Sandwiches and celebrations…

I seem to remember that the day was cold and grey, and the wind was rattling across the showground at the rate of knots. Not a particularly inspiring sort of day to get the creative juices flowing – the thought of warmth, colour and spring so far out of sight it almost seemed as though it would never exist. But, in a cosy corner of the showground, we all bundled into a meeting room to talk about the possibilities.

The full line up was a true motley crew – Alex Bell from Alex Bell Garden Design, Jim Steed from Outdoor Living Space, Martin Clark from Clark’s Trees, Chris Greenwood of Poultry Park and myself from Claire Potter Design, along with the Three Counties Agricultural Society client panel, represented by Nina Acton and Doreen Smillie.

And so, over a few delicious plates of sandwiches and cakes, we talked about the dreams and aspirations for the garden, the past 25 years of the Spring Gardening Show, the ‘wish list’ of what could be included, and what we could all bring to the collective of the design team.

A couple of hours later and full of ideas, we wound our way home, anxious to get back to our respective studios to start scribbling…