Peter (Forrow) texted me with some news and photos on the morning of the show. I was shocked to find that my single prim had won its class. I had spent quite a time trying to twist the second floret into shape. Anyway, win it did and I contacted the person it is named after, Anne Milton, and she was very pleased. You can see what I mean about the second floret below.
'Anne Milton'.
I didn't have any others with that kind of bud count but I sneaked three out of a cormlet tray and stuck those together and managed a third with them. Again 'Anne Milton' was the cultivar. Of course, I don't know. There might only have been three entries! Desperate times: if I'd had anything else I wouldn't have put these in. A right ragbag of short, underflowered prims.
So the only other glads I had were short seedlings and more spikes from the cormlet trays. I put these together in the six class. I'm sure the judge only gave them a passing glance but I'm also sure that plenty of people coming to the show wouldn't have seen these sorts of colours before. I might even make a thing of doing this. An entry for the public's delight. So, here is my 'novelty entry'.
Graham Anderson had said to me as we were staging that the spike at the top right was the most interesting one in the show. Informal, gappy but very different. The others were all prims or pseudo prims. The middle right one is called 'Mari Lowri' (when it's got some buds) and the bottom left is 'Sally's Orange' (when it's got the buds and more than one open). The others are out of my seedling pots or beds.
The judges didn't give me anything for my other entries and rightly so. I had bred an early 200 that I put three in, in the three of one variety class but apart from being early it has no real redeeming feature. I might just cross it on, onto something like' Ever So Sweet' which is going to be flowering in a couple of days. We'll see.
I was only able to do two entries in the PFs as I didn't have enough in flower. I was lucky enough to win the Six Grower's Choice class with two Schubert, two Lavender Schubert and two Unfinished Symphony, below.
I don't know whether any of the big PF growers turned up so I'll have to wait to see when the results are published by Southport.
No such luck in the three Grower's Choice class where I was unplaced with these two Heracles plus one Olivia. They were uneven and certain judges don't like the modern commercial varieties like Olivia. I was happy with one first from my two entries.
I also put in a vase of nine mixed Sweet Peas, the first time I've grown these for maybe twenty years. I know I didn't get anything for them as the other entries were miles better. As I put my one humble vase in, John Robson, one of the best growers, was selecting nine white ones from about thirty under the beady eye of his main adviser, his wife. And all thirty of these whites were fours. Not just fours, perfectly opened fours. He must grow thousands.
There were some surprises in the glads classes. I was very surprised that Peter only got a third in the nine class. Graham Anderson I imagine won it. He had in his nine a very impressive white called 'River Dove' which was spot on. But Peter had some quality flowers including three big Pink Elegance, and three nice Our Les. I'm surprised that stuff like Secret Lady and Careless got the nod over these. But I wasn't judging and no doubt when you got into the detail of it there was more than met the eye.
I was pleased that Ron and Glynis Taylor had travelled up from Devon. I should have spent more time with them but I was a bit pushed for time. Len, Terry, Jim and Karen all turned up while I was there and no doubt others did later in the night.
I enjoyed myself with these and with Peter whom I cooperate with the most in our selection of spikes etc. We did say that it's about time you were able to put more than one entry in the glads (in fact in everything). Peter had lots of very nice spikes but couldn't put them all in which is silly.
I'll have to try harder to get a hotel for next year. My usual place was full when i tried to book a few months back.
Tomorrow (Friday) I will be pootling up the motorways to Hartlepool where I'm judging the Northern Gladiolus Show on Saturday morning. I'll have some plants for Brian Bland in the car as he's going to try a few Borders and I'll be returning some pots from stuff I was given last year.
It's a really great show Hartlepool, though this year we will be missing Paul Webster and Bill Grahamslaw, two of my favourite exhibitors who passed away recently. Let's hope the other exhibitors bring plenty to fill in the gaps left by those two lovely men. I've no idea how many years I've been judging this show but it's always a great honour and a real pleasure. I'll post some photos on here soon.
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