Cleveland Show

[veteran vet]

I don't think I have ever started a topic before, certainly never had first pictures on a post. Easter Saturday is always Cleveland show, back to its old haunt of the Ian Ramsay C.E. Academy after it had had a facelift over the preceding few years. Nice spot, bit of a carry from car to show hall but they had laid on quite a few trolleys which were a great help, one trouble though was the interior temperature, too hot for plants really even with air fans on, too hot for many folk too. Never mind the team were as friendly as ever, the catering was up and running all day with a vast area of tables and seating to enjoy the food and a chat.
I will start with the Farrer Medal plant, shown by Geoff Rollinson
Primula allionii 'Mrs Dyas' (5). The selection caused some chat among exhibitors post judging but I know this is a difficult plant to get to any size, it was in a 19cm pot and Geoff told me it was 10 years old....'nuff said.
the Class 1 entry from Tommy Anderson has to have been one of the best so far this year, with two plants getting awards from the six, viz.
Corydalis glaucescens Certificate of Merit and
Trillium nivale being judges the best plant from North America at the show

[veteran vet]

Another of Tommy Andersons six in class 1 was
Saxifraga 'Allendale Jinn', not sure I have seen this one before
John Richards showed two nice primula
Primula vulgaris ssp sibthorpii (3) and
Primula elatior ssp cordifolia (6)

[Maggi Young]

Nice to see an older form of  Primula allionii getting some attention.  I  believe that 'Mrs Dyas' (syn. Show Form   a thrum eyed plant) was originally  collected by Dr Guiseppi  and  named by A. Stubbs.  So it's been around for quite a while -possibly since the 1940s .

[veteran vet]

A general view of the show, the top end of the Open Section
Anemone caucasica (14) George Young
Saxifraga 'Tromso' and
Saxifraga 'Cumulus', both from Tommy Anderson (15)
Pleione 'Shantung' from Jim Watson (17)

[veteran vet]

Fritillaria aurea from Ivor Betteridge
Trillium rivale from Fred and Pat Bundy, another Certificate of Merit plant (19)
Iris bucharica (21), Barry Winter....glad he was carrying it, was huge
Trillium chloropetalum 'Val Mulvihill' (24) Fred and Pat Bundy
Ipheon 'Rolfe Feidler' (25) Ivor Betteridge

For the first time the SRGC resize tool has not managed to downsize some of my pictures to less than 200, can't work out why...not had a drink yet!

[veteran vet]

Hepatica are very popular exhibition plants at our shows and yesterday the following caught my eye
Hepatica 'Ho Ho Beni' (20) from Brian and Shelagh Smethurst
Hepatica nobilis 'John Saxton' (26) Diane Clement...rather liked this one
Hepatica 'Millstream Merlin' (62) Della Kerr is a personal favourite, this always seem to attract comments from show visitors but on the day the red sticker in the class went to
Pulsatilla vernalis from Ian and Maria Leslie
Saxifraga oppositifolia (70) from Geoff Rollinson...there were quite a few on display at the show, all in fine fettle

[veteran vet]

Callianthemum farreri from Alan Furness was much admired, in the Rare in Cultivation class so I had his notes as well
Viola douglasii has done well for me this year (84), and I liked
Narcissus jacetanus from Alan Spencely (85), sorry about the picture but it was back a bit on the bench
The small 6 class 45, won by Don Peace

[David Nicholson]

.......................I will start with the Farrer Medal plant, shown by Geoff Rollinson
Primula allionii 'Mrs Dyas' (5). The selection caused some chat among exhibitors post judging but I know this is a difficult plant to get to any size, it was in a 19cm pot and Geoff told me it was 10 years old....'nuff said............................

Extract from the NAPS Publication "Primula Allionii Forms and Hybrids" by Bob Archdale and David Richards:-

""Mrs Dyas: This is one of the older varieties with some doubts as to the authenticity of its name under which we have seen at least two quite different plants. In the preferred form the flowers are mauve-pink in colour with a star-shaped white eye. Individual flowers are of only moderate appeal but when weel grown the dome shape is a mass of flowers with no leaves to be seen and is then most attractive. It is thrum-eyed and usually late flowering""

That seems to fit the bill apart from one thing isn't the example exhibited pin-eyed?

[veteran vet]

Don Peace also won the Roger Smith cup with six pans raised from seed, a lovely entry
A few primula
Primula 'Maria Talbot and
Prilula 'Joan Hughes (53), George Young
Primula 'Oberau' (54) Brain Burrow, this is a new one for me
Primula 'Broadwell Chameleon' (112) Heather Barraclough was the best primulaceae in the Intermdiate section, gets its name because the flowers change colour/shade as they get older, it is not a sign they are going over.

[veteran vet]

Saxifraga boydilacena 'Pink Star' (99) from Keith Blundell was the best plant in the Intermediate section
Petrocosmea rossetifolia (105) from Christine Boulby was a splendid foliage plant
Lawrence Peet produced some good plants for the show, among them were
Saxifraga 'Allendale Elegance', (111) a plant for the future, I even bought one myself last week
Androsace lehmanniana (114)....in the main there have been few Androsace on the bench so far this year
Dionysia 'Chris Grey-Wilson'

[veteran vet]

Tulipa cretica (70) Dave Mountfort was another that caught my eye, a short tulip is much to my liking
Fritillaria ayakoana (67) Fred and Pat Bundy is in because I have not seen this before rather than it being a fantastic plant at this stage
A view of the Large Open tables
Better not forget another Certificate of Merit plant in
Dionysia bryoides (59) from Derek Pickard
Sebaea thomasii (28) Ivor Betteridge
I have quite a few other pictures (taken with my mobile phone rather than my usual camera) that the SRGC tool has not downsized to less than 200, if I can get them reduced another way will post a few more later

[veteran vet]

David, blowing up my photograph of Geoff's 'Mrs Dyas' it looks thrum eyed to me....there were several Primula experts there yesterday and I did not hear anyone question the validity of the plant exhibited, it looks like the Mrs Dyas that I grow that's as far as I can go, others may chip in a view.

[Maggi Young]

Hepatica 'Millstream Merlin' (62)........is a personal favourite, this always seem to attract comments from show visitors

 Puts me in mind of the fabulous plants of Hepatica- including mouth-watering specimens of 'Millstream Merlin' that the late, much lamented  David Boyd used to grow and show.   David is  sadly missed.

[Maggi Young]

That seems to fit the bill apart from one thing isn't the example exhibited pin-eyed?

  Expand the photo and enlarge it a bit more - it is thrum, David.

[Maggi Young]

Super pix, George -  I love the Viola douglasii