Westmeath represented at this year's Bloom festival!

Westmeath farmers and beekeepers are on the road to Bloom as this year’s event will play host to two local food businesses, one from Athlone and the other from Kilbeggan.

Kilbeggan Organic Foods and Meadowsweet Apiaries, the beekeepers and honey-makers from Athlone, will both feature in the Food Village, home to over 100 food stalls.

The evolution of plants, the war in Syria and international gardens from Chicago, China and Chile are just some of the themes and inspirations for this year’s Bloom festival.

Bord Bia launched its 10th annual Bloom event and according to the organisers, this year’s show will have something for all ages and interests.

Bloom 2016 will run for five days over the June bank holiday weekend in the Phoenix Park, Dublin from Thursday, 2nd to Monday 6th.

The show continues to grow each year and is now widely regarded as Ireland’s largest garden, food and family festival, attracting over 100,000 visitors last year alone.

This year’s showcase sees organisations such as the Marie Keating Foundation, GOAL, and Mental Health Ireland team up with designers to build 23 show gardens with powerful messages supporting social and cultural issues.

This year’s bespoke garden creations will include the UCD Evolution of Land Plants Garden, inviting visitors to step through a half billion years of evolutionary history, Bullets and Boiled Sweets a 1916 garden installation designed to commemorate the centenary, a friendship garden all the way from Yangzhou in China, and a Santa Rita Living la Vida 120 Garden inspired by the designer’s very own adventures in Chile.

The Food Village at Bloom will offer a wide range of artisan produce on sale and onsite dining options. Guests can also dine at Bistro Bloom or visit the Country Crest restaurant and Farm Shop.

A new BBQ area will help whet appetites while the Bloom Inn will feature a wide range of Irish craft beers and spirits. There’ll also be a selection of gourmet farmhouse cheeses, supplied by the Association of Irish Farmhouse Cheesemakers.

RTÉ’s Áine Lawlor and Marty Morrissey will present Bloom Live, a new two part show live from the Phoenix Park. The weather team will be onsite, RTÉ Lyric FM quartet will perform throughout the weekend and RTÉjr children’s presenters will entertain younger Bloom visitors.

Finally, Bord Bia will also be joined by some of the biggest names in Irish food and drink as part of the Chef’s Quality Kitchen stage. Oliver Dunne, The Happy Pear, Roz Purcell, Neven Maguire, Rory O’Connell, and many more will be on hand to share summer recipes and top tips.

Tickets are on sale now and visitors are encouraged to book early for discounted rates by visiting www.bloominthepark.com

Follow Bloom on www.facebook.com/bloominthepark and join the conversation on Twitter @bloominthepark and @bordbia using #Bloom.