The PHS 2014 International Flower Show

The Gardeners Vertical Garden

The Gardeners Vertical Garden

I thought it would be interesting to gather some statistics about the Philadelphia Flower Show so I gleaned the following from various sources: It’s billed as the world’s longest-running and largest indoor exhibit of its kind and is produced by the Pennsylvania Horticultural Society with the help of some 3,500 dedicated volunteers who work behind the scenes.  Behind the scenes of the competition, and at the heart of the Flower Show, volunteers are organized into a complex web of committees with a hierarchy of chairs, vice chairs, co-chairs, aids, assistants, judges and clerks. Volunteers are at work on nearly every aspect of the show: from making certain that plants and flowers entered into competition are correctly identified and logged in the database to organizing the awards ceremonies. So many of our club members work on the show in so many different ways, but here are a few that I will mention. Wyn Coghlan co-chaired the clerks for Hort. The snow days worked against her from the beginning in trying to gather her troops and then delayed the schedule a day so that some of her volunteers couldn’t help. The Gardeners came to Wyn’s rescue and stepped in to carry the day. I talked with Anne Kellett asking what she did. Anne has worked so long on the show that after so many years, she helps wherever needed or wherever she wants. Jane Moore was squirreled away in some inner sanctum. When I asked her what she was doing, she answered,: “I was Vice Chair of Show Documents. All of the paperwork for every award given at the show was checked and processed by my Chairman and me. Tedious work, but right up my type A alley!” I saw Liz Ward walking briskly around the show floor and she said she has been working on signs for over 20 years. Her mother-in-law once chaired that position.  I ran into Barbara Sartorius who not only wore her committee hat, but also helped The Gardeners.  She comes up from Long Island and spends most of the week. In the Horticourt exhibit alone, 11,000 plants were entered for judging, There were 5,143 flowers and plants in the entrance garden and 500,000 lbs. of hardscape was provided by EP Henry. I am told that there were exhibitors from the UK and Monaco in addition from folks all over the US. To repeat some of the notes from Wyn’s recent email to the club:

Keith, Pam and Eileen at Meadowbrook choosing plants.

Keith, Pam and Eileen at Meadowbrook choosing plants.

Congratulations to the Club Exhibit Committee led by Pam Thompson, the exhibit designer , Eileen Longacre, and to all involved in the exhibit’s creation The Gardeners received The Pennsylvania Landscape and Nursery Association Trophy in the Vertical Garden Class and the PHS Award to the outstanding blue ribbon winner in the Vertical Garden Class, both for “Hang it Up!”

Deb Donaldson.  One of many first prizes.

Deb Donaldson. One of many first prizes.

Deb Donaldson entered 452 plants–Deb stepped up to receive the Hamilton Greenhouse Award for runner up in the individual Horticulture Classes and accepted on behalf of The Gardeners the accolade of being the runner up club in the Margaret Buckley Zantginger Award for the Garden Club accumulating the greatest number of points in all competitive classes. Deb Donaldson’s accumulated points are listed: Hamilton Greenhouse Award; runner up hort sweepstakes 1 Liberty Bell Gesneriad best of day award 2 Philly cactus and succulent society best of day 46 blues, 109 seconds, 104 thirds, and 82 HM and 452 entries =2698 in points  

Barbara Geltosky

Eileen and Sidney Niche

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