Great Comp Garden’s Summer Show 2017
Great Comp Garden, nr Sevenoaks, Kent, will be hosting its summer show on Saturday 12th and Sunday 13th August this year. A popular event on the gardening calendar, the event features highly regarded RHS award-winning and specialist plant nurseries who provide unusual species from across the world that grow well in south-eastern UK gardens.
The two-day event at this quirky plantsman’s garden has become a firm favourite with plant hunters and garden lovers over the year. Among the exhibitors showcasing their plants this year is the RHS Chelsea and RHS Hampton Court Gold medal winning nursery Heucheraholics, based in Lymington, in the New Forest.
Julie Burton, who runs Heucheraholics, will be bringing over 50 different varieties of the unusual plant. Julie points out that Heucheras were a giant hobby for her that grew into a giant obsession: “The development of the plant over the last decade has been incredible. They are fantastic plants, ‘Hocus pocus’, for example, is huge and vigorous and grows in full sun or shade and will fill a space quickly. A lot of heucheras are sun tolerant and will do well in the sun or shade. Usually the paler ones prefer shade and the darker ones enjoy the sun,” she says.
The Kent group of the Hardy Plant Society will be in evidence at the show this year as the national organisation celebrates its 60th birthday. The Kent Group will be sharing information on the best hardy perennials to purchase and stimulating interest in hardy plants.
Curator of Great Comp, William Dyson, will also be displaying and selling his rare and unusual salvia plants. William points out that he is particularly drawn to Mexican shrubby varieties and they form the nucleus of his breeding stock: “These wonderful plants, particularly the New World species, are more versatile than people realize; they have a diversity of flower colour and the length of flowering period (from May-November) is impressive. They bring excitement of the garden and bees love the nectar they produce,” he says.
William has put together a roll-call of over 40 exhibitors for the Summer Show including Phonenix Perennials, Rose Cottage Garden Nurseries and Essex Carnivorous Plants.
Distinctive arts and crafts specialists from the county will also be showcasing their work including ceramics artists Fiona Osbaldstone, fine artist Grenville Allen and woodturning specialist David Jones.
The Old Dairy Tearooms will be serving lunches and teas onsite through the day. Great Comp garden is an RHS Partner Garden and RHS members are entitled to 20% discount on ticket price. For information, opening times, tickets etc please visit: www.greatcompgarden.co.uk
Photo credits: All ©Great Comp
