British Asparagus Festival cancelled due to flooding
An asparagus festival in Worcestershire has been cancelled following the recent bad weather.
Organisers of the British Asparagus Festival on Saturday said the "incessant rain and floods" had severely affected the local crop.
The planned venue for the festival - Workman Gardens in Evesham - has also been flooded by the River Avon.
Spokeswoman Angela Tidmarsh said: "The flooding means that the asparagus crop is almost completely dormant."
Crop will recover
Matt Foster, from West Growers Ltd, said: "By this time of year we should be seeing asparagus shooting out of the ground faster than we can cut it, but this year Evesham growers are struggling to find it."
He said he was confident the crop would recover once the weather becomes warmer.
Festival events will now be staged at an asparagus auction at the Fleece Inn in Bretforton on 27 May, organisers said.
Mrs Tidmarsh said: "It's ironic as the British Asparagus Festival was started as a way of helping the area recover after the severe floods of 2007."