The greatest show on earth

More than 182,000 visitors attended the four-day annual Royal Highland Show, attracting those involved in the farming, food, and countryside sectors, as well as families. There were a broad range of events for families, with culinary demos in the Food Hall being one of the big draws (see our series of blogs from Wendy Barrie).

The Royal Highland Show is Scotland’s leading outdoor event, showcasing all aspects of rural life in Scotland including agriculture, horticulture and forestry. It’s an opportunity to get up close to cattle, sheep and horses, taste the finest food and drink, and take a ramble in the countryside area.

A renewable energy pavilion, a relative newcomer, showcased creating power from sustainable resources such as wind power and biomass, and there were experts on hand with advice about the technology involved. The eco-garden was established last year and with sustainability and biodiversity becoming ever more important visitors were able see native Scotttish trees to mark the International Year of Forests.

It was all happening in the Forestry arena, where impressive wood carving skills were on show – we witnessed logs transformed into eagles in just 30 minutes. There were also competitions to see who could climb up the timber pole quickest – one person did it in 13 seconds , not sure if that was fastest, but that’s pretty good going!

Over in the Get Started Garden, our promise tree was a popular pit-stop, so thanks to all those who called by to find out about us. People who came to the stand were rewarded with special Start postcards, which were impregnated with wildflower seeds. All you need to do is put the whole thing in the soil and watch it grow into a haven of nectar for butterflies and bees.

Check out the photos we took of what we saw around the show and we’ve got some video footage coming soon too…watch this space