We always try to make it down to the Garden Show Ireland at Antrim Castle Gardens, and really missed it with Covid.
The kids were very young when we started going and breastfeeding and nappy changing always interrupted the looking at the plants. But not this year!
This year, we got to browse.
The kids, after a few years of gadening indoctrination, were now interested in the plants and with their little pursess felt empowered to buy something.
They got to choose their own dahlia bulbs (despite me saying we weren’t growing any because of the fact we seem to be the captial of the slug kingdom).
We filled bags full of giant lily bulbs and bright brashy dahlias. We also selected some beautiful subtle perennials and some sweet treats too.
I was really excited to see what Victoria from Potters Hill Plants had, as I’ve been following her for a while, seen her at the local Belfast and Hillsborough Markets and just love her plant choices, colour palettes and containers combinations.
She runs a small, independent plant nursery in Hillsborough, County Down, Northern Ireland, full of hardy perennials.
She recently brought a delivery for me of some lovely plants and I kept her for over an hour dragging her about my garden asking for her advice.
(c) Bruce Watson – FinnFoto
I love the muted colours and frothy effect. The flowers emerge from the mossy undergrowth completely naturally. Joy!
I picked up some of their Lysimachia atropurpurea ‘Beaujolais’ to add to my grass containers.
The Clockwork Garden
Celebrity gardener Diarmuid Gavin had installed a really fun mechanical moving garden. With the perfectly picked soundtrack “Pure Imagination,” privet balls and yew tree cones twirled about. The centrepiece was a rotating plant ring around a tower.
The garden will have permanent residency at Antrim Castle Gardens coming alive every 15 minutes.
I loved the purple and orange planting scheme, set off by silver and dark everygreen foliage. There were darker coloured ruby red Dicentras and Mai Tai Geums that made a really sophisticated colour palette.
There were also a few show gardens, but there could have been WAAAAY more of them in my opinion.
Totally loved this lush green scheme around water and the bright decking.
The Alice in Wonderland themed garden was the kids’ favourite. Full of lots of lovely details.
Did you go? What did you think?