TENS of thousands flocked to Pershore Plum Festival over the bank holiday weekend to celebrate the town’s rich history with the sweet purple fruit.
The festival on Sunday (August 24) and Monday (August 25) treated visitors to plenty of plums, cookery and gardening demonstrations, classic cars, live music, food and drink and a fairground.
Pershore Plum Festival celebrates the humble plum which made the town famous. In 1827, a local publican discovered the Yellow Egg Pershore Plum growing wild in Tiddesley Wood.
The Pershore Plum was the mainstay of the English plum industry in the Vale of Evesham from the mid-19th century until the early 20th century.
Alongside the Yellow Egg plum, there is the Purple Pershore and the Pershore Emblem – the latter of which was discovered by local grower Ged Witts on his allotment in 2000.
Angela Taylor, chair of the Pershore Plum Festival, said: “I would like to say a huge thank you to all our volunteers who made this the biggest and best Pershore Plum Festival ever.
“Pershore welcomed over twenty-thousand people to celebrate Pershore’s horticultural heritage, bringing tourists and locals together.
“I would also like to pass my thanks onto the motorbikes, classic cars, stallholders, local business and organisations who made this event what it was. Without them – it just would not be possible.”
Preparations for next year’s festival have begun. Contact [email protected] to help out.
