ST PAUL’S Parish Rooms was the venue for Wokingham Horticultural Association’s annual Autumn Show at the weekend.
Doors opened to a queue of visitors who were greeted by a cornucopia of fresh produce, fruit, flowers and foliage as well as glorious cakes, bakes and preserves to inspire and delight.
As the season dictates, dahlias and chrysanthemums dominated the specimen blooms on display and drew many appreciative comments from the viewers.
Carl Curtis was awarded the Wokingham Times Cup and the Dahlia Cup for his beautiful blooms while Terry Miller received the Freeman Chrysanthemum cup and the Murray Chrysanthemum Cup.
And a Certificate of Merit, awarded to Michael Spencer for the best dahlia exhibit, was well earned because Michael is a new exhibitor at his first show.
Plump and perfect apples were among the fruit and vegetables on show and Kevin Beautement was the worthy winner of the Fruit Cup, as well as a Certificate of Merit for his fabulous dessert apples.
Terry Miller was awarded the Premier Cup for the most points earned in the vegetable section.
The Autumn Show saw a record number of entries in the flower arranging section as well as flowers, foliage and pot plants.
Jenny Gilbert was awarded the Wilkins Memorial Cup for her mixed flowers and Lindsey Payne scooped up the Greywell Challenge Cup for the most points in the flower section.
A standout winner in this category was Lorraine Predgen with the most points in flower arrangement for which she received the Bellamy Trophy. The public agreed, and her arrangement ‘Windy Days’ won the Visitor’s Choice as best in show.
Worth a mention too, is Lorraine’s granddaughter Amelia Downes, who received two firsts in the Young Exhibitor’s section and was awarded the Southfield School Autumn cup.
No show would be complete without the domestic section and delicious cakes, bakes and preserves did not disappoint.
Sally Gurney won the Mitchell Cup for the most points in this section.
And visitors were able to enjoy tea and slice of cake thanks to volunteers serving in the cafe, many of whom were also contributors to the domestic section of the show.
Awards were presented by Sally Ballard (a talented floral artist who runs inspirational workshops) assisted by Diane Cox after which chairman Lindsey Payne thanked all the volunteers for their help in making the shows successful.
The afternoon drew to a close with a raffle which Terry Miller conducted with a presence worthy of a parade ground, to much laughter and applause.
It was a happy end to a great Autumn Show and a fun afternoon.
A Pumpkin Festival will be held by the group at their Ormonde Road allotment store on Saturday, October 25, from 1.30pm.
The association’s final show of the year, its Winter Show, will be held at St Paul’s Parish Rooms, on Saturday, November 22.
As well as a community of like-minded gardeners, WHA offers its members opportunities to join outings and trips, which are open to all.
Upcoming highlights include a visit to Petworth House on Saturday, September 20, a visit to Sheffield Park Gardens in Sussex on Saturday, October 18, a trip to The Tower of London (including the poppy display) on Saturday, November 8, and an outing to Wisley Glow on Saturday, December 6.
Report by Liz Robertson.
For information, and to join, visit: w-h-a.org.uk
