Experience horticulture innovation at the RHS Spring Flower Show in Cardiff by Adam Singleton

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Gardening has always been one of the most popular British pastimes, but in the last decade or so it has become a truly cultural phenomenon, inspiring everything from primetime TV makeover shows to expensive retail concepts.

This April will see Cardiff host The Royal Horticultural Society's Spring Flower Show at Bute Park, Cardiff Castle. Better known by its acronym RHS, the Society was founded in 1804 in order to promote gardening and horticulture in Britain by hosting a series of flower shows with model gardens accessible to the public. A registered charity, the RHS is renowned for its commitment to promoting high quality exhibits and ensures good gardening products and quality plant material are available for purchase by visitors both on the day and after the show.

The RHS Spring Flower Show, held annually in Cardiff since 2005, promises to be one of the most exciting shows yet this year, and is likely to generate a considerable amount of interest from journalists, photographers and visitors alike, making it an ideal opportunity to share horticulturalist innovations and create publicity.

The most anticipated show gardens this spring includes 'Eats Shoots and Leaves', demonstrating how to create an edible landscape in your own garden, while retaining the beauty normally associated with a purely ornamental garden. 'Slugger Off!' aims to show how to avoid slugs without using slug pellets, bringing in birds to eat them and planting plants that slugs don't eat and tender plants grown out of the way of slugs.

Meanwhile, the 'Cardiff University Research Garden' will showcase the research work being conducted at Cardiff University, using the garden to show how everyday plants are used in groundbreaking research.

Other highlights this year will include two floral marquees packed with the very best nurseries from across the UK; fine Welsh food and crafts and advice workshops from experts in addition to nature trails, street entertainers and live music to keep gardeners of all ages entertained.

The RHS Spring Flower show is likely to attract hundreds of thousands of visitors, and around 700,000 members and non-members visit RHS shows annually, meaning those wishing to go should book tickets, available directly from the RHS website, and accommodation in one of the many hotels in Cardiff well in advance to avoid disappointment.

So, regardless of your levels of expertise, the RHS Spring Flower Show in Cardiff should have something to keep you and your fellow travellers happy and busy all weekend long.