TICKET sales for the Spring Gardening Show are finally beginning to blossom after a sluggish start due to the foot-and-mouth outbreak.

The Three Counties Agricultural Society reported a surge in calls to the ticket hotline and a backlog of bookings since the box office opened.

Uncertainty over foot-and-mouth, added to the society's decision to replace its Three Counties Show with a new August event, has contributed to a slow start in sales.

"The Spring Gardening Show will be going ahead as planned, and both we and our partners, the Royal Horticultural Society, are delighted that ticket sales are on the up at last," said TCAS Press Officer Sharon Gilbert.

"I think we can expect bookings to come in thick and fast until the booking deadline of April 27.

"The very nature of foot-and-mouth means that none of us can predict what will happen over the next four weeks.

"But I'd like to reiterate the society's promise that all advance tickets to the show will be returned, less the booking fee, in the unlikely event of cancellation."

The Spring Gardening Show takes place at the Three Counties Showground between Friday, May 11, and Sunday, May 13. Ticket details on 01684 584924.