Award-winning garden designer and TV presenter on the BBC’s Your Garden Made Perfect and Channel 4’s Garden Of The Year – Manoj Malde – will be declaring the Cornwall Garden Society’s (CGS) 2024 Spring Flower Show officially open.

He will also  treat show-goers to a talk about his new book, Your Outdoor Room: How to design a garden you can live in. 

The highlight of the horticultural year takes place at the Royal Cornwall Showground near Wadebridge on the weekend of April 6-7.

Known for his vibrant style, Manoj attributes his love of colour to his Indian ancestry as well as to his 18-year career in the fashion industry. 

As a former creative director, with a master’s degree in fashion design from the Royal College of Art, he is highly-skilled at combining textures and colours within planting schemes. In his words: “I’ve gone from haute couture to ‘hort’ couture!” 

Manoj – who is also a Royal Horticultural Society (RHS) show judge, RHS ambassador and RHS Chelsea Flower Show medallist – will open the show at 10am on Saturday, April 6 and his book talk about how to create your very own outdoor haven – without the need for green fingers or hard work – will take place at 3pm on the same day. 

He will be joined by a myriad of national names and local luminaries as part of Tipi Talks.

Among them, former award-winning BBC presenter, journalist and author, Tim Hubbard will reveal the 20 stunning yet lesser-known Cornish gardens that are featured in his latest book, Secret Gardens of Cornwall. 

Kim Parish from Landscapes of Distinction will share her expertise in Garden Design in a Nutshell. 

Henrietta Courtauld from The Land Gardeners, whose aim is to create gardens that brim with biodiversity, founded on healthy soil, will discuss their new book, The Land Gardeners: Soil to Table, which reflects their passion for the link between soil health and the food we eat. 

And Mike Nelhams, curator at large of Tresco Abbey Garden, will take us on a virtual tour of this lush sub-tropical gem on the Isles of Scilly.