the garden in summer

Whether you want to grow a single perfect blossom or learn how to raise fresh veggies and herbs for your table, the 2009 Southeastern Flower Show has something to teach you, something to show you, and something to inspire you.

The beautiful image you see above is an entry from the “Passion in Bloom” interpretive design category, featuring “The Mother Earth  Four Seasons Statue.”  Now take a look below to see how the same statue was accessorized with different fruits and flowers to symbolize spring:

Another entry in the "Mother Earth" intrepretive design category

Aren’t they beautiful?   But let’s say you’re a gardener who prefers simplicity and perfection.  The show has exhibits to suit your taste, too, like this outstanding camellia blossom, submitted by a gardener from the North Georgia Camellia Society:

'Dixie Knight Supreme' camellia, entered by John Newsome of Atlanta

I was enchanted by the tiny fantasy gardens in the “Heart of the Garden” Class G17, Miniature Garden category.   Here’s one of my favorites, a “Cupid’s Eye View” created by Mary Braswell of Stone Mountain, Georgia.   Mary designed her small garden with dwarf Alberta spruces, boxwoods, miniature thyme, agaves, and, of course, a sprightly “Cupid” to overlook the romantic cottage:

"Cupid's Wild Passion," 3rd place winner in the Miniature Garden category

I lingered awhile to talk with landscaper Ed Castro about his exhibit, “A Garden to Love.”  He was at the show with Chris Hopper, the creative force behind the exhibit.  Chris told me that he used the 2009 Southern Living plant collection, which includes Encore azaleas and various annuals, among other plants.  Ed pointed out that their garden also incorporated many Eco-Brite ideas, products, and concepts. Eco-Brite, you may remember from one of my earlier posts, is dedicated to encouraging environmental stewardship through the use of garden features like water permeable paving stones, grass strips, and more.  Stop by and ask Ed to tell you how to add these earth-friendly features to your own garden.

Ed Castro's landscape exhibit includes the Southern Living plant collection and environmentally-friendly Eco-Brite ideas and products.

I could go on and on, but you don’t want to keep reading about the flower show when you could be here in person to see it, right?  So come by the Cobb Galleria; the show runs tonight through 8 P.M., and opens again on Saturday and Sunday.

On Saturday, here’s a quick sample of the authors you can meet at Eagle Eyes Books, which is located inside the show:

11 A.M. – Lynn Coulter (okay, that’s me!), author of Gardening with Heirloom Seeds

12 Noon – Ashton Ritchie, author of Scotts Southern Lawns

1 P.M. – John Wilson, author of Tales from a Tuscan Table

2 P.M. – Ashton Ritchie (again)

3 P.M. – Grady Thrasher, children’s author

4 P.M. – Allan Armitage, author of Armitage’s Native Plants for North American Gardens and other books

5 P.M. – Pamela Crawford, author of Instant Container Gardens

…and there are many more, including Joyce Revoir, Nicholas Kniel, Polly Mattox, and Helen Bost.   More authors and more great books arrive on Sunday!

I’ll have more pictures and show news for you tomorrow.  Until then–hope to see you at the show!

cheers,

Lynn

Allan Armitage

All right, garden-lovers.  The question of the day is:  What can you grow in cement?  We’re not talking about that hard, dry, sun-baked red clay that passes for our soil here in Georgia.  It is cement-like, but for today’s purposes, we’re asking, what can you grow in REAL cement?

Answer:  Nothing, of course!  If you said anything else, it’s back to Green Thumbs 101 for you.

But you’ll THINK flowers grow in cement, along with leafy trees, fabulous shrubs, willowy grasses, tropicals, bulbs, perennials, veggies, and much more, when you see the landscapes on display at the 2009 Southeastern Flower Show.

Are those hyacinths blooming from the cement floor in the Cobb Galleria?

If you’ve visited the show in years past, you know what’s in store.  Experienced landscapers and designers haul in tons of dirt, truckloads of sod, and acres of plant materials to create indoor gardens that rival anything you’d find outside.  All these amazing gardenscapes look as if they’d sprouted right up out of the cement floors of the building.

When you come to the show and find a landscape you like, feel free to stop and talk to the designers, who are often on hand, or pick up a list of plants they’ve used to create the scene.  You’ll take home lots of inspiration as well as practical ideas for re-creating that beauty in your own backyard.

Keep watching this space.  Soon we’ll be giving you some sneak-peeks behind the scenes, at how these indoor landscapes are created for the show!

cheers,

Lynn