Here are some more useful tips from Shelley to help you improve your entries and chances! The words are her own and the images are individually credited. Thanks again Shelley.
There are 81 days to go (as I write) before the deadline of 5pm, Friday 18th August when you must have registered your entries so there is still plenty of time to plan your preferred classes. Click here for the list of classes and online entry form, click here for the rules and here for more general showing tips.
These gorgeous gourds were entered into ‘Class 28 – Three Ornamental Gourds’ last year and, of course, won a prize! Gourds are relatives of pumpkins and squash plants. There are two types – edible and ornamental. Ornamental gourds are often poisonous so instead of munching on them they are often dried and hardened to use for autumnal decoration. If you are going to enter some gourds into the show do make sure there are three of them, that they are similar in size and they have their stalks intact. Image by Shelley
If you are crafty with a sewing needle then Class 58 – ‘a piece of embroidery’ is for you. The embroidered item doesn’t have to be garden-themed, but it must have been sewn by you. It could even be an embellished item of clothing – think outside the box! Although saying that, there are many boxed kits out there, making embroidery a much more accessible pastime. If you’re new to embroidery or a seasoned-pro, we’d love to see your creations on the day of the show! Image by rawpixel.com
Class 15 – ‘the heaviest squash’ – always makes people smile at the Rye Flower and Veg Show! All you have to do is enter your most colossal Cucurbita and hope yours is the heaviest overall – simple! Pumpkins and marrows tend to be the popular submissions, but if you’ve got a weighty butternut squash then don’t be shy! Image by Shelley
This beautifully vivid Rainbow Chard leaf would make a great entry for ‘Class 11 – Three Leaves of Chard / Beet’. If you’re going to enter your own then choose three large, undamaged leaves. Neatly trim the stalks and present them in a flat, fan shape overlapping the leaves on a white paper plate and hope that you ‘beet’ off the competitors! Image by Shelley