IF YOU have a love of gardening, Christine Walkden will need no introduction.

A former presenter of BBC’s Gardeners’ World and Christine’s Garden, the 47-year-old is the current gardening expert for BBC One’s The One Show and has been sharing her knowledge through a variety of radio broadcasts, including BBC Radio 4’s Gardeners’ Question Time.

Christine will be hosting a special event in Huntingdon, supporting Huntingdonshire children’s charity Dreamdrops.

The Evening With Christine Walkden event, which is being supported by both The Hunts Post and St Neots St Mary’s Rotary Club, will take place at Marriott Hotel on Tuesday, October 23, starting at 7pm.

“Expect the thrills and spills of a life as a horticulturist,” said Christine who has almost 40 years of experience on which to draw.

The horticulturist, who started working her first allotment at the age of 10, selling her vegetables and flowers to schoolteachers and neighbours, will speak for about an hour before taking questions from the audience.

Christine has a wealth of knowledge, having started her career working in a parks department before going to the Lancashire College of Agriculture. She then worked at two experimental horticultural stations, the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew – looking after the growing side of the seed physiology unit – and Dobies, Carter, Cuthbert and Dom Seedsmen in North Wales.

She went on to lecture at colleges, eventually becoming a freelance horticulturist and BBC regular.

And, as if that were not enough, Christine is also an author – she will be signing copies of her books, including the latest, No-nonsense Vegetable Gardening, following her appearance in Huntingdon.

Anne-Marie Hamilton, chairman of Dreamdrops, which supports the special care baby unit and children’s ward at Hinchingbrooke Hospital, said: “We’re delighted that Christine has agreed to talk in Huntingdon and are very grateful that she has given her time to help raise money for Dreamdrops. It promises to be a fun, entertaining evening.”

Tickets for the event are �10 and include a glass of wine or soft drink on arrival. There will also be a raffle.

INFORMATION: Tickets are on sale at The Hunts Post’s office, 30 High Street, Huntingdon, and at Gilbert Family Butcher in Great Staughton. You can also call Dreamdrops on 07931 549131.