First there was the press release by the promoters of the The Northwest Flower and Garden Show (February in Seattle) and the San Francisco Flower & Garden Show (March in San Francisco) stating that the 2009 shows would be there last. (2008 Seattle Show Photo credit: Michael Walmsley)
Boy, did that send a ripple through the gardening world! Blogs and Twitter feeds were a buzz over the very sad news.
A great discussion about the situation took place over at GardenRant…
Then THIS, an article by HeraldNet saying that there may actually be some people interested in buying the shows. So, maybe…quite possibly…2009 will NOT be the last shows for west coast gardeners. I am keeping my fingers crossed — Triple crossed — I can hardly type, they are so crossed! But I know in my heart it is a long shot. Who has the money to gamble on a show at this time?
I usually try go to one or both garden shows every year and have been for about 18 years. This is no easy feat because I do not live near either show. Going requires a plane ticket, hotel room and sometimes a rental car. Yes, and $$$$$$$. But it always seemed so worth it.
I remember the shows of old (when money was no object for the designers) with great fondness. There were some fantastic displays – outrageous, over-the-top displays that no gardener could ever even dream of doing at home. And other years there were the charming cottage gardens, the year of Victorian gardens and my personal favorite – A glass greenhouse made out of old windows.
Sorry for the poor photo quality, but this was 1996 (before I had a digital camera).
Over the last few years, the show has changed dramatically. There seems to be more furniture and less plants. Much of the drama is gone (with several wonderful exceptions). Also, it was extremely obvious last year that the numbers were down. The crowds were smaller and I wondered how the vendors were doing with the lower turn out. But the gardeners who do come each year are still enthusiastic spectators. We love these shows. They give us ideas, new plants, quirky garden art and sometimes new friendships!
And you know what else? No other venue has such polite people. Seriously! Everyone waits patiently to get their photo of the most popular gardens. People stand back so you can get that great shot. Others will help you pronounce the botanical name and offer info about when they grew it at home. I meet the most amazing people…and these are the people paying to get in! Then you have the wonderful and creative landscape designers, the vendors, the authors, the gardening experts who are always amazing and so free with their information. They are all passionate about what they do and so excited to share that with other passionate people. It is always so fun.
Even though the shows have changed through the years, I still manage to walk away with a years worth of inspiration – Just enough to get me through until next time. With the idea of "NO MORE SHOWS" looming overhead, I think I will appreciate the show even more this year. I am so saddened by the idea that we may never get more of this…
(Chicken House with planted roof – Seattle Show 2008)
Or this…
(Edible Landscape – Seattle Show 2008)
But I have hope that someone, somewhere will take on at least one of the shows and keep it going.I can't imagine next spring with out one.
About the Author
Theresa Loe blogs here about taking the garden full circle while striving for a more local, fresh-from-the-garden lifestyle. She is a TV producer, video host, freelance garden writer and a wrangler of chickens and children. (Not necessarily in that order.) For more information on these topics, you can subscribe to her free monthly newsletter.
Theresa Loe is the award- winning Co-Executive Producer & Canning Expert on Growing A Greener World TV. She blogs here about Living Homegrown®, local and fresh-from-the-garden. 
{ 11 comments… read them below or add one }
The SFFS and NWFS are hands down, my two favorite shows. I’ve been a speaker at both for several consecutive years. Although I don’t relish the cross country trips, I can’t deny my enthusiasm to see them every year. That’s a testament to their greatness, considering I speak at many similar events each year around the country. But these two are in a class to themselves. Unlike some shows that force everything in the world to bloom in one weekend, these shows are more realistic to what the home gardener can expect and achieve. They’re not over-the-top, yet they are truly inspirational. The attention to detail by the The Salmon Bay event staff every year makes these shows a must-see event. I am keeping my fingers crossed that we will have a buyer and hope that whomever that is, will do everything in their might, to uphold the wonderful standards that the NW and SF Flower Shows are known for. To loose these shows would be a great loss for many!
Well said Joe — I could not agree more. Thanks for your insightful comment.
And one note:
When I said in my post that much of the drama was gone, I forgot to mention that I think it is due to reduced funds rather than creative ideas.
These people have wonderful ideas, but it gets more and more expensive each year to put together their displays. However, every single year several of the display gardens surprise me and make me want to own the garden they have created. That says a lot right there. And my favorites are the ones that rely on charm rather than funding.
But isn’t that the case with home gardens as well?
Thank you SO much for your post and for sharing your fond memories of the show. I cannot imagine the NW without it either and am hoping with you that something, somewhere works out. -Flora, NW Show Blogger
Sounds like those were really great shows; it’d be a shame to have them go away for good. I’ll cross my fingers for you that they will have buyers and will go on.
I love that photo of the chicken coop with the garden roof!
Flora – You are so welcome! I’ve got everything crossed (fingers, legs, eyes…) and am hoping along with the rest of you.
Teresa- Oh you would love that chicken coop. I will dig up some more photos from old shows. I think I have more of the coop too. It was to die for!
We all love the garden shows, no doubt. My thoughts are they should get a younger feel – move into sustainability as much as garden design – it would encourage new sponsors and perhaps build interest.
Shawna
Hi Shawna-
Yes, a younger feel is a good idea. As for sustainability, that is actually the THEME for this years shows. The official title is:
“Sustainable Spaces. Beautiful Places.”
The major focus is supposed to be on gardening materials and techniques that are good for the environment. They are doing a special focus on organic vegetable gardening. THAT is why I am so excited about this year! It will probably be the best year yet. Bummer that it may be the best and the LAST.
There used to be a flower and garden show in Ann Arbor, but that ended maybe a decade ago. The next nearest one, in Detroit, is really a home improvement show with three garden displays. I’ve traveled to the Cincinnati flower show last year, and that was nice. And is it just me, or are others feeling over “greened”? I’ve been an organic gardener/a green person/and into sustainability for about 20 years… I’m truly glad it’s more in the mainstream media nowadays but I also suffer from news overkill!
Show gardens are technically correct. Man/machine: stone, arbors, ponds, paths, fireplaces, outdoor kitchens & a few plants.
MAGIC left the building.
Garden writing, stuck in the ’50′s, is partly to blame. Where is garden criticism? Movies, music, &tc are critically reviewed.
Garden criticism will give show landscapers incentive to go beyond man/machine.
Money isn’t an issue. Today’s man/machine landscapes cost more than magical landscapes of a dedcade ago.
At the Southeastern Flower Show, this year, man/machine gardens are adequate. But sweet little gardens (educational division)put in by the Camellia Society, and Oakland Cemetary trounce big dollars (competitive division) with beauty, magic, passion and I-gotta-have-it.
Intuitively non-gardeners know there is nothing for them at the shows.
If man/machine landscapers knew garden criticism was part of the process, in their city’s largest paper, things would change. Why change now? The system gives a free pass.
The system is broken.
When flower shows close newspapers lose advertisers. Man-machine landscapers lose a marketing venue. The show audience receives no inspiration/education. Nurseries lose customers. A circle affecting each of us.
Editors want garden writing about sustainability, organics, drought tolerance.
Garden criticism is part of the solution to better flower shows, more vendors, more attendees, more advertisers………..
Garden & Be Well, Tara Dillard
Theresa,
I too remember unlimited imagination and knock your socks off displays. In fact my business is named after a display one year of a teardrop trailer/potting station called Living in the Garden. I went last year and the
magic was gone for me… to predictable…. One thing that could never be lost from the Seattle show is how you left just knowing that spring was HERE!
Think Spring, Suzanne
Suzanne-
I REMEMBER THAT DISPLAY!!! it is a great business name.