Monster crowds drawn to sights and smells

Sun comes out as Dundee celebration kicks off with Jurassic-themed success

A Jurassic-themed garden was among a host of colourful attractions as Dundee Flower and Food Festival drew monster crowds yesterday.

The sun shone down on Camperdown Park as festival-goers made their way round the exhibits.

A range of sights, sounds and smells will be on display over the course of the weekend, with visits from celebrity chefs and television gardeners just some of the attractions on show.

Steve and Nicky Burke, of Rococo Gardens, took home the coveted Lord Provost’s Trophy for their Jurassicthemed garden.

They were awarded the trophy for the best garden, in the garden design showcase.

Steve said the inspiration for their prizewinning garden came from finding dinosaur toys when pulling up some decking.

He said: “As we lifted some of the boards up, we came across all of these kids’ dinosaurs which were scattered about and the idea came from there.”

Councillor John Alexander, neighbourhood services convener and festival organising committee official, said: “We have had a very successful start to the flower and food festival, and the weather stayed nice and sunny too.

“We have had a huge number of people come through the gates which is hopefully a sign of things to come for Saturday and Sunday as well.

“There are some quite exquisite gardens on display, and some of the efforts that have gone in to creating some of the fantastic visual displays are second to none.

“The velociraptor display certainly stood out when I was taking a tour of the festival before it opened on Thursday.

“Credit is due to those who have given up so much time for the festival, and hopefully they can get something back from it as well.”

He went on: “The festival is getting bigger and better every year, which is a great thing for Dundee. Weather permitting, we are seeing an increase in the number of visitors year on year.

“The flower and food festival is an important cultural event for the city, and we would like to see it expand, where it can, in the future.

“That is why we have such a range of entertainment on offer – not only are there chefs and gardeners, but we have bands, singers and even architects appearing over the weekend. There really is something here to tick every box.”

The festival continues today and tomorrow.