Alsager Garden Show raked in more young entrants than ever this year and organisers said they hoped the show would grow to become a “true spectacle” in the town’s diary.
Staged at the Civic on Saturday, Alsager Gardens Association had made a few changes as it looked to evolve the event, adding some environmentally-friendly touches.
Instead of driving more than 150 miles to deliver schedules, they were sent out via email, which also reduced the amount of paper used.
Tablecloths were added to the showroom, to lift the look. In keeping with the green theme, they were made from recycled plastic to reduce the amount going into landfill. Where possible, recycled paper and card was used for the prizes and show information.
The show was attended by Cheshire East mayor and Alsager Coun Rod Fletcher, and Alsager mayor Coun Jane Hearne.
Organisers said the number of entries from younger competitors was up on previous years.
The number of competitors from outside Alsager Gardens Association was also on the rise.
Simon Roberson, one of the show organisers, said: “For the first time in the show’s history, the trophy presentations were on stage and had an all-female line-up, showing that the demographic of not only our membership but our structure is changing.”
It was also the first time for many years that the association’s outgoing president Derek Hough was not on stage to announce the winners.
“His voice was missed, but this did not take away from the amazing job, both our vice-chair Chris Roberson and Coun Jane Hearne did,” added Mr Roberson.
“We made a number of changes to the show this year, to try and modernise it and attract more people. This has included changes to the layout of the show, a new, dedicated website for the show, (alsagershow.co.uk), and we also had several traders outside which helped to draw attention.”
Mr Roberson said: “I would also like to thank all our volunteers, without who, I couldn’t organise the show, with special thanks to Chris Roberson, Carly Roberson, Arron Olszewski and Maria Hutton, all of whom took out large parts of their time to help the show go ahead.
“We’re in the process of booking next year’s show and the changes that will carry it further forward, to becoming a true spectacle in the Alsager diary. This includes working with Alsager Town Council and Cheshire East on tying in the event with others, such as In Bloom.”
