THE cream of Yorkshire will be rising to the top at this year's Chelsea Flower Show.
The multi award-winning Wensleydale Creamery is teaming up with Welcome to Yorkshire to showcase the county to the world.
The Yorkshire Dales National Park is the inspiration for this year’s show garden so the creamery has been chosen to be at the heart of the display.
As well as a stunning Dales landscape and traditional cottage garden, this year’s design by Mark Gregory features a stone bothy converted into a craftsman’s creamery where genuine artisan cheese production will take place.
The creamery will be supplying genuine Yorkshire Wensleydale cheese-making artefacts to help bring the garden authentically to life.
Its history dates back to 1150 and its unique modern-day taste is down to the skills passed down through generations of master cheese-makers and the top-quality cows’ milk from more than 40 local farms.
Other authentic elements in the garden will be the dry-stone walls which will be crafted from genuine Yorkshire stone on loan from the Bolton Estate.
The creamery's managing director David Hartley said: “We are delighted to be joining Welcome to Yorkshire for this year’s Chelsea Flower Show.
"The Yorkshire Dales-inspired garden will showcase the environment and history of cheese- making, and of course our famous Yorkshire Wensleydale cheese.
"We can’t wait for visitors to engage with our craftsmen’s creamery at the show."
He added: "The partnership will provide a little piece of the Yorkshire Dales in Chelsea; the garden setting will allow us tell our historic story and showcase our much-loved Yorkshire Wensleydale.
“I’m sure the garden will attract lots of attention and be a valuable and memorable addition to the show.”
The chief executive of Welcome to Yorkshire, Sir Gary Verity, said: “We’re delighted to be teaming up with Wensleydale Creamery to showcase this breath-taking area and award-winning cheese to the world.
"I know their passion, dedication and skill when it comes to cheese making will be perfectly complimented by the beauty of the garden.
“Visitors will be surprised and delighted by this year’s design and inspired to come and see the stunning Dales National Park and the creamery's visitor centre for themselves.”
Last year's Welcome to Yorkshire garden, designed by Leeds-based Tracy Foster and featuring a coastal scene complete with chalk cliffs, ruined abbey and beach and made with 30 tonnes of Yorkshire stone, sand and pebbles, was awarded a silver medal by RHS Chelsea judges and attracted thousands of visitors.
This year's show takes place from May 22-26.
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules here