On Friday morning, I made the long trip up to Pontefract, initially through floods and debris from Thursday night’s storms, and subsequently through heavy drizzle and even heavier traffic.  I arrived just after 2.30 to deliver the pictures for the artistic section, and help put them up.  Amazingly, and only because the local group had managed to get the boards in place before I arrived, we were finished by 5pm (thanks to Joan and Ann for their stalwart assistance), and I had a good meal and a pleasant evening with Fred and Pat Bundy (well, mainly with Fred – Pat was frantically pre-cooking bacon for the following morning’s bacon butties). 

By 7.30am we were back at the show; I staged a few plants, retrieved a few art exhibits which had fallen during the night and pinned them back up, grabbed a buttie and a mug of tea, and then it was time for judging to start.  Lots of exhibits and complex decisions meant that the art judging took a long time, and it was mid-day before I got back downstairs to start the show photography, so my apologies if there are fewer plants than normal. 

Colchicum troodii

As normal, I started with plants I thought might close or flop during the day.  This lovely pan was exhibited by Alan Newton.

Colchicum pusillum

Dave Riley exhibited two pans of this tiny Colchicum species, seldom seen as floriferous as this.

Colchicum macrophyllum

One of the most spectacular colchicums, from Peter Farkasch.

Colchicum baytopiorum

This is always my favourite though, exhibited by Pauline Carless (mine aren’t above the ground yet).

Crocus vallicola

One of the stars of the show was this beautiful white crocus exhibited by Alan Furness, awarded a Certificate of Merit.

Crocus banaticus

A more familiar autumn crocus, this time exhibited by Don Peace, who won the Open Section aggregate at the show.

Crocus autranii

Finally, a crocus I have never photographed before, exhibited by Ian Kidman.

Sternbergia sicula

From the same three-pan which contained the Crocus banaticus, this pan of Sternbergia was exhibited by Don Peace, and was awarded a Certificate of Merit.

Nerine masoniorum

One final bulb before I turn my attention elsewhere.  Tim Lever was given a Certificate of Merit for this fine pan of Nerine.

Cyclamen hederifolium ssp. crassifolium ex Zakynth

This fine pan of cyclamen was the best plant in the show, and given a Certificate of Merit, but not a Farrer Medal.  So near but not quite for a relatively new and inexperienced AGS exhibitor Steve Walters; a little bit of seasoned guile might have worked the oracle.

Cyclamen hederifolium Lysander

This was a fine selected clone of C. hederifolium, with very large deep pink flowers, exhibited by Ian Kidman.

Cyclamen hederifolium

However, by far the deepest coloured clone was exhibited by Mala Janes.

Cyclamen mirabile

The small pan classes were full of Cyclamen mirabile.  The first was exhibited by Don Peace and won the Blackthorne Trophy and the Mr & Mrs W H Nortcliffe Trophy, awarded for the best plant in a 19cm pot and the best plant in Open (2), Intermediate (2) and Novice sections.  The second is a paler form exhibited by Steve Walters, and the third a very graceful specimen exhibited by Tommy Anderson.

Cyclamen purpurascens

Among the usual autumn flowering cyclamen, Peter Hood exhibited a pretty specimen of C. purpurascens

Cyclamen intaminatum

I always think of C. intaminatum as mirabile’s little sister.  It is undoubtedly my favourite cyclamen, particularly in its pinker forms, though I struggle to keep it happy.  I suspect a warmer, drier summer than its current location under the greenhouse bench is called for.  The first specimen here won the Colin Field Memorial Trophy for one plant raised from seed in the Novice section for Bob Worsley; the seedlings show some variation.  The second, uniformly pink form was exhibited by Ivor Betteridge.

Cyclamen graecum

My own plants of C. graecum are doing much better now I have moved them to a sand plunge on the shelf in my greenhouse, but they were at their best 2-3 weeks ago, and picked up a mix of 2nds and 3rds on Saturday.  This plant was exhibited by Chris Weaver, and won the West Riding Plate for the best plant in the Novice Section.

Aruncus aethusifolius

At the summer and autumn shows I usually take the opportunity provided by the relative paucity of plants in full flower to select and photograph some of the foliage exhibits.  The classes for autumn colour in particular provide a seasonal variation to the usual show fare.  Having said that, A. aethusifolius, here exhibited by Colin and Kathleen Billington, is a familiar staple of the autumn shows, though seldom in condition as good as this.

Sempervivum ciliosum v galicicum from Ochrid

Cecilia Coller’s sempervivums were also looking particularly fine.  I guess this plant must have flowered in April/May, but all trace of that has now been eradicated.

Ficinia Ice Crystal

Another attractive and unusual plant was exhibited by Ivor Betteridge.  I had seen and photographed it before, at Exeter, exhibited by Sam and Mavis Lloyd, but this was new to most of the exhibitors further north.

Arum Primrose Warburg

Another plant which always catches the eye at this time of year, despite its lack of flowers, exhibited by Cecilia Coller.

Cheilanthes yatskievychiana

Ferns also seem at their best in the early autumn.  This unusual Cheilanthes was exhibited by Tim Lever, and given a Certificate of Merit.

Cheilanthes sinuata

Another cheilanthes, this time exhibited by Rod and Shirley Johnson.

Dryopteris erythrosora v prolifica

Finally, a Dryopteris, with perhaps a hint of autumn colour, exhibited by Ron and Hilary Price.

Chirita dielsii

Alan Newton exhibited this unfamiliar gesneriad – what a fantastic colour.

Gentianella serotina

The pick of the show for me was this exquisite gentianella, grown from AGS seed by Alan Furness.

Gentiana Blue Sea

I decided it wouldn’t be right to finish an autumn show without photographing some gentians.  This was from Ian Leslie.

Gentiana Braemar

This is the gentian we all admired last year, exhibited here by John Richards, and I strongly suspect, dug up out of his garden for the event.

Thlaspi rotundifolium

Upstairs in the artistic section, the prize for the best photograph went to Joan Bradbury for this shot of Thlaspi rotundifolium; if only we could grow it like that in the garden.

Muscari armeniacum (?)

Runner-up and awarded a Certificate of Merit, was this simple but pleasing shot of Muscari armeniacum from Kit Strange.

Gentiana acaulis

The Lawrence Greenwood Trophy for the best painting, drawing or needlework went to Peggy Dawe for this exquisitely detailed painting of a gentian.

Tulipa sprengeri

The judges gave a Certificate of Merit to this lovely painting of T. sprengeri by Vincent Daniels.

Scilla maderensis

Finally, back downstairs, all the required photos taken, I had time to capture a couple of my own plants.  S. maderensis usually flowers in November – I’m not sure what it is thinking of this year.  I’m not going to pretend that it is tremendously hardy – it doesn’t live in the greenhouse, but on the south-facing bathroom windowsill, where my wife unkindly calls it the blue bogbrush.

Bessera elegans

No such problems for the wonderfully elegant Bessera.  I don’t find it too difficult to grow, provided you keep it cool but frost-free and bone dry from mid-October to late March, and feed and water freely when in full growth from May to August.  The hanging lanterns hide a secret – if you turn up one of the flowers you find this wonderful striped interior.

That was the last picture I took before they called time on the show.  Time to throw my plants back in the car, return upstairs to pack the art up carefully (I need to deliver it all to Rainham for next weekend’s show), and then back down the AI in driving rain; it was 11pm by the time I got home.   It will be interesting to see what new plants appear at Rainham.