In March, west Wales and, I suspect, the rest of the country had endured weeks of wet, cold, windy weather. Would Devon be any different? Unfortunately, it was not, although primroses by the roadside and the Rosemoor Narcissus meadows were good substitutes for the hoped sunshine. Plentiful colour on the show benches belied the dismal weather of late, showing how resilient both plants and growers are.

Taking this review in reverse order; it was good to see a new exhibitor, Helen Brown, in the Novice Section put on a varied range of well-grown plants including Primula ‘Old Port’ which won the Otter Trophy for the best plant in the section. Helen also carried off the Dartington Trophy for the highest number of first prize points in this section.

David Carver won numerous prizes in the Intermediate Section as well as a few in the Open.  Along the way, he received the Dartmoor Trophy for the Intermediate aggregate and a Certificate of Merit for his fabulous Daphne genkwa.

However, the Daphne was pipped for the best plant in the section, the Cornwall Trophy, by an extremely well flowered Cyclamen persicum shown by Jim Loring. Despite the above, the exhibitor whose plants most impressed me was Duncan Bennett who showed about ten beautiful Saxifraga hybrids, many of which had been raised on the continent, some named after Renaissance artists.

They are grown in a lean mix of 1 part JI No 1 or Seed Compost and 1 part grit with a little perlite. He employs a no-repotting regime whereby small plants are grown from the start in large pots. Once a month in the growing season, they are given a weak high potash feed and in August a drench of nematodes (from Defenders) as a precaution against vine weevil.

The Saxifraga on display were: ’Alexander Humbolt’ (= S. aretioides x columnaris), ‘Aretiastrum’ (= S. aretioides x burseriana), ‘Michel Angelo’ (= S. kotschyi x pulchra), ‘Kotyz’ (= S. cinerea x kotschyi), ‘Red Crinoline’ (= S. iranica x dinninaris), ‘Leonardo da Vinci’ (= S. kotschyi x cullinanii), ‘Bohemian Karst’ (= S. cullinanii x kotschyi) and ‘Allendale Ballard’ (= S. media x diapensioides).

There were a few southern African bulbs on the show bench. Wurmbea stricta held its 2.5cm starry pink flowers with darker centres on 30cm tall stems. It has a wide distribution and grows high up in the mountains on the edge of ponds which dry out in summer. By contrast, Sparaxis grandiflora subsp. acutiloba is much rarer, being restricted to the Oliphants Valley in the Western Cape and is hardier than the straight species.  It is winter growing with large bright lemon-yellow flowers. Both are grown by George Elder in his standard South African mix of 2 parts JI No 2, two parts grit sand, one part perlite and one part spillage granules (i.e. expanded clay like Seramis).

The family Primulaceae was largely represented by Dionysia and Cyclamen with a small number of Primula plants. Two of the latter caught my attention: Primula ‘Ellen Page’, a P. marginata x pubescens hybrid shown by Paul & Gill Ranson had a generous sprinkling of flowers in a strong red-purple.  It never covers itself completely in flowers but nevertheless is a striking plant. Primula ‘Coy’ (George Elder) is even meaner with its flowers hence its name, yet the clear yellow flowers over green foliage produced a pleasing effect.

Four exhibitors took most of the prizes in the Open Section. Diane Clement received a  Certificate of Merit for an unusual form of Fritillaria wendelboi and another for Caltha polypetala x leptocephala ‘Moonshine’. The latter originated from Rumbling Bridge Nursery in Scotland where it arose as a random seedling. The plant shown was 8-10 years old and had been lifted from the open garden.  Being sterile, it produces flowers over a long period. The first flowers came out in February, these had been removed and were replaced by those seen. It is fully dormant in summer.

Bob & Rannveig Wallis won the small 6 pan AGS Medal, the Veitch Trophy for three pans of bulbous plants and a Certificate of Merit for Fritillaria crassifolia subsp. crassifolia.

Ian Robertson was awarded the Sewell Medal for the large 6 pan class and the Graham Lovell Salver (for the best Orchidaceae) with Pleione Rakata ‘Shot Silk’.

The major winners were Paul & Gill Ranson who bagged the Peter Edwards Memorial Trophy (most first prize points in Primulaceae classes), the East Devon Trophy (best in 19 cm pot) with Dionysia ‘Inka Gold’, the Exeter Trophy for the Open aggregate and the Farrer Medal for the unusual and well-flowered Dionysia sarvestanica subsp. spathulata.

As always, it was a pleasure to spend the day at Rosemoor. It is a beautiful garden and there was a warm welcome from everybody. The glorious magnolias were just emerging having escaped the high winds in this sheltered valley and the Trillium and Narcissus around the lake were looking exceptionally healthy. As well as hosting the show, the staff had staged a display of alpines which gained a silver award and a Certificate of Merit for a large plant of a deep pink flowered Anemone pavonina.

Show reporter: Rannveig Wallis
Show photographer: Jon Evans