Sunday, March 11, 2018

Canada Blooms At the Movies - Popcorn Included!

Like everyone else in Ontario I am suffering from a massive Vitamin D deficiency.  It has been a miserably dark January and February.  In spite of this lack of light, greenhouse growers and the wonderful folks at Landscape Ontario have done a brilliant job delighting us with displays of flowers and greenery at this year's Canada Blooms - co-located with the Home Show.

The theme is "Let's Go to the Movies!"  introduced by this large bag of popcorn that magically transforms into a cascade of tiny white/yellow roses:



Supersized popcorn-styled containers are dotted throughout.


 Aside from the greenery, there are lots of photo-ops with a superhero or two...


So much fun to see Darth Vader sweeping in for his busy photo-sessions.



Would you say this is a Comedy, Crime, or Science Fiction?  Look closely to see.....kale spray-painted gold....


One of my favourites this year was the Highway of Heroes Display.  This wonderful charity's goal is to plant 2 million trees along the 401 in honour of the 117,000 Canadian soldiers killed in combat since our confederation in 1867.  There were beautiful bulbs, pretty trees in leaf, good perennials and excellent construction techniques.


How's this for fence as artwork?


I can hardly wait to see my shade plants in bloom:


For those of you who want to grow what you see, the labelling is excellent.


It's only when you get inside this little conservatory that you can really understand it's charm:


Oh for an unlimited bank account, this could all be mine!


The flower and plant vendors are top-notch.  Here's my friend Peter Wood figuring out which one of these treasures he wants to take home.



So much to see in this particular display:


One of the main messages at this year's show is that gardening is for everybody.  Some of the most avid gardeners cover their balconies with gorgeous displays.  Not only is this very attractive, but look at how many ideas you've got here:

1.  Mirrors and artwork on the walls.
2.  A growing wall
3.  Overhead lights for sparkle
4.  Tropicals that can keep you company inside over the winter
5.  Candles for soft light
6.  Trendy gold accents



I had a girlfriend who's balcony looked like this - not sure how you'd get to the wine, but it would certainly be an aromatic endeavour as your posterior brushed the basil.


Serious growing walls with really serious grow lights:


I think this one was my favourite.  Great floor pattern.  Simple lattice.  A good chair and three beautiful strongly coloured containers.


So there!  You think your balcony is tooooooo small, well the gauntlet is dropped.  You can make a garden anywhere.


How's this for having everything!  I'd like to try the sedum in the floor the next time I do a balcony design.


This is an Inconvenient Garden - a borrowed movie theme from an Inconvenient Truth.  Hmmmm.


I thought this was a very cool smaller garden.  Good colours and also quite doable in many tiny spaces.


And who could resist The Star Trek Garden?  You've got Windex to either drink or polish the place and photos of the Starship Commanders.*
*Phillips Family History Note:  William Shatner, second from the right, was declared by my Grandmother Phillips in her 80th year to be "The Answer to a Maiden's Prayers!"


Always appreciated when the floral displays are right at the edge so they can be enjoyed on both sides.



Spoiled for choice at Grow Ontario.


 And if all this wasn't enough, you really must see the floral competitions.  So very beautiful:









I think this is just about the coolest idea and I've set my mind to percolate in order to figure out where and when I can use it.  It doesn't have to be this colour, maybe something for Christmas along a fence, or on my covered deck in Easter colours.....



And now to leave you with two photos of colour - the second has Salpiglossis - one of my Grandma Stokes favourite garden flowers:


15 comments:

Helen said...

A great job of highlighting some of the highlights, Barbara. You were remarkably restrained in one instance. It was good to see you yesterday – it has been too long.

Barbarapc said...

Hmmm. Wonder which one? It has been too long. Look forward to seeing you again in June, if not sooner.

Paul Jung said...

Thanks for showing us some of the highlights (an one lowlight) from the Show. I haven't attended for several years so I appreciate your and other bloggers' efforts in posting pictures and commentary. The three-paneled fence is wonderful, the spray-painted kale would be classified as a "tragedy" and the "Inconvenient Garden"....hmmmm indeed! Well, that's my "movie" review.

Barbarapc said...

One vote for Tragedy it is! Spoke to my mum who said adhering to a theme isn't as important as providing lots of flowers - for which she and her girlfriends (and she believes the general public) are always so grateful. It really was a bafflement to walk through and see dead if you hadn't absorbed what the theme was before you entered. B.

Paul Jung said...

Your mom is right, the great majority of the paying visitors wants to see lots of colourful flowers and not more "winter interest" although the very dead Emerald Cedar (I think) can pose some existential questions for a viewer like "... and I paid $$ to see this?"

Kathy said...

Your comment about the aromatic endeavour getting past the basil to the wine made me chuckle. I did love the fence that was like a mosaic. Thank you for the tour! Your commentary helped explicate some of the pictures.

CanadianGardenJoy said...

Barb girl this has been a wonderful tour thank you !
That mosaic fence really caught my eye too .. and how extremely creative they have been this year .. I wish I could have seen this in person .. but I probably would have went overboard trying to buy all that caught my eye ... makes me even more crazy waiting for Spring ! LOL
Still snowing here in Kingston ... it is on my LAST nerve ! haha

Barbarapc said...

Kathy,
You are most welcome. You are the first to use the word explicate in a comment. I think it's going to be my word of the day! Going back to Blooms today - so grey outside, so colourful there. I'm thinking there should be some new flower arrangements in the competition and there are a few speakers I'd like to hear. Also there's that possibility that I might bump into one of our "tribe" which is always a highlight.
Joy,
One of these days we'll get you down to see the show and meet everyone in person. One of the things I've got in mind today is to check out GrowOntario and Jensen - "need" dahlia tubers and I'm thinking maybe there's a tropical that needs to come home with me? Note to self - bring extra bags to wrap tender plant for walk to GO train!
B

Jennifer said...

Your highlights are terrific, but my views on the show are unchanged. I know you are going to thinking I am being cranky and miserable, but I don't get the movie theme. Spiderman, Darth Vader and Star Trek? Really? I know it's supposed to be fun and entertaining, but the theme seems so remote and unrelated to anything to do with gardening. Sorry to be so negative...I did like the very interesting fence and the tribute to the highway of heroes.

Barbarapc said...

You are not being cranky and miserable -- there are many others like you who just don't like the show. It always gives me a little bit of hope seeing green at this time of year. On the weekday when I returned there were more people in Blooms than at the Home Show which really surprised me. I will cling to and encourage anyone who gives me some flowers this time of year and it's for this reason that I will always be a supporter of Blooms.
p.s. Got some gorgeous dahlia tubers at PickOntario $15.00 for 4 - whoo hoo!

Barry said...

Sadly, I am right there with Jennifer. A movie theme? Seriously? Haven't been in ages, and this does nothing to encourage me to change my mind. Alas, enough negativity, I cannot wait to visit your blog and see what a real gardener and garden look like!

Barbarapc said...

Oh Barry, lately I've been an event blogger - however, all will change shortly! Am back in action, and have lots to show. B.

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