Flower marquee set to brighten wet start for show

A jungle of greenery and rows of homegrown vegetables will greet crowds inside the flower marquee at this year's Royal Cornwall Show.

Volunteers and growers are pulling together displays designed to inspire and lift spirits for what, according to forecasters, could be a wet start to one of Cornwall's biggest summer events.

The show which runs from Thursday to Saturday at the Royal Cornwall Showground near Wadebridge, is expected to draw tens of thousands of visitors for a celebration of farming, food and rural life.

It began life in 1793 as a ploughing match, before growing into an event with about 1,000 trade stands, livestock competitions, arena entertainment, food and drink and live music.

At the entrance to the flower marquee, The National Garden Scheme has created a show garden to highlight the link between gardening and wellbeing.

County organiser Claire Woodbine said: "The display is fantastic because so many people are so generous."

"Gardening is so important for all our health and well-being because being creative in a garden just makes you feel so much better."

Garden designers showing their work include Graham Sykes who said he had leaned fully into bold planting, explaining: "I had a bit of a jungle theme this year, I'm very much into jungle foliage."

Richard Budge has his vegetable display at the centre of the marquee. He said: "It's all been grown at home in my own tunnels on my own allotment.

"I spent £25 on seeds this year", he said, joking: "I'm a Cornishman, quite frugal."

Despite the effort, he said: "It does take a bit of time, but I love it."

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