A SPECTACULAR celebration of some of the best gardening in the country was held over the weekend at Blenheim Palace.

The three-day horticultural event was launched at the Woodstock palace by gardening guru Alan Titchmarsh on Friday.

This year’s event featured the largest ever Grand Floral Pavilion featuring more than 40 individual plantsmen, growers and societies giving expert advice and gardening ideas.

Exhibitor Fiona Pringle, of Enchanted Earth, has been coming to the show since it first started.

She said: "It's a fantastic show. There's such a huge variety of people. It's in such a beautiful place and it's so popular."

After Mr Titchmarsh opened the event he presented the ‘Best in Show’ award, selected by the panel of judges who were led by celebrity gardener and eight time Chelsea Gold Medal Winner Jim Butress. Mr Butress then presented the Gold, Silver Gilt, Silver and Bronze awards.

Nick Bailey, garden writer, broadcaster and head gardener at Chelsea Physic Garden, London also took part in this year’s event.

Other show highlights included exhibits by the National Dahlia Society, New Forest Hosta and Hermercallis and the RHS Gold Medal winners from the Chelsea Flower Show, Craig House Cacti.

The Grow Your Own Stage, located within the Grand Floral Pavilion, featured talks from a range of Royal Horticultural Society experts throughout the show, and the National Association of Flower Arrangement Societies held a wide variety of workshops and demonstrations for visitors to enjoy.

The shopping village featured trade stands selling everything from unique garden gazebos, greenhouses and arbours to beautiful flowers, gardening sundries and hundreds of other products.

More than 300 exhibitors specialising in home garden, craft and gift products were on hand to display their wares in the grounds of the World Heritage Site.

The palace boasts over 300 years of history and is surrounded by more than 2000 acres of parkland and formal gardens landscaped by Capability Brown.