Learn how to relax at Harrogate Flower Show!

The Writer’s Pad and Glass & Grass are just two of the beautiful new show gardens featuring at the 2012 spring event, from 26-29 April, Great Yorkshire Showground.

Seven themed show gardens offer a range of inspirational ideas for visitors, from a garden paradise for birds (and their human friends) to a sustainable, Blue Peter-style family plot.

Also on display this year is a special feature created by Harrogate Borough Council. Complete with swimming pool, diver and winners’ podium, the carpet bedding scheme has been designed to mirror sporting themes throughout the council’s 2012 planting schemes.

The outdoor show gardens were launched last year to celebrate the centenary of the North of England Horticultural Society, a leading gardening charity and organisers of the Harrogate Flower Shows. The spring and autumn shows are now the UK’s biggest independent gardening events, attracting nearly 100,000 visitors and 1,000 exhibitors a year.

Sponsored by Abbotts Green Luxury Lodge Living and Prestige Park & Leisure Homes, the 2012 show gardens include:

a la vollete - illustrating just how easy it is to make a small garden paradise for birds, plus an outdoor space to be enjoyed by the whole family. Created by Wood Landscapes, based between Leeds and Bradford, West Yorkshire.

Sticky back plastic and stamps - a sustainable, easy to maintain, family-friendly garden, incorporating edible plants and recycled materials - with a splash of Blue Peter! Created by Horticap, a Harrogate-based centre for adult learning.

Glass and grass - designed to help a busy GP unwind, her garden looks beautiful, feels comfortable and combines traditional structure with some modern twists. Created by Sally Tierney, Yorkshire Garden Designer, York.

Contemporary heart - a contemporary garden for the modern home, providing outdoor living space to entertain, lounge and relax among beautifully planted borders. Created by PWP Landscape, Leeds.

Shhh... allowing people and wildlife to relax in a peaceful environment, while absorbing the colours, shapes, smells and feelings aroused by the garden. Created by students from Askham Bryan College, York.

Practical tranquillity - combining classical ingredients with contemporary design and vegetable planting to provide a productive garden within an attractive backdrop of calming colours and trickling water. Created by New Leaf Landscapes and Keith Ledger, both based near Thirsk, North Yorkshire.

The writer's pad – a pocket-sized garden designed as a relaxing and peaceful retreat for the author to be inspired to create award-winning literary works. Created by Lee Bestall, of Sheffield-based Inspired Garden Design.

Judging of the show gardens starts at noon on Wednesday 25 April, when the gardens will be considered for premier gold, gold, silver-gilt, silver or bronze awards.

Martin Fish, Show Director for Harrogate Flower Shows, said: “The outdoor show gardens have proved extremely popular with our visitors and form just part of our plans to develop the shows in the future. We hope our visitors will not only take away inspiration for their own gardens, but also the plants, advice and even the Have a Go skills to be able to create their perfect outdoor space.”

Over 100 leading plant nurseries from across the UK will be attending the Spring Show, many taking part in the awards competition to find the most innovative display on the theme ‘A famous garden’.

New for 2012 is a series of hands-on demonstrations to encourage show visitors to ‘Have a Go’ at a range of gardening skills. Students from Askham Bryan College Harrogate Centre will be inviting people to roll up their sleeves and have a go at laying turf, planting a garden border, building an area of block paving or learning how to create a traditional Yorkshire dry stone wall.

There will also be expert advice from the Garden Roadshow team and Kitchen Garden Live is back with a range of talks each day on growing fruit and veg at home.

More info: Visit ‘Show Highlights’ on our website www.flowershow.org.uk for further details about each of the gardens, including concept drawings.

Ticket prices: Thursday/Friday/Saturday £16; Sunday £14; under-16s free. Opening times: 9.30am – 5.30pm. Car parking is free.