GROW LONDON PRESENTS CREATIVE CONCEPTS, PERFECT PLANTS AND INSPIRING IDEAS FOR THE GARDEN

GROW London: 24 – 26 June 2016 www.growlondon.com

GROW London, the capital’s first and only contemporary gardening show, returns to Hampstead Heath this June. Chic, cool and modern, GROW London seeks to inspire both the expert gardener and the novice alike to transform their outdoor space, presenting unusual and original ideas, decorative accessories and of course a vast array of plants and flowers. Alongside this, visitors can again expect an impressive programme of free talks and workshops on everything garden-related, from create your own medicinal remedies using herbs, to advice from Richard Reynolds on becoming a guerrilla gardener.

From 24 – 26 June, GROW London will be located in a purpose-built marquee situated near Hampstead Heath station. Outside the entrance, visitors will find themselves first of all confronted by award winning garden designer Sophie Walker’s highly unusual and conceptual installation which aims to play with the idea of bringing the jungle to the Heath. Walker, who in 2014 made news as the youngest woman to design for the Chelsea Flower Show, has won numerous awards for her garden designs and is currently writing a book on Japanese garden design.

FEATURE GARDENS

GROW London has become known for its beautiful feature areas which in the past have included an elegant arbour designed by Petersham Nurseries and a rustic shepherd’s hut by Francesca Murrell. This year, Clifton Nurseries, one of London’s oldest and most beautiful garden centres, will create a tranquil and calming space – the Serenity Garden in collaboration with Omorovicza, a leading Hungarian skincare brand. The garden is intended to be predominantly a scent sanctuary to relax and find peace away from the busy world.

Plants chosen will reflect the fragrances and ingredients found in the Omorovicza products. Elements in the garden will include a jasmine arch, pomegranate trees and olive trees for shade while colourful scented flowers will draw the visitor down a gravel path to the little jasmine covered spa hut where facial treatments will be offered.

With British Flower Week running the week before, GROW London will seek to celebrate the beauty of British flowers which are blooming. Demand for home-grown cottage garden favourites such as orlaya, ammi, irises and peonies is soaring thanks to our desire for sustainable, locally sourced flowers. The Flower Union, a collective of British growers and florists within 50 miles of London, is creating a fantasy floral bedroom made entirely from blossoms – while mainly fresh flowers have been used, the creators have also utilised faux creations to help lengthen the installation’s lifespan. Visitors can walk around the bedroom with its bed, rug, bedside table and floral wall art and interact with it.

A number of participating florists from the Flower Union will use the floral bed and bedside table as a workspace to make beautiful hand tied bouquets of British flowers which will be for sale alongside British flower seeds, candles and potted flowers arrangements. Short bouquet workshops will be running throughout the day hosted by a variety of participating Flower Union florists including The Flower Shop, Rebel Rebel, Hiding in the City, Miranda Hackett and Thomas Bloom.

Another feature area at GROW London will host The Green Wood Guild which runs London's best Green Woodwork courses from timber framing and joinery to axe forging and whittling. Britain’s leading authority on spoon carving and wood culture, Barn the Spoon, will be working with the Green Wood Guild and demonstrating a wide range of woodworking skills. Visitors will be encouraged to try their hand at splitting a roof shingle or weaving hazel onto one of their beautiful garden structures.

MAGGIE’S

This year the chosen charity which will benefit from tickets sold for the Garden Party Charity Preview on Thursday 23 June is Maggie’s, the cancer charity. Built in the grounds of NHS hospitals, Maggie’s Centres offer the practical, emotional and social support that people with cancer, their families and their friends, need. Maggie’s works with some of the world’s leading architects, and also with leading garden designers, who understand the curative potential of plants and outdoor spaces. Creating a garden is something tangible and fulfilling, which can be of great help to those dealing with cancer while the value of exercise and the sensory experience all contribute to a greater sense of well-being.

NURSERIES AND GARDEN CENTRES

Over thirty nurseries will be exhibiting at GROW London this year, offering plants that simply can’t be found within the capital, from English cottage garden flowers to unusual varieties of conifer. Nurseries exhibiting at GROW London will include Blueleaf Plants, who specialise in growing over 200 varieties of architectural and colourful succulent plants, Glendon Plant Nursery which specialises in unusual foliage and Wildegoose, dedicated to growing rare and old varieties of viola.

Todds Botanics specialises in drought tolerant herbaceous and architectural plans while Hooksgreen Herbs will show its selection of culinary, medicinal and scented herbs. The girls at Lime Cross will have some of their 400 varieties of conifers for sale and C&K Jones will be bringing their beautiful range of roses. Hortus Loci will present a flowering selection of grown herbaceous perennials. Those with shady gardens will make a beeline for Shadyplants, with its selection of statement ferns for those with dark, sunless corners, while new and unusual herbaceous perennials will be on display at The Plant Specialist. Meadowgate specialises in a diverse and unusual collection of ornamental grasses which are perfect for a statement planting in the city garden. GROW London staples also include Hardy’s Cottage Garden Plants and Pennard Plants who will bring fruit and veg plants and seeds. Garden Centres at GROW London will include Cook’s, N1 & W6. N1/W6, local London garden centres specialising in the urban garden, which aim to make plants and gardening an essential part of city life, will present a tribal themed garden, mixing African elements within the scope of indoor plants and decoration. Other London garden centres at GROW London will include Boma and Camden Garden Centre which supplies plants and gardening products and is also a charitable organisation offering employment, training and educational opportunities.

www.growlondon.com

VENUE

GROW London Marquee, Lower Fairground Site East Heath Road Hampstead, London NW3 1TH

ADMISSION

Garden Party Charity Preview - £25 Adult Advance - £10 (plus booking fee) Adult Door - £16

Concession Advance - £8 (plus booking fee) Concession Door - £14

Children under 16 – Free

OPENING TIMES

Thursday 23 June:

Garden Party Charity Preview 6 – 9pm, invitation-only.

Held in support of Maggie’s

Friday 24 June – Sunday 26 June: 11am – 6pm

HOW TO GET THERE BY TRAIN OR BUS: Hampstead Heath overground station is just a 3 minute walk away. Buses C11, 24, 46 and 168 stop at South End Green.

BY TUBE AND FREE SHUTTLE BUSES: Hampstead underground station on the Northern line is the closest tube stop. Free shuttle buses leave from just outside the station every 15 minutes; look out for the GROW London bus stops. Alternatively it is a 10 minute stroll through lovely Hampstead village to the fair.

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