given any,although I used to spend a lot of time given it out. I also give away most of the plants I had on show to beginners that showed an interest in them. I once got a few trillium tubers from the show secretary, apart from that I have never got a cutting or a pinch of seed from anyone at the shows in over 20 years in spite of numerous requests. They continually complain that the shows are declining but when you tell why they do not want to listen.The person referred to in my last post that disputed a decision, refused to let me see his garden one day when I was in the neighbourhood, he said there was nothing to see.
Friendly people at the shows.?
Enough said.
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Michael,
I'm sorry to hear of your negative experiences over there. I'm pretty sure things are different here. I've been lucky in that we have several very good growers and exhibitors in our group . Being a shy chap I would never actually approach someone to ask for cuttings or seed but this has been offered anyway when I express an interest. One of our members (now a successful exhibitor) told me that he had been (as a relative beginner), to visit, and been treated very generously, by such luminaries as Geoff rollinson, Ian Kidman, M & C Brown etc. This is hearsay of course - I'm not the networking type myself and am on very few Christmas lists! I'm certainly not in the 'Judges Club' and have never even spoken with any of the above except the Browns - who immediately gave me a Cyclamen I'd admired, typical of their famed generosity.
That said - I do feel that as Sue says, there is often a conservatism within the judging that sometimes limits the range of plants likely to win prizes.
For myself I can't complain as I've done well with some seriously obscure (and not especially hardy) plants at shows since i started exhibiting.
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I could not resist these two images for the bulb despot to drool over
Fritillaria chitralensis (Edinburgh RBG I think, also not too sure re spelling)
Narcissus munozii-garmandiae (Edinburgh RBG)
I have not had time to follow the excellent coverage of the Hexham Show on the Forum, will get time tonight
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What a lot of interesting comments, I can not help but add my pennyworth. With reference to judging most shows have different judges each year but there is a relatively small number of judges on the circuit, however it is very obvious, both from judging myself and from stewarding in behind judges during judging, that judges have their own tastes and like certain types of plants more than other types. So if you get a judge who does not like your particular type of plant then that year you come in second, third or nowhere but next year the judges are likely to be different and your plant may be the flavour of the month. This is hard if you only show at your local show, but if you show fairly regularly it is swings and roundabouts as far as I am concerned. Most judges are exhibitors themselves so are aware what is new, difficult, rare, common and are v aware of what is well grown...it is not a fluke that good growers win each week, they do so because they grow good plants.
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Following on from my last post I usually find AGS shows friendly affairs although, as I am not a forward type of bloke, it took me a while to just walk up to people and ask questions. I have to say that when I did I never met with a rebuff, always friendly chat and advice. When I started showing I always showed whatever was in flower (following on from Sue Gills comments) as I was of the opinion that even if the judges were not impressed, if it converted one viewer to grow alpines or go and buy it from a nursery then that was good enough for me, it was amazing how often the plants got a sticker. If we can get this message over to people in our local groups then we would have more entries in C
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Only one show here and more or less the same judges every year. Sometimes there is a rep from Pershore but they usually bow to local influence.
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This is of course, an SRGC Forum and I can tell you that in SRGC Shows there have to be a certain number of Judges from outwith the local area and no-one may Judge more than two years in a row in one show.
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Maggi, we need you over here to organize a couple of shows, and then I might be able to start showing again.You obviously do things different over there.
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Thank you for that George. I only do two shows so I do notice, for instance, that most years I get more firsts at Hexham than I do at Blackpool. So yes - it does vary.
I have also noticed ( ::) ) that recently the top award has gone to decidedly tender plants (Australian Orchids etc) which were sniffed at when I exhibited the same species ten years ago. Nobody went as far as marking them NAS on grounds of hardiness but I'm sure it was considered.
I see this as a positive sign that things have changed over the last decade.
I'd like to further qualify my remarks by saying that I perfectly understand why the likes of Dionysias and Saxes etc are going to get the top prize - I am the first to admit that to get one of these in show condition is harder than with most bulbs and even the Cypripediums etc. Sorry, but it is, and the exhibitors of these cushions fully deserve their successes in the shows.
Anyway - thanks for posting your pic of the RBGE plants. Especially the Narcissus which I've coveted for years!
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I could not resist these two images for the bulb despot to drool over
Not just the BD. I'm drooling too. 8)
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I could not resist these two images for the bulb despot to drool over
Not just the BD. I'm drooling too. 8)
Yes, these two would be favourites for a few of us, as George knows!
BD is been out cooing over these bulbs for practically the whole time they're in flower.... just as well they are going past as his Erythronium season gets into full swing or he'd have to be beside himself.... :-\
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Thanks for the excellent report on the show everybody !! :D
I enjoyed the discussion about showing and judging as well ! ;)
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On the subject of Narcissus I spotted the Wyllie Wife and Daff as a Brush sitting down to have a cosy 'tete a tete' (get it) re bulbs.
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Thanks to everyone involved in exhibiting and reporting on the Hexham Show it portrays a wonderful event with some great looking plants grown by Forum Members. I love the way Darren describes the build up to showing his prize winning Corydalis integra - unexpected surprises in growing and catching a favourite at its peak is just great.
I'm a great believer in nurturing enthusiasm too.... and who could not be swept up by the enthusiasm of the Forum Members in so generously sharing their experiences at Shows or at home?
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Could I please just add my thanks to all those who took photos at the Hexham Show. I had hoped to return to the UK and to be be there this year but something called "events" got in the way so to see those beautiful photos did much to make up for the disappointment of being unable to attend. I am looking forward to seeing what Show Secretary Peter Maguire is going to post, so go for it Peter!
Jim Willis
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Jim,
You should know show secretaries don't have time to take photographs! Last year was a pleasant exception. :D
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This is in response to Ragged Robin's kind remarks above - here is the corydalis safely re-plunged back in the bulb frame! The frame is looking good this year and lots of frits , tulips and onco/regelia/juno irises showing buds. The Cyclamen graecum all got through the winter unscathed, as did stray tropaeolum tricolor, much to my surprise.