Wordless Wednesday: I See You Baby

THE Plant of This Year's Show?

At every garden show there's always one plant which flies off the stands to feature prominently in lots of bags and trolleys. Yesterday at Malvern was no exception.

This is Fatsia japonica 'Spider's Web', which displayed itself to perfection in the Floral Marquee on a dull and rainy day. Even I succumbed as I have just the spot in the garden which needs a lift via some lighter foliage. The person in the queue behind me was also buying this plant and the person behind her said:
'Gosh it's real, I thought it was plastic!'

It wasn't to everyone's taste* - I could tell by the look on Victoria's face she didn't like it. However, I was called over excitedly by the volunteers on the RHS stand who all demanded to know the identity of the plant in my bag. Also Claudia de Yong's designer's eye could see the possibilities for a shady spot.

Variegated plants have a reputation for reverting back to green when placed in the shade. I've been assured that this shouldn't happen - I'll be reporting back to Claudia on how this plant fares in my garden.

* = see this article by Geoff Stebbings - I can see his point re the foliage resembling red spider mite damage. I usually don't go for variegated foliage myself, but I can see how my purchase can work in the spot I have in mind for it.

Other blog posts:

• Veg Plotting has a show overview
• Helen has a thorough look at the nurseries, plus her personal experiences of AGS showing and helping on the Avon Bulbs stand
• Ann has put together a two page journal with plenty of snippets about the show
• Sign of the Times has a poignant message from one of the schools gardens
• The Cynical Gardener shows off her haul from the Floral Marquee
• Naturally, the other blog dedicated to Malvern has a few things to say on the subject (work back from this link to find plenty of other posts about this year's show)
• I'll add further links from other attendees as and when I find them. Let me know about yours in the comments below