Our 2024 Summer Show will go down as one of the wettest we have ever experienced. Following the very wet spring our hopes for a warmer & drier summer season don't seem to have materialised yet.  Many gardeners commented on how behind their gardens are, with many plants two weeks behind where they would normally be by early July. 

The constant rain on Friday and overnight into Saturday, meant it was an incredible achievement by our exhibitors that we had anything on the show benches at all!. I would like to thank those who braved the elements and searched in sodden gardens for entries. We were missing several regular exhibitors so the number of entries was down on previous years.  We had 157 entries from 20 entrants. 

The fruit classes were good, as were the flowering shrubs and herbaceous perennials. The benches were colourful and the smell of sweet peas filled the air.

As the weather improved during the day, we saw very good visitor numbers in the afternoon. The excellent cream tea was enjoyed by many, although the huge size of the scones meant it wasn't for anybody counting calories.

We had lucky winners in the raffle and Century Club draw.  Tickets were on sale for the social event which takes place on Sat 16th Nov at The Cottage, Upper Bucklebury.  The evening will have a French theme and includes dinner. Tickets are £15.

I would like to thank our judges, Graham Chapman (Fruit & Veg), John Eckton (flowers), Margaret King (Homecraft), Barbara Hunt (floral arrangements), Ray and Alan Woolfenden (Photography) for sharing their knowledge and expertise.

The last show of the year is our Autumn Show on 7th September.  I can't promise the weather will be any kinder, but perhaps you can take comfort from knowing we're all having the same experience.

I hope you all have a great summer and look forward to seeing you in September.

Kind regards

Jane West
Show Secretary

Photos from the summer show can be seen in the gallery below. Thanks to Thatcham Photography Club.