AN event which began as a small regional flower show, celebrates its 30th birthday this year as the UK's first national gardening festival of the season.

RHS Malvern Spring Festival - formerly known as Malvern Spring Gardening Show - will take place on the Three Counties Showground at Blackmore from Thursday, May 7 to Sunday, May 10 with 90,000 visitors expected and television coverage on BBC's Gardeners' World.

Doreen Smillie-Gray, RHS Malvern Festival manager said: “We are delighted to be celebrating our 30th anniversary this year and we have an absolutely fantastic line-up to honour this

milestone. We can promise a horticultural banquet with an abundance of show gardens, nurseries and garden experts alongside a veritable feast of artisan food producers and celebrity chefs all in a truly spectacular setting.”

Co-organised by the Royal Horticultural Society and the Three Counties Agricultural Society, it is the first major RHS event of the season and gardening and food royalty take

centre stage. Gardener’s World’s Carol Klein and Joe Swift will share their knowledge together with practical advice from Jim Buttress (Great British Allotment Challenge) and the One Show’s Christine Walkden. Children’s favourites Chris Collins from Blue Peter and CBeebies star Ben Faulks as Mr Bloom will be inspiring budding gardeners and encouraging them to get their fingers dirty.

The gardening talent is joined by a food stars likeRaymond Blanc from Le Manoir aux Quat’ Saisons, Masterchef’'s Gregg Wallace and River Cottage’s Mark Diacono. Heading the homegrown talent is the Cotswold chef Rob Rees, who will be presiding over the Kitchen Garden Hub in the Festival Food & Drink pavilion along with artisan food producers from across the UK.

Set against the backdrop of the picturesque Malvern Hills the stunning show gardens are always a number one destination for visitors, along with the magnificent Malvern Floral Mrquee where 80 of the UK's top nurseries will be exhibiting. RHS Malvern has a long standing reputation as a platform for up and coming design talent with designers such as Diarmuid Gavin, Chris Beardshaw and Paul Hervey-Brookes all taking their first steps at the show and this year more gold medals are expected than ever before.

For more information about RHS Malvern Spring Festival, celebrity line-up and ticket prices, visit www.rhsmalvern.co.uk or call 01684 230128.