PICTURES: Visitors bask in sunshine at Sudbury Open Gardens weekend

Hot, hot, hot – that’s how organisers described Sudbury Open Gardens at the weekend.

Hundreds of visitors came along to the annual event, but the heat of the day made it a challenge getting around.

Said organiser Maria Mills: “It was so hot that a lot of people didn’t get to see all the gardens.

“It really was quite difficult for people in the heat and the gardens were quite spread out, so I don’t think many people got to all of them.”

This year, 27 gardens in and around Sudbury were open to the public.

“It was lovely to see people walking around the town with our programme and we had visitors from places like King’s Lynn and Newmarket,” said Maria.

The variety of gardens included one with a model steam train running around a track.

There was also pizza being cooked in a garden with a pizza oven.

Visitors were interested in gardens with beehives and chickens, added Maria, who owns The Travel and Leisure Group in East Street, which sponsors and organises the 30-year-old event.

Every year, Sudbury Open Gardens donates the proceeds of the event to St Nicholas Hospice Care.

This year, Maria estimates it will have raised around £4,000 for the charity.

“It is difficult to say the exact amount at the moment, but we hope it will be around the £4,000 mark as usual,” she said.

Visitors particularly enjoyed watching swans, cygnets and cows from her garden overlooking the town’s water meadows near to The Mill Hotel.

Town mayor Sue Ayres was among the attendees.