The Floral Marquee Tour Begins

The attention-seeking carnivorous plants were out of the way and my boyish fascination with carnivourous plants satisified. So we continued on through the Hampton Floral Marquees, photographing, inspecting and asking as we hopped from one exhibit to the next.

The sweet peas in this area were particularly impressive.

Sweet Pea FlowersSweet Pea Flowers...
I thought this was a geranium display from a distance - the colours of these sweet pea flowers are very geranium-like. Up close, there's no mistaking the sweet pea flowers with their sweet smell and tissue-like petals.
Pastel Sweet Pea FlowersPastel Sweet Pea Flowers...
More from the Mathewman sweet pea exhibit. The lilic and orange sweet pea flowers were one of my favourite floral marquee colour combinations.
Begonia SunderlandiiBegonia Sunderlandii...
I enjoyed photographing this small group of perfectly-formed orange Begonnia Sunderlandii flowers. I can imagine seeing this photo hanging in a school counsellor's office with 'teamwork' written in italics.
Begonia Martin JohnsonBegonia Martin Johnson...
Its not often you see a begonia named after a rugby world cup winning captain, even in his testimonial year. What next? Delphinium David Kirk?
Coleus FoliageColeus Foliage...
A closer look at the foliage of coleus 'Paisley Shawl' reveals intriguing inked patterns and contrasting color blots.
Lavender Imperial GemLavender Imperial Gem...
We can't capture the smell of the Isle of Wight Lavender exhibit, hopefully this closeup photo of Lavandula Augustifolia 'Imperial Gem' will do. This exhibit took a Silver Flora medal.
Purple Sweetpea FlowerPurple Sweetpea Flower...
The Mathewman Sweetpeas exhibit won a Floral Gold. The standard black, matt background gave us this photo opportunity.
Coleus Paisley ShawlColeus Paisley Shawl...
This Coleus, or 'Painted Nettle', sports eye-grabbing foliage and some beautiful background plantings. It won Dibleys Nurseries a deserved Floral Gold medal. The patterns remind me of the sort of fabric that Moosey makes pyjamas from.