THE HORTICULTURE manager at a garden centre in Gloucestershire will be demonstrating his skills by designing a garden for the prestigious Malvern Spring Gardening Show in May (2009).
Paul Hervey-Brookes from Wyevale Garden Centre – Nailsworth, who will be competing in the Chris Beardshaw Mentoring Scholarship scheme at the Show from Thursday, May 7 until Sunday, May 10, will be creating a garden displaying spring plants and is being sponsored by the Wyevale family of garden centres.
Paul, aged 29, said: “I am delighted to be working with Wyevale and I want to thank the company for its wonderful support. The variety of plants I am able to choose from is fantastic and I hope people visiting the show will really enjoy the garden.
“This is really exciting for me as I have the opportunity to create a garden with a real wow factor at the Spring Show.”
Paul, who has been the Horticulture Manager at Wyevale Garden Centre – Nailsworth for the past 12 months, trained at the Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh and won a Silver Gilt award for a garden at the Malvern Autumn Show last year (2008).
He designed his garden for the 2009 Malvern Spring Gardening Show in one day and has named it ‘Il Ballo Della Vita Humana’ or ‘A Dance to The Music of Time’ after a classical painting by Nicolas Poussin.
From Monday, April 20, two and a half weeks before the show opens, Paul will begin transforming a 35 square metres bare plot into his garden at the showground.
He was able to choose any plants he needed from the Wyevale family of garden centres and he decided to use those with rich purple and silver flowers and foliage including tulips, alliums, geraniums, dryopteris and betula.
The garden will be split into two areas. The first will have open wild woodlands with hornbeam and maple, under planted with native ferns, shrubs, nettles, dock and bluebells.
The second area will be formally laid out with four beds representing the seasons arranged around a sculpture with arbours for reflection.
Paul said: “It will be relatively easy to build because I am concentrating more on plants than hard landscaping, and I intend to finish it early to give the plants a couple of rest days before the show opens.”
His garden is one of 12 entered into the Chris Beardshaw Mentoring Scholarship scheme, which was set up in 2007 by the award-winning garden designer and television personality. The scheme has the support of the Royal Horticultural Society, the Three Counties Agricultural Society and sponsor Bradstone.
Paul hopes to win the top prize in the competition, which is the opportunity to work alongside Chris Beardshaw for one year and gain advice on setting up, running and marketing a business in landscape design.
On the first day of the show the 12 gardens will be judged and five finalists will be invited to make a presentation before an invited audience.
Garden Centre manager, Kevin Brindley said: “We know Paul will build a stunning garden and we are delighted to be able to help him by providing the plants for his creation.”
For more information, please call Wyevale Garden Centre – Nailsworth, which is located on Avening Road, on 01453 833989. Alternatively, please visit www.wyevale.co.uk.
