The Harrogate Flower Show has been voted as the nation’s favourite by gardeners. This spring, as in recent years previously, Wykeham Mature Plants has sent stock of trees, hedging and shrubs to the show to decorate the various halls and VIP areas.
The star of the show this year, prompting a huge amount of interest, as well as the unprecedented result of people telephoning the nursery directly whilst still at the show, were the large specimen shrubs of Amelanchier lamarckii. Retailing at just £54 each, these stunning shrubs currently standing at almost 6ft tall (not including the 36ltr pot) and with a spread of 4ft or more have wowed the crowds with their star-shaped white flowers on a backdrop of coppery-coloured young foliage.
Show Director, Nick Smith, described the Amelanchiers as “fantastic”, and numerous exhibitors within the famous Hall 2 of the show have commented, both verbally and on social media, on their “stunning” appearance and about the amount of interest that these have received.
Amelanchier lamarckii is an elegant, yet robust shrub, eventually growing to about five metres tall. As well as the star-shaped white blossom in spring, which are followed by red berries in late summer, the foliage puts on a display by starting as a coppery-colour as it emerges in spring, turning a vivid, then mid-green in summer, and finally to a startling scarlet in autumn if planted in a sunny spot.
