Super Broccoli Stars at Chelsea Show

George Bush Snr famously announced his dislike of Broccoli and banned it from the White House - perhaps one of the biggest mistakes of his Presidency

Broccoli, a member of the Brassica family, is more than just a vegetable. It's environmentally friendly, a rich source of antioxidants and can contribute to the future of our energy needs. All in all it seems like the answer to a President's prayers!

No wonder, then, that Super Broccoli is set to star at this year's Chelsea Flower Show.

The horticultural research arm of the University of Warwick, in the West Midlands, has created a special show garden for this year's world famous Chelsea Flower show in London. However the star exhibit in their garden won't be multicoloured flowers or a soothing water feature. The Warwick stand will show how far researchers have come in breeding a 21st century super broccoli which will: help us live longer, last longer on our shelves, be easier on the environment and greatly increase the range of biodegradable materials available to manufacturers.

The stand will have a range of plants from the Brassica family of which broccoli is one of the most important commercial crops.

Warwick HRI has the largest gene bank of vegetable Brassica plants in the world, containing over 6000 plants and the Warwick research teams have mounted a number of cross breeding projects to transform it into a super plant in a variety of ways.

The Warwick HRI garden at Chelsea will even include a surf board constructed by the Eden centre, in part from plant oils, to demonstrate just one product that could owe much to the humble broccoli plant in future.

Perhaps George Bush Jnr will be watching with interest!!

Expected Footage
- GVs Chelsea Flower Show
- GVs Warwick HRI stand at the Chelsea Flower Show
- GVs Marshalls Broccoli Fields in Lincolnshire (Largest Brassica Grower/Packer in Europe)
- GVs Polytunnels and greenhouses, Westhorpe Flowers & Plants, Lincs (supplier of organic Brassica plants)

Interviewees:
- Dr. Graham Teakle, Research Scientist, Warwick HRI, University of Warwick
- Roger White, Director, Westhorpe Flowers & Plants