Polmont Horticultual society annual show
Polmont Horticultural Society
The Polmont Horticultural Society was established in 1843, which is hard for us at the hub to believe now. Back then, one hundred and eighty-two years ago, Polmont was a small village, a British industrialist purchased prime Scottish real estate in our Polmont village. Having become wealthy from burning fossil fuels, he chose Polmont due to its location along the new Edinburgh and Glasgow railway line. Polmont was ideally situated equidistant from both cities, making it a perfect commuting spot for these industrialists.
Work began on transforming the grounds of Millfield. In the words of the landowner, the grounds were to become idyllic nature walks enhanced by human design. The British Empire's Victorian industrialists had a great appreciation for their imperial gardens. In 1845, a Scottish gardener was hired as the head gardener. In 1848, the Polmont Horticultural Society,( formed just five years earlier,) received permission from the landowner to hold its first annual exhibition on estate grounds around the new Millfield House. For this purpose, the society purchased a new marquee to display the flowers, vegetables, and fruits produced in the area by professional gardeners, while a smaller tent was used for amateurs. The event was a complete success and concluded with a firework display funded by the landowner, who also became the Society’s president. This marked the beginning of a long association.
The head gardener at Millfield worked for the landowner for the next fifty years, and together they helped establish the Polmont Gardeners’ and Cottagers’ Mutual Improvement Association. For nearly a century, meteorological readings were taken at Millfield and forwarded to the local newspaper and the National Meteorological Office, where they can now be accessed online. A series of articles were published in the “Scottish Florist” regarding the planting of the flower garden.
The Polmont Flower Show in the grounds of Millfield became the “must-go-to” event of the year. It provided older members of the community with an opportunity to meet and socialize, while younger attendees could participate in the “promenade,” showcasing the latest fashions and meeting potential partners. The grounds were usually open after the show from 3 PM until 5 PM. The below Falkirk Herald report of 1852 is typical of the excitement surrounding the event.
“thronged by many hundreds of visitors from all parts of the surrounding district, of all classes of society, but all equally remarkable not merely for decorum, but also for that good breeding which is commonly supposed to be the exclusive monopoly of those to whom horticultural promenades are usually restricted. The weather being highly favourable, and extensive public notice of the promenade having been circulated, the number of visitors to the grounds was this year unusually great, – we believe nearly double the number on any former occasion. Of these many were from a considerable distance, the fame of Millfield and its rural promenade, which certainly may be regarded as something quite unique in its way, having spread far and near.”
The proximity of the railway station was a big bonus and attracted people from Falkirk, Bo’ness and Linlithgow as well as Polmont. The event set the standard for horticultural shows – one which most could not attain.
The land owner was a liberal and opening up all parts of the grounds was a matter of principle. Although there was a modest entrance fee it was gratifying to see large numbers of the working class turning up and appreciating the enhanced beauties of the natural environment. Only too often was it pointed out that such individuals did not despoil the place in their perambulations:
“There was an array of fashion and elegance which would have done no discredit to a metropolitan promenade; but perhaps the most gratifying feature of the exhibition was the large assemblage of people of the lower classes, who had been allowed a holiday by their employers in the neighbourhood, and who, by their lively curiosity and by the admiration they manifested for what was beautiful around them, afforded a pleasing illustration of the facility with which such occasions may be made to minister to the intelligence as well as the recreation of the people.”
(FH 11 September 1851, 3).
The two tents on one of the lawns were typically filled with spectators, especially during inclement weather. The scenic walks allowed visitors to explore, and even in the early years, there was much to see. By 1851, the grounds were adorned with gardens and shrubberies.
On the north side of the house, there was a kitchen garden enclosed by brick and stone walls. To the south, a geometric garden bloomed with vibrant flowers, leading to a closely cropped lawn. In the glen, a beautiful bowling green featured vases and classical statues, including figures of Eve, Flora, and Diana. Adjacent to the green was a shell fountain situated in the center of a circular pond. Further south lay a small lake or pond with goldfish, surrounded by rock work and grottoes filled with wild plants and exotic waterfowl. The stream was canalized and included miniature cascades, providing ample space for growing fruits and vegetables.
The hothouses at Parkhill ( the neighbouring British country estate)contained crops of grapes, peaches, and figs, while the greenhouses showcased splendid specimens of fuchsias and other exotic plants from around the empire. Each September, hundreds of visitors were drawn to the annual Polmont Horticultural Show, which grew in popularity every year. It was widely noted in the media of the time that the success of the show was largely due to the allure of the landowner's private estate. In some years, the tents were located on the Parkhill side of the burn, allowing for more space.
By 1858, there was much to admire in the grounds. The Polmont Horticultural Show had become a key event in the social calendar, attracting people from all walks of life. It generated significant revenue for the Horticultural Society, but there were murmurs of discontent regarding how the funds were spent. Many believed that the society should invest in larger and newer marquees, as well as encourage the lower classes to participate in vegetable growing. However, the committee allowed expenses for the annual dinner held on the same day as the show to spiral out of control. The chairman of the society objected, proposing a reduction in costs at an August 1858 committee meeting, but his suggestion was not only voted down but also met with disrespect. In response, he withdrew permission to use his garden at Millfield as the venue. Eventually, the committee had to concede, agreeing to source judges more locally, many of whom came from within the committee itself. The show remained in the first week of September, a tradition solidified over nearly a decade, and it was destined to continue until this very day!
It became customary for a band to perform at the annual show. Initially, it was the famous Camelon Brass Band, but the Kinneil Instrumental Band also made appearances.
In 1867, a brass band was formed in Polmont and played at the flower show that year. Funds were raised to support the newly established Polmont Curling Club, allowing them to use the bowling green in the glen from 1874 until they secured another venue, with cups and medals donated for competitions.
An all-around sportsman, the landowner also permitted the Falkirk Junior Cricket Club to play against Polmont Cricket Club on Millfield grounds in September 1868; unfortunately, the home team suffered a sound defeat. During the 19th century, curling was Scotland's most popular sport, particularly when the rural population had more free time during the winter months. Curling attracted many to the ice when cold temperatures created thick layers of ice, and there were once over 2,000 lochs and ponds used for curling games in Scotland, in addition to purpose-built rinks established in the 1850s for bonspiels and curling tournaments.
Belows entry into the papers of the day is of great interest to a modern horticulturist interested in writing and permaculture
(Falkirk Herald 21 September 1854, 4).
Entering first the flower garden, the amateur at once sees he is not amid common grounds. Numerous parterres and fancifully designed beds distract the eye with collections of flowers, any one of which would be thought an extensive selection in itself. Here are whole beds of geraniums, many of them very fine. There are equally crowded plots of fuchsias, heaths, pinks, and competing flowers. The rosiary is extensive, and excellently kept up by a succession of all the finest sorts that the season offers for purchase. We were highly pleased with ten varieties of dianthus, and no less with a bed containing six varieties phlox Drummondii. The picotees and carnations, as may be imagined, among 100 varieties, contain selected flowers of great beauty. The collection of dahlias is very fine. Three splendid specimens of camparuapalada are worth particular attention. In fact, the great number of the rarest greenhouse plants, all profusely growing in the open air, is exceedingly striking, and hardly makes one regret that there is actually no greenhouse at Polmont Park. Within the walls an acre is laid out in capital style, comprising another array of flower beds, and exhibiting vegetables of immense size. The melon, and other hot beds, are on the best principle, and the produce great. The walls, besides apples and pears, of the finer sort, are lined with young trees of the peach and apricot, which already show thick crops. Mr David Howe, who has been for six years the head gardener, evinces the most ample knowledge of his profession, and had been ten years in England. The vinery, we had forgot to say, contains the black Hamburgh and sweet water, and nowhere have we seen such a uniform or larger-bunched crop. Altogether, as a specimen of what the gardens are about Polmont, the Misses Speirs may well plume themselves on their devotion to horticulture, being thus seconded by one of the most superb gardens in Stirlingshire…
The view from the lower garden (a third compartment devoted to small fruits and vegetables) is exceedingly grand, and may be taken for what is presented from some other spots in the neighbourhood. It bursts on the delighted and astonished spectator to the west, north and east, and long ago elicited a tribute from Sir Walter Scott.
these gardens are not extensive, but they are well kept, and the various flowers cultivated in them reflect great credit upon the horticultural ability of Mr Howe, the gardener, who has been for several years celebrated in the locality for the cultivation of that popular flower the Dahlia, having taken the first prize for his flowers at most of the local shows. At this season of the year these flowers constitute quite a feature in the grounds, and show what it is possible for skill and energy to accomplish… The gardens at Polmont Park are essentially English in their style. The ground-work of the flower garden is grass, and the figures, generally speaking, are of that irregular outline which by common consent had been termed English. There are several rich masses of that American production the rhododendron, which bloom here freely; beautiful bushes of azaleas, which, during their flowering season, are surprisingly lovely; and a fine mass of the newer varieties of rose, over which one could spend a day and return on the next and the next un-tired of their beauty. There are many of the compartments of the flower garden allotted to the growth of what are characteristically enough designated half-hardy plants, which, during the summer months, give one continued succession of bloom, the bright and varied hues of which contrast finely with the sober green tints of the grassy lawn, or the foliage of the surrounding trees, and the shrubs with which the scarlet, yellow, blue, white, or pink beds are interspersed. The garden is surrounded with tall trees, which give it a snug, sheltered look; and beyond these there is a beautiful park stocked in summer with sheep, and thickly planted with trees. There is a broad green walk shaded with huge old sycamores
By the 1850s, the whole area had become unnatural. The damage done to the ecosystems during this time is irreversible. Today, non-native species of flora and fauna have almost completely taken over, and some may view this as an act of environmental vandalism. This situation represents a struggle against nature rather than working with it. The land is now overrun by uncontrolled invasive species, and the natural landscape will never recover from this devastation, all financed by industrial-scale deforestation and the burning of fossil fuels.
The annual flower show, by 1868, introduced a new feature: poultry, dairy products, and honey that could be entered into competition. The show continued uninterrupted at Millfield until 1883, though access to the field with the tents was often restricted. Due to familiarity, the Polmont Horticultural Show had lost some of its earlier charm. In 1893, a band competition was introduced, with eight bands entering from Slamannan, Kilsyth, Laurieston, Clydebank, Kirkcaldy, Carriden, Bonnybridge, and Alloa. A special train had to be hired to transport the Kirkcaldy Brass Band and many of the town's inhabitants. After a few years, this competition was abandoned, and Highland dancing to pipe music took its place, along with a tug-of-war event. Dance music was provided by bands like the Laurieston Saxhorn Band.
The village of Polmont had also grown, with more houses now located to the south in Redding and Wallacestone. This increased population led to a problem, and in 1899, the amount of sewage in the burn through Millfield contributed to the creation of a special drainage district.
In 1900, the dancing was led by the Falkirk Dramatic Orchestra. In 1909, children's sports events were introduced. The evolution and innovation continued until 1912, when Millfield was once again put up for sale. In September 1913, the annual flower show took place there with the new landowners' permission. The Paisley Industrial School Band performed, and a baking competition, along with contests for schools, was added. The First World War caused a temporary halt to the shows, but they resumed in 1920. During the war, the Polmont Horticultural Society focused on producing vegetables for the Royal Navy. The 1920s were difficult, and fewer professional gardeners were available. Amateurs showed less interest in displays, causing the once-famous Polmont Horticultural Show to shrink considerably. During the Second World War, sugar was in very short supply, and tea had to be served without it. Petrol rationing also limited the number of visitors from afar. After the war, children were entertained with toys and pony rides. The private grounds were well maintained, and the glen remained particularly attractive. The new owners continued their support of the community by organizing countless fetes, stalls, and bazaars for the people of Polmont.
Millfield House was sold to property developers and was demolished around 1968. The site of the house and its grounds is now occupied by private residences. The North and South Lodges, the viaduct, and some of the boundary walls remain. Down in the glen are remnants of the grottoes, ponds, and the bowling green.
The Polmont Horticultural Society has continued its annual show at various locations around the rapidly growing town (it's no longer just a village). A new generation of gardeners is emerging, bringing fresh ideas focused on biodiversity protection, water conservation, rewilding, permaculture, climate change resilience, and zero waste initiatives. Perhaps next year's show will feature a stall or two from these innovative gardenizers.
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