In This Issue
Scotts Solus Brands announcement
Guy Hands on Dobbies, golds for Hilliers, Taylors and Javado, Town & Country cheque for Greenfingers - GTN's Chelsea highlights
Taylors Bulbs Johnny Walkers makes it 22 consecutive gold medals at RHS Chelsea Flower Show
Hillier win their 70th consecutive RHS Chelsea Gold
Put on a Chelsea Planteria Display...and win a bottle of champagne. Homebase already have Chelsea POS on display
Golden Wonder! Chelsea win for the humble spud
Homebase Urban Retreat Garden wins Gold at the RHS Chelsea Flower Show
Allensmore Nurseries launch new Blooms Of Bressingham plant range
Everything not so rosy in the ‘Front’ Garden warns RHS
New variety of rose in aid of Macmillan Cancer Support launched at Chelsea
Schoolchildren show off Healthy Living Plant at Chelsea
Thompson & Morgan scours Europe to ensure a Chelsea centre piece fit for a Queen
Monkton Elm tops sales of Juliana greenhouses
May Day! Solar lights and GYO are on fire
Plant Buyer - Romsey
Amenity Sales Person - Norfolk
Amenity Sales Executive - Leicestershire
Garden Retail Manager - East Midlands
Claire Austin wins Chelsea Gold!
Crowders reveal plan for 500 new houses and a bigger garden centre
Planning row garden centre 'in crisis'
Lighting product sales continue to power ahead
Runner Bean White Emergo is top of the crops
Veg planting drives sales of compost
Bestsellers Top 50 charts every week
Buy your subscription to GTN Bestsellers
GTN Food Xtra...GTN Food Xtra...GTN Food Xtra...
Garden centre’s restaurant expansion is the final link in a local food chain
Catering tip of the week: Make your message personal
Glee Food & Catering Zone sign up Catering Design Group
Situations Vacant
Plant Buyer - Romsey
Salary commensurate with experience
 
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Amenity Sales Person - Norfolk
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Golden Wonder! Chelsea win for the humble spud



A Great Pavilion exhibit without a single decorative bloom on show has charmed judges into awarding a Chelsea Gold Medal to Scots potato aficionados Morrice and Ann Innes – the first gold to be awarded to a potato-only display in the show’s 150 year history.

The Potato Story, sponsored by Thompson & Morgan, acts as a simple showcase, highlighting more than 140 varieties, and traces the history and origins of the potato while drawing attention to its diversity and versatility in the garden and kitchen. Morrice of Old Town, Aberdeen, claims to have the largest private collection of potato varieties, built up over 20 years, and has long championed his favourite vegetable.

Many of the display’s varieties come from Morrice’s own collection of tubers, and include original South American species as well as historical European heritage varieties such as Karaparea, which was taken to New Zealand by Captain James Cook in the 1770s. The exhibit is completed with modern varieties grown from Thompson & Morgan seed potatoes, including blight resistant main crop Sarpo Axona and its latest introduction, high yielding salad potato Jazzy, currently the mail order supplier’s best seller.

The modest, yet impactful display offers information boards, telling the story of the potato and highlighting its global importance as a major food source and healthy eating option. Morrice said: “We’ve tried to tell the tale of the potato by highlighting a vast array of skin colours, shapes and sizes, while suggesting the best uses of each variety and the places where they come from. You won’t find many of the varieties for sale at the supermarket. Hopefully we’ll help inspire more people to grow potatoes and to try a some of the more unusual forms while they are at it.”

The exhibit’s sponsor has supported Morrice and Ann in the past, scooping silver and bronze medals at previous RHS shows, and is delighted to finally see a Gold Medal awarded to the nation’s favourite vegetable. Thompson & Morgan Vegetable Product Manager, Colin Randel, worked with Morrice to set a world record for the largest display of potato varieties at the 2004 Shrewsbury Flower Show. He said: “Amongst all the glitz and glamour of the world’s most prestigious flower show, it’s great to see a modest, uncomplicated homage to the humble potato stand out from the crowd to scoop a Gold Medal. Morrice and Ann have put on a fantastic display, there’s pretty much every colour under the sun on show, from very old varieties right up to our very latest introduction, Potato Jazzy.”


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