The Three Counties Autumn Show: Celebrating Britain’s Harvest Season in Style

There Ought to Be More of Them…

There ought to be more of them… is what my friends and I were agreeing while driving home from the Three Counties Autumn Show at Malvern last weekend.

We were talking about large-scale country shows that take place at this time of the year because we hugely enjoyed our visit to the show, which is billed as the “UK’s biggest harvest season celebration”. It offers the ultimate demonstration of something this nation can do very well indeed… We are capable of growing some very good food.

A Shrine to the Best of British Produce

I have never seen such glorious fruit and vegetables. The Harvest Pavilion at the show could be described as a shrine dedicated to top-notch plant-based food. My friends and I were staggered by the quality.

By the way, we’re not talking here about the fabulous CANNA UK National Giant Vegetables Championship, which is a huge (in more ways than one) crowd-pleaser at Malvern. The pre-event advertising blurb declared: “Needs to be seen to be believed!” That was no exaggeration. The veggie beasts in question were amazing! Jaw-dropping!

But despite being a fun thing to admire, giant veg does not exactly whet the taste-buds. Big applause to the growers, but the Land of the Giants does not translate to anything you’d want to put on a plate.

The Harvest Pavilion: A Feast for the Eyes

Unlike the glorious Harvest Pavilion where more than 100 Grow to Show classes had attracted entries of prime vegetables and fruits (as well as cut-flowers, alpines, succulents, and a lot more besides). I do not exaggerate when I say that, collectively, the competition represented a celebration of the best plant-based edible matter I have ever seen in these islands.

The market baskets (to give them the technical name) or vegetable collection displays were simply stunning. Each one represented a harvest festival on steroids in its own right. A still-life painter’s dream. I am not a vegetarian, but if one of these was delivered to my door each week, I’d be happy to go meat-free.

Why Aren’t There More Autumn Country Shows?

So I did find myself wondering why there aren’t more in the way of large-scale country shows staged in autumn? After all, we’ve been in prime harvest season over the past month - the very best of British is on display in just about every rural county - so why not strut-your-stuff and show the world what you can do?

Of course, there are historical reasons why many of the large county shows (such as the Royal Cornwall, Devon County, Bath & West and, indeed, the Royal Three Counties) are held in late spring or early summer. For them a central component is the livestock, and early summer provides an ideal time to show off farm animals.

Cattle, sheep, and pigs can be in peak physical condition after spring-grazing and of course farmers are keen to show off their breeding stock to potential buyers and demonstrate the quality of their bloodlines before animals are sold to market. There’s also, traditionally, been a slight lull in the farming calendar after spring planting and before the demanding main harvest.

Autumn Shows: A Celebration of the Harvest

Autumn-based shows have a different focus - their aim is to celebrate the harvest itself, with an emphasis on horticulture, food, and produce.

And there really was a great deal to enjoy at the Three Counties Show-ground last weekend. Besides the fabulous produce there was the Garden Theatre, hosted this year by August Bernstein, head of The Raymond Blanc Gardening School at Le Manoir aux Quat’Saisons. He welcomed a range of special guests, including BBC Gardeners’ World presenters Monty Don OBE and Adam Frost.

The Gardening Village was filled with impressive floral displays and seasonal bargains, where green-fingered visitors were eyeing up next season’s inspiration and browsing the Bulb Market with its specialist growers. The RHS Flower Show in the Floral Marquee was, needless to say, a true celebration of plants and flowers featuring stunning floral displays and rare and unusual plants.

The Great Malvern Cake Off and More

There was also the The Great Malvern Cake Off tent, hosted by chef, author and regular on ITV’s This Morning, Marcus Bean, who was joined by a host of familiar faces from The Great British Bake Off.

All this alongside all the usual fun of the fair that you’d see at any large country show. Far too much to mention here - everything from the World Pole Climbing Championships to farmyard animal events, to “dinosaur experiences” and willow weaving demos… Not to mention a truly vast food hall which was one of the biggest and best I’ve seen at any country show.

A Perfectly Timed Rural Celebration

In a nutshell, the Three Counties Autumn Show is a major rural event that enjoys perfect timing. I’d recommend paying a visit next September if you can.