Yeo Valley Organic Garden Festival
Yeo Valley Organic Garden Festival announces additional headliners as the garden opens for the spring season
Yeo Valley Organic Garden, Blagdon, Somerset
Garden Open: Thurs – Sat from 10 April to 27 September
SAVE THE DATE: 18 – 20 September 2025
Tickets now on sale at https://www.yeovalley.co.uk/events/yeo-valley-organic-garden-festival-2025
As the countdown to the first ever Yeo Valley Organic Garden Fes:val con:nues, a second wave of exciting speakers has been announced for the 3-day event taking place in the beautiful surroundings of the Yeo Valley Organic Garden September 18th-20th 2025. Sustainable garden design champion, Tom Massey, Head of Gardens at The Na:onal Trust, Sheila Das, and ‘no-dig’ gardening pioneer, Charles Dowding will be joining previously announced headliners, Arit Anderson, Alys Fowler and Frances Tophill. This expanded lineup includes some of the most respected and forward-thinking voices in British: culture and promises a wonderful three days of nature-first garden emersion.
These new additions will appear alongside a strong lineup that includes, Becky Searle, Georgie Newbery, Jason Williams, Mark Diacono, John LiXle, Nicola Hope, Kate Bradbury, Tamsin Westhorpe, Sally Morgan and Huw Richards for a weekend of inspiring talks and lively panels aimed at encouraging gardeners of all levels to embrace sustainable and climate-resilient garden methods and pracces.
Sarah Mead, Head Gardener of Yeo Valley Organic Garden, is getting her garden-glow on and sweeping the terrace in readiness:
“This festival is shaping up to be something really special. With voices like Tom, Sheila and Charles joining us, we’re offering both practical insights and genuine inspiration for anyone who wants to garden with nature in mind. Sustainability doesn’t have to mean doom, gloom and giving up your garden gnomes – it’s about making small changes that all add up to help improve the soil, promote a healthy biodiverse food chain in your garden. We guarantee you’ll have fun along the way and feel better for it!”
Award-winning garden designer Tom Massey is celebrated for his innovative and sustainable designs that harmonise with nature and is known for his role on the BBC’s Your Garden Made Perfect. His design studio has garnered multiple accolades, including a gold medal and the BBC People’s Choice award at the RHS Chelsea Flower Show with Yeo Valley Organic in 2021. Together with architect Je Ahn from Studio Weave, he is currently reimaging the gardens around the British Museum. He will be bringing his water-wise approach to garden building and planting design to the festival, explaining how small collective steps can create a large-scale impact.
Tom says: “Sarah and her team at Yeo Valley bring so much joy and enthusiasm to everything they do! I absolutely loved working with Sarah on the show garden we designed for RHS Chelsea in 2021, and I’m genuinely excited to be involved in the new Organic Garden Festival. Gardening with nature is something we can all embrace: observing and celebrating seasonal changes, harvesting rainwater to reduce our reliance on mains water, and nurturing healthy soils.”
Sheila Das, Head of Gardens & Parks at the National Trust, brings a fresh and inclusive voice to the gardening world, championing horticulture as a vital and rewarding career path for the next generation. Her commitment to a soil-up approach to gardening is helping gardens across the National Trust network become more climate-resilient, and her top tips will be worth bringing a notebook for. As Sheila explains: “Great gardens are created by people with hands in the soil and hearts that connect with the past, present and future.”
Charles Dowding, often referred to as the guru of no-dig gardening, has been a pioneer in organic gardening for over 40 years. “With no dig, your soil is mostly undisturbed and unseen. What you notice is the quality in your plants, a beautiful shine to the leaves of flowers and vegetables – they glow!”
Each day of the festival will focus on a different theme so visitors can choose which is most relevant for them:
Thursday – Seeds of Change: Arit Anderson will open the festival with a talk on gardening for the climate, now and in the future.
• Friday – People & Pollinators: Alys Fowler will discuss perennial vegetables that promote a healthy ecosystem, benefiting soil, pollinators and human health.
• Saturday – Mission Possible: Frances Tophill will inspire the next generation of gardeners, emphasising that there is no right or wrong in the garden.
Spread across four engaging areas—The Hive, Germination Station, Garden Safaris and a Compost Campus – the event offers something for all levels of experience and enthusiasm. It will also feature a nature-themed Bookworm Tipi, earth-friendly shopping, music and locally sourced food and drink.
Ahead of the fes:val, garden lovers can enjoy everything Yeo Valley Organic Garden has to offer when it opens for the season on 10th April 2025. Nestled in the heart of Somerset, the six-and-a-half-acre garden is an organic haven of wildflower meadows, seasonal borders and views over Blagdon Lake.
The garden will be bursting into life this spring with a packed programme of events and inspiration. Highlights include It’s a Spring Thing (April-May) – a joyful celebra:on of the emerging season with expert talks, garden tours and tea in the meadow yurt, and the ever-popular Bee Safaris (April- August), where visitors can get up close with the garden’s buzzing residents.
Tickets for the festival are on sale at yvogardenfestival.co.uk
Tickets for all seasonal garden events are on sale now at yeovalley.co.uk/events
Follow @yeovalleyorganicgarden on Instagram for behind-the-scenes updates and speaker spotlights.
The Yeo Valley Organic Garden Festival 2025 is proudly supported by RocketGro, Somerset-based producers of organic peat-free composts, who will be sponsoring The Hive and showcasing their products on site. The festival is also delighted to welcome Niwaki as a sponsor – purveyors of fine Japanese garden tools and accessories – who will be supporting The Germination Station and running tool sharpening demos and a shop throughout the event.
