THE first sods have been cut to start preparations for the UK's first major horticultural event of 2015.

Fifteen garden design teams broke the turf on the Three Counties showground at Malvern to launch work on the 30th RHS Spring Festival, formerly called Malvern Spring Gardening Show.

Doreen Smillie-Gray, Spring Festival manager, said: “The day we break ground here at RHS Malvern Spring Festival is always an exciting day and this year it is all the more special as we’re celebrating our 30th show. It’s the day on which our designer’s gardens begin to come to life and go from paper and planning to reality. We never cease to be amazed by the creativity of our designers and this year’s gardens are some of our most exciting to date. As they

say, watch this space.”

Set against the backdrop of the picturesque Malvern Hills, the event’s signature show gardens are always a number one destination for visitors. The four day event, which runs from May 7-10, has a long standing reputation as a platform for up and coming design talent. Designers including Diarmuid Gavin,

Chris Beardshaw and Paul Hervey-Brookes have spring boarded their careers from early steps made at RHS Malvern Spring Festival.

This year's show gardens range from a recreation of an Andalusian village, complete with shops, tavern, Mediterranean square and hidden courtyard to one highlighting the plight of Britain's bees.

Once again there is a large food presence at this year's event and celebrity chefs Raymond Blanc and Mark Diacono appear alongside Masterchef’s celebrity grocer Gregg Wallace and local food hero Rob Rees. Sunday, May 10 is Family Day with CBeebies Star Ben Faulks as Mr Bloom and BBC Blue Peter gardener Chris Collins inspiring children to get their fingers dirty as well as many other family friendly attractions.

For more information about the show and for the celebrity timetable call 01684 230128 or