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We’ve only gone and done it! When I woke up in my tent on Thursday 11th May 2023 I was full of anticipation about how our exhibition might have fared in the RHS judging the previous evening. Being newbies to Malvern Spring Festival (and RHS shows as a whole!), we thought we would return to the tent Wednesday evening after 2 solid days of hard work and find out if we would be awarded a prestigious medal. The regular exhibitors soon shed light that we wouldn’t find out until Thursday morning.
I heard my mum whispering my name outside the tent about 6:30am. She knew my 8 month old was still asleep. I undid the zip of our tent in the show camping field and was greeted with my mother with a crazed look on her face! It was a mix of panic, excitement and confusion.
The previous evening we had been watching the other exhibitors polishing their black shiny pots wondering why on earth we ever thought our recycled coastal inspired pyramid of succulent madness was ever going to go down well at such an event.
“Gold” she said in a hushed voice. “Gold”…..she repeated this two or 3 times. My face joined in with the shock, excitement and confusion. “What do you mean Gold!?” I said.
Mum went on…. “There’s a Gold medal by our exhibit….I went to the loo first thing this morning (5:30am!) and couldn’t help myself. I snuck under the marque door and went to see if the medals were out. We’ve got a GOLD!”
“Are you sure…?” “Did it have our name on it…?” “Where was it!?” I had all of the questions…. The conversation went on like this for a few minutes before I grabbed my jacket and frogmarched us both back up to the floral marque!
And there it was! An RHS Gold medal for Corseside Nursery. We couldn’t believe it. A series of phonecalls to all my siblings and our close friends and family ensued. I remember sitting in my tent when we got back to the campsite. I was preparing breakfast for my boys and watching my mum outside in her camp chair receive call after call from all the family; tears in her eyes. It was such a fantastic moment that I will always treasure. Such a massive achievement in this industry that we really didn’t think we had a chance of reaching.
Mum kept saying she only snuck in to make sure we didn’t get a ‘Highly Commended’ award and to prepare a brave face for when the show opened to visitors later that morning. A GOLD though!?
When the first visitors entered the floral marque on Thursday it quickly became very clear that the Malvern visitors were just as excited about our display as we had been. There was a real buzz around the exhibit; cameras out, pointing and discussing the different elements.
The show visitors loved all of our quirky recycled planters. I kept hearing people point out the planted shoes and shells full of succulents
We were so fortunate to have lots of our succulents in flower and we wonder if this was what might have sealed the deal for a Gold medal. Succulents are notoriously stubborn to get to flower!
A little bit about our design concept
Corseside Nursery is based in Pembrokeshire (South West Wales). We specialise
in drought tolerant, coastal hardy succulents.
Our Nursery is completely reliant on spring water from a well. Growing succulents has taught us the possibilities of drought tolerant gardens that reduce the demand for watering and are sympathetic towards growing climate concerns.
A
mother and daughter partnership that is rooted in
creativity and design, our exhibition endeavours to showcase the versatility in
planting that succulents offer. With their ability to grow in the smallest amount of soil, succulents can find a home in almost any location.
Some of the smaller succulents planted in
shells have been happy growing that way for over 3 years! Succulents can grow big, but sometimes, if space is limited, they are very happy staying small too.
So there you have it!
Feeling inspired!?
