Great day at the San Francisco Garden Show

Photo courtesy of SFGS Fanpage

This past Wednesday was the opening day of the SF Flower and Garden Show.  I’ve attended the show just about every year for the past eight years, and felt this year was one of the best.

The Gardens
What makes a good show? Number one is the caliber of the display gardens, which can range from highly conceptual to on-trend to practical examples of outdoor living.  This year’s show delivered a nice mixture of all three.

Three gardens particularly caught my eye.  The first was Keeyla Meadows’ Habitat Dance with a Red Snake.  

Reflective of her famously colorful style, this garden was a riot of flowers, ceramics and sculpture with an emphasis on black and red. 

Although I initially thought the structure of the garden was merely a pleasing series of curved beds held together by a ceramic inlaid path made to suggest the curves of a snake, it finally dawned on me that the garden actually represented a reclining woman. I loved the concept, the composition and the attention to detail in this garden.  My take-away for my own design business is to be a little bolder with color.

Another favorite was The Salvaged Creole Jazz Garden by Dawn Engel from An Artist’s Garden.  

I had to wait until late in the day to snap a few photos as this charming courtyard was consistently mobbed.  Somehow the creator  managed to include a wealth of delightful, Creole-style vignettes without overwhelming the space.  Favorite details included this amazing fountain (another photo appears at the top of this post)

And drums repurposed into planters.

This garden inspired me to think more creatively about salvaged materials.

One of the most anticipated gardens of the show was the high concept  Living Room by Organic Mechanics.  In their own words, instead of thinking outside the box, they decided to think “around” the box – in this case, a giant cube papered entirely with succulents. 

A study in contrasts, this garden juxtaposes circles with squares, wet with dry, inside with outside.  Even a high concept display like this gave me a dose of inspiration, namely, don’t be afraid to push the envelope.

Although you serious plant lovers may not agree, I also enjoyed Via Aqua’s garden, where contemporary meets serenity.

The only garden that disappointed was Ah Sam’s Four Seasons garden. Although I liked the black and white contrast in this particular vignette, overall, this garden looked like a florist shop had barfed all over it.

The Seminars

With only one day at the show, I only made it to one seminar, but Debra Lee Baldwin’s Succulent Container Gardens did not disappoint.  Nor did the lovely description she wrote in the copy I purchased:  Susan – You’re a sweetie – and a talented one at that! Enjoy! And if you’re wondering if I read this out loud to everyone I ran into at the show, yes I did.

The Shopping

You could say I saved the best for last, but in fact, when my mom and I got to the show, the first thing we did was head for Annie’s Annuals

and Digging Dog Nursery to load up our cart with plants.  Expect some photos later in the summer when my lovelies start blooming.  Even though I’m not in the market for a Japanese Maple right now, I couldn’t resist taking the time to admire the amazing selection that several growers offered.

The only thing more fun than attending the show? Attending Rebecca Sweet’s fabulous tweet-up the afternoon before.  The invitation went out not only to tweeters, but to fellow local bloggers Town Mouse and Country Mouse, seen here in all their mouse-eared glory.

You can view more photos of the tweet up here.

All in all, a wonderful, inspiring way to spend a few days. I’m already looking forward to next year!

Comments

[DaffodilPlanter]

Susan, Wonderful description of the show and party! And I've got to agree 100% with Debra Lee Baldwin's description of you.

Really? You agree? (Not that I'm fishing for compliments or anything.)

[Matt Moore]

Great post Susan. Was great to meet you live and in-person @ the tweetup. What a great bunch of folks!

I feel the same! It's wonderful to put faces with names.

[Michelle D.]

"this garden looked like a florist shop had barfed all over it."
LOL !
I have absolutely no idea why the show lets this person embarrass themselves year after year.
You think they would have figured it out after the year when they did the pink floral poodle.

Great review. Loved Dawn Engel and Organic Mechanics design and craftsmanship.

Another fun show.

They must get a lot of florist business from it, or I can't believe they'd keep coming back. I thought it was a particularly nice mix of gardens this year. Was it my imagination, or were a lot of them bigger than usual as well?

[Town Mouse]

Oh, I can't wait! Hope it will still look passable on Sunday.

"I have to be a little bolder with color," really made me laugh. This from the woman with the purple wall in her garden.

Nice pic of us mice. Glad you noticed those were mouse ears, one person thought we were bunnies ;->

And yes, I loved the tweet up and absolutely adored Rebecca's garden. I'm not sure whether any of the show gardens can come close...

You know, I'm now tilting back the other way. I spent the afternoon cleaning up my garden and planting some of the new plants I bought at the show, and I think I have too MUCH color on the side of the garden with the purple wall. (Not the wall itself mind you - still makes me smile every time I look at it.) May have to post a photo and solicit design advice on whether to tone down some of the plant material.

[wayne]

wonderful. got to love the cube of succulents. I missed the Philly show for the first time in several years.

You'll probably enjoy it all the more next year if you're able to go. Sometimes a little break helps you avoid that been there, done that feeling.

[Susan aka Miss R]

Only my westcoast girls could use barf and garden in the same sentence! Great review--someday I'll be there at the right time to go...

Oh yes, classy is our middle name out here in California!

[Helen Yoest @ Gardening With Confidence™]

It sounds like it was a very good show. Sorry I had to miss it. H.
Helen you would have had so much fun! The only thing missing were all my east coast twitter and blogging friends.

[Rebecca Sweet]

Loved the Four Seasons Garden...and can't believe it didn't win a gold medal! I'm convinced this show is rigged....

Okay - sorry, had to say that. you guys can stop laughing now....

Jenny and I sat across from this exhibit for quite awhile (not to 'take it all in', but because we were pooped and there was a nice little bench there). We watched who exactly seemed to like this garden and it was 100% older ladies. I even heard one woman yell across the room to her husband "Karl...get over here....you gotta SEE this'! So, clearly, to each his own, right?

Lovely post - and lovely comments & pictures of my garden party. Although I'm pretty sure it's because of the Cosmos that you think it was more fun than the show!

Geez, it wasn't just the sheer overwhelming mess of it, even a lot of the individual floral arrangements were atrocious! Did you see the basket of hydrangeas in different shades of (clashing) blue and pink? They've got better combos at Safeway.

Hmm, you could be right about the cosmos. You'll have to invite me back soon so Tom can make me another one and I can test out your theory!

[Katie]

Great post! I'm totally with you re: the different types of gardens. I think there have to be SOME that look much like you'd see at your home, some that comfortably push the envelope a *little* and some that are COMPLETELY far out.

Agree, it's the mix that makes it worthwhile. Last year all the gardens had a big sustainability focus, and while I admire that, they tended to look a lot alike.

[Catherine]

This was really fun to see. It's so interesting seeing how different garden shows are. I'm not sure if the SF one and the one up here are run by the same company anymore? The shows seemed different from each other. One thing we didn't have were carts to load our plants on :)
Both the nurseries that had displays would've been ones I would've loved to have seen in person since I've only seen their online catalogs.

No, the previous owners sold the show last year, so this was the first year under new ownership. I think there's a lot of pressure to bring the show into the black so hopefully attendance met their expectations. The beautiful weather probably helped.

I bought all this stuff at Annie's, then turned the corner and saw Digging Dog! So you know I ended up buying a whole lot more.

[Christina Salwitz]

I love the fact that you aren't shy about saying what you really think about a garden display. A "true" review!
Lovely post Twitter & FB friend!

Heehee, thanks! I figure my blog is not exactly a New York Times expose, so no worries about causing a ruckus. Wasn't it great getting together with all our Twitter and FB pals? I wish these events weren't so far apart : (

[Germi]

BAhahahaha! The Four Seasons "Garden"!!! I saw William (who knows little about gardens - for now) shooting video in there and I shooed him away! No wasting tape!
Barf is EXACTLY the word I would have used.

I enjoyed most of the display gardens, even though some of them weren't my thing. It was great to see all of that energy and garden love in one place - and then meeting the WOMEN WHO RULE online garden media was awesome.

I felt like a total stalker and a freak - I know I was smiling way too much! But I couldn't help it! Being with you all was just SO great!

Extra lovely meeting you (and NO, I'm not saying that to EVERYBODY - not REALLY!!!) and one day you are going to find a pink satin jacket in the mail!

Great post DOLL!
XOXOIvette

I had a feeling I wasn't going out on a limb with my opinion! There was so much going on in that display I think I got a little headache just looking at it.

But no more time to write, and racing out to the mailbox NOW and wait for my pink satin jacket!

P.S. LOVED meeting you in person. You are for sure my favorite stalker!

[Scott Hokunson]

Great review Susan, thanks for taking us along! I've been following the build up to and the attending of the show, and it looks like you all had such a great time. Very nice touch telling us what you took from, and will try to use from each display, the mark of a true observationist! Scott

Your comment is making me feel so thoughtful and designery! It was a particularly good show this year. Maybe next year you'll hop on a plane and join us!

[Debra Lee Baldwin]

Susan, meeting you was definitely one of the high points of my trip to the Bay Area. I want your blue eyes! If I had them, my whole closet would be blue. Not only was it great to see those lovely eyes in person, I really enjoyed chatting with you at Sweet Rebecca's soiree.

Debra you were so much fun to hang out with! How did it feel to be one of the celebrity guests?

[Alice Joyce]

Great post, and fab to finally meet you!!
I did not have enough time at the show this year, so thank you for the coverage.
Look forward to having more time to sit and talk with you next time we run into each other;-)
Alice

It was pretty crazy, wasn't it? But glad we met in person!

[Rob(ourfrenchgarden)]

Hiya Susan

I could handle a day at the San Francisco Garden show! Looks wonderful, followed by a great meal in Chinatown, you got a good one there right?

I've just received a copy of Succulent Container Gardens by the way. Not really progressed beyond staring at the pictures yet, stunning. Really like Thomas Hobb's containers, the 'succulent pizza'.

I think we need to plan one of those vacation house swap things - then you CAN attend the show next year!

Interesting you mention the Thomas Hobb photos - I heard him speak at the show several years ago right after his Jewel Box garden book came out. His photos are truly inspiring. And you'd never guess he lives in Canada; you'd swear you were looking at a California bungalow.

have a good weekend.

[James]

Well, I'm glad our sweet and talented Susan had a fun time at the show, and that you had a cool show to visit. San Diego lacks an interesting garden show. We have a "home and garden" show twice a year and garden exhibits at the county fair, but they're both pretty commercial and not always worth the trip. (Always lots of florist-barfing going on ...) With memories of your colorful garden wall fresh in my mind I'll be interested to see how you get even braver with color!

[VW]

Hey, looks like a great time. You never have to worry about designers from San Francisco being too conservative and boring ;-)
I finally posted pictures of the steps you suggested for our porch - come by and see!

[wayne]

must be why teachers take sabbaticals

[the Inadvertent Farmer]

ROFL...tell us how your really feel about Ah Sam’s Four Seasons garden! Kim

Are you somehow implying my review was less than professional?! ;-)

[philippines flower shop]

Well, all I can say is' this garden show was so beautiful. Wish I can also attend like this some other day. Anyway thanks for sharing.

-pia-