Waterford Garden Festival an outstanding success and lots more to come

WATERFORD’S inaugural Garden Festival has been a massive hit so far and with lots more events to come, the 15 gardens and garden centres involved in the fortnight-long event are urging everyone to get their walking shoes on for an adventure into the great outdoors. The opening events attracted capacity audiences Former BBC ‘Gardeners World’ presenter Roy Lancaster enthralled a captive audience with his presentation ‘A Plantsmans Pleasures.

The Blackwater Garden Centre near Youghal will again be a hive of activity on Wednesday May 9 and Thursday, May 10 as it hosts an ‘Archaeological dig for Children’ from 3pm to 5pm on Wednesday. Thursday’s programme includes a ‘Building a Bug Hotel’ workshop at 4pm, followed by a ‘Lights for the Barbecue’ workshop at 5pm.

The magnificent Mount Congreve Gardens will be open for a special event on Thursday and entry is at the reduced rate of €5. Mark Head Gardener of Cappoquin House Gardens will continue his guided tours at 10.00am and 3.00pm, also on Thursday.

The highlight for many over the coming days will be a nature walk and lecture with Eanna Ni Lamhna at Dromana House and Garden near Cappoquin this Saturday, May 12, at 2pm. It’s the ideal event for all the family. It will feature a power point presentation and a walk along the riverbank and garden paths at stunning Dromana.

For art and garden lovers, there’s also a Special Garden Tour of Fairbrook House, Garden and Museum on the edge of Kilmeaden on Saturday, also starting at 2pm. It is a must for anyone interested in contemporary figurative art, the romantic, walled garden on the grounds of the old woollen mill, special water features and history.

And what better way to wind down after a hectic week than with a painting workshop with one of the region’s most coveted artists. The highlight of the festival for many comes on Sunday, ‘Painting in the Great Outdoors’ with Andrea Jameson in Tourin Gardens near Cappoquin from 10am.

Andrea Jameson studied in Florence with the famous drawing teacher, Signorina Simi and then she was a pupil of Maestro Giovanni Colacicchi. There are numerous examples of her work in private collections in Europe, Scandinavia, the United States and Canada . She will work with a group in the inspiring gardens of Tourin for what promises to be an amazing, creative day.

The festival ends with a photographic competition back at Dromana House & Garden from 2pm on the same day. Keen photographers will be asked to submit their entries to Dromana after the event.

Festival chairperson Kristin Jameson said that the inaugural Waterford Garden Festival has been a phenomenal success so far. “All the members of the Waterford Garden Trail are very proud of what we’ve achieved so far and how this festival has gone. We’re urging as many people as possible to come along, visit the region’s gardens, meet their owners and appreciate the wonders we have on our doorstep here in Waterford ,” she said.