Olive tree’s at the heart of a Berry good show
A STUNNING show garden inspired by Tuscany was awarded the prestigious Brockhouse Trophy for the best exhibit at Southport Flower Show 2016.
Sandy McDonald, the procurement manager for Leyland firm C&W Berry Ltd, was delighted to collect the award from show opener Ainsley Harriott and compere Paul Crone, for ‘A View Of The Olive Tree’ (Una Veduta dell’Albero D’Ulivo).
This is the first time the firm has created a show garden at Victoria Park, and the team were delighted with their stunning success.
They began work on their creation on July 29 and have been working feverishly since.
Sandy said: “It was a fantastic surprise to find out we had won! I came to Southport Flower Show last year, but this is the first time we have created a show garden.
“The brief this year was a Mediterranean garden, and we went for the idea of having an olive tree at its heart because they are so synonymous with the Mediterranean.
“We were batting ideas around about what we could do with a Mediterranean theme and we thought ‘Tuscany’. Let’s go for a family Tuscan eating experience.
“We are definitely coming back next year!”
C&W Berry Ltd is an independent builders’ merchant, which is set in 230 acres at its main site in Leyland and employs over 230 staff. The firm has been trading in the North West for over 60 years.
Sandy, 53, said: “We decided that this year we would show people what could be achieved using materials available from ourselves.
“After liaising with one of our top garden design customers, Andy Kirman of Kirman Design, we came up with what we think is an excellent interpretation of the design brief, a Mediterranean garden.
“This design included porcelain paving, shade to eat under the pergola, and the introduction of water surrounding an olive tree.
“It was then down to working with our suppliers Global Stone to supply the porcelain paving and Denbigh Timber which took Andy’s vision of a bespoke fence and made it a reality.
“Longrake Aggregates supplied suitable stone and with the help of Bent’s Garden Centre in Warrington the focal point olive tree was sourced.
“We hope that visitors to our garden will observe products and designs that will inspire them to look at new and bespoke items and see that all merchants do not offer the same level of product and service.”