I can’t resist a good story. And when it’s tied to some eye-popping art, so much the better. And flower related? A hat trick!

Enter one Harvey Cohen. I had a great time talking to him and his wife Georgia at the Flower and Garden Show. They ran the Seed Art booth.

But wait… I’m getting ahead of my story.

To start at the beginning, we have to go back about 100 years. That’s when the William D. Burt Seed Company, of New York, produced their seed packets using hand lithography. You can see the Seed Art site for a detailed description of the stone lithography process. But basically, each color - from 5 to 20, depending on the type of seed - was created by a separate artist. The image was stippled onto stone with a needle-pointed pen. Each color had it’s own stone plate, and the stippling process created each color layer dot-by-dot. The stone was inked and paper rolled across each stone, adding color layer by layer, drying between applications.

For whatever reason, these particular seed packets were never filled. They were packaged in boxes, sealed with wax, stored in a cellar in Dalton, NY, and forgotten about. Long after the lithography process had been replaced by the camera and 4-color process printing, and even after many of the plants represented on the packets had essentially become extinct, the cellar was discovered. The packets unearthed. And the colors were as vibrant as the day they were painted.

Harvey showed me image after image. As stunning as they are to the naked eye, you can’t fully appreciate them until you have a magnifying glass. Then, using both eyes for depth perception, the art pops out at you, 3-D. You can see the individual dots, and since the colors were applied in layers, it looks as though the flower petals open in layers, the vegetables are ripe with depth and texture.

Like the rare treasure they are, there’s a diminishing number of packets left. Harvey and Georgia were considering limiting the sales to the remaining shows they have scheduled. See that schedule, or try to wheedle a purchase directly from Harvey at seedart@vom.com.

Remember being a giddy child, arriving at the hometown fair on opening day?

Well, these two Reno sisters (50+ and 60+) relived those thrills upon arriving at the SF Flower & Garden Show on Friday.  The master gardener of the two plotted our attack so we wouldn’t miss one display or booth.  The brown thumb happily agreed.

From the beautiful lobby displays (we loved the Star Gazers best, as well as the unusual containers used to showcase the flowers) to the vendors (clippers?  soaps?  note cards?  garden art?  kitchen goodies?  planters?  clothing?  jewelry?)  to the walk-through gardens (complete with waterfalls , unusual flooring and restful plants) to the plants and flowers for sale, we found a feast for the senses.  This was even better than the fair!

As first timers, we had nothing to compare the show to.  It was all fabulous!  In the display building, we purchased unusual flat vases, complete with frogs, to create upright floral displays. I was lucky to have three daffodils in bloom when I arrived home and love how they look in my new treasure!

We also purchased two varieties of Star Gazers (already planted in the chilly Reno soil!) and will enjoy their showy flowers in August.

The second building, featuring all manner of plants for sale, could have been our downfall.  The orchids were stunning, as were the Japanese maples.  They were calling our names, begging us to take them home.

The bonsai displays were amazing and educational.  Who knew crabapple trees and fucias could be bonsai trees?  We watched a demo there as well.

We had a large time!  Can’t wait for next year!  And upon returning to Reno, I discovered 4 friends had been at the show the same day.

Seasoned veterans, they decided this show was better than their Cow Palace visits in previous years. 

Kudos to all who made this a memorable day.

We had to travel a bit farther south than last year, but the show was just as fun, inspiring, and exhausting (yes, there’s a lot to see!).

Eat What You Grow

Maybe I was hungry, but food (in the form of edible plants) kept popping up everywhere. Saw beautiful Bright Lights chard plants mixed with compact succulents, “miner’s” lettuce - which I discovered grows in my yard with no help at all, and pea vines on lovely trellises made of branches. Listened as Rosalind Creasy showed photos of her huge edible garden - multi colored melons, beets with white circles, and peppers to make your own paprika. Her motto: the more color on your plate, the healthier your meal. Yum… Someone asked her what food will grow in the fog belt. Her reply: Leaves, tubers, & buds.

More Color - Plants & Pavers

Loved Keeyla Meadow’s Dancing with Matisse container garden. She takes bright colored tiles and implants them into fun shaped concrete pavers and planters. Keeyla has written two books: Fearless Color Gardens and Making Gardens of Art.  I’m inspired to see if I can learn to create a fun patio or walkway for my yard.

100 Year-Old Redwood

Also in the container garden area, Keith from Essence of the Tree explained to my husband how he crafted planter boxes out of salvaged redwood. The wood for a beautiful planter box came from kit houses ordered from Sears Roebuck, built over 100 years ago.

Fields of Heather

Imagine looking out your window in January or February and seeing patches of intense purple or red flowers. That’s my dream of planting clumps of heather in my yard someday. At Heaths & Heathers, they had so many different colors and sizes and styles. And it only takes 4 hours of summer sun for plants to flourish.

Fun Stuff & Free Stuff

I really want a mermaid for my garden. Both Rustiques and Beyond Borders have great metal sculptures - fish, birds, and other creatures. But my dream is to have a mermaid (or two) flowing among the flowers. Did you see the dog house with the light tube sky light at the Cool Living garden? Too fun. And for “free stuff”, Smith & Hawken gave us wildflower & Shasta Daisy seeds, Suburu gave us Basil & Spring Salad Mix seeds (more food!), and many vendors were passing out candy to keep us energized.

Kids Stuff

What fun watching the kids in Sproutopia! How come they won’t let me make mud ball critters with nylons and grass seeds? And the only carnivorous plants were in the kid’s section - not fair.

Wisteria Lane

It wasn’t exactly a Lane (à la Desperate Housewives), but the 60 year old Chinese Wisteria in the Bonsai Hall was amazing. It was in full bloom with huge trailing purple flowers. It was good to save the bonsai trees for last. The serenity and the longevity of the trees are inspiring. After going from booth to booth and garden to garden, the bonsai trees force you to stop and marvel. And marveling is what the Garden Show is all about.

In the middle of relandscaping our family garden, I walked into my very first SF Flower and Garden Show looking for ideas to add some ‘kids’ fun’ to our own Eden…

Miniature gardens

In Sproutopia about 30 miniature gardens made by elementary school classes were displayed. I especially liked the ‘Garden of Hope sculpture garden’ by the K-5 hearing impaired class from Fiesta Gardens International School of San Mateo. It shows all elements my kids like to have in their garden: water, shapes and color.

Water

One way to bring water into your garden is to have a pond – my friend’s daughter Maddie was immediately excited about the fish she saw swimming around in the pond of one of the display gardens. I also saw tons of stylish fountains that will fit in about any garden. The most fun for the kids would be the one made of old wine barrels in Chateau de la vieille barrique de vin by Arborealis, B. Gordon Builders, and Fritz’s Landscape Company. I can totally see them playing with the pump, catching the water with their hands, and planting their Playmobil under the ‘shower’…

Another cool (or actually hot) feature was the Softub, which according to A Hot Tub Place can be operated for about $10 per month (after an initial investment of $3300 to $4500).

Shapes and color

In Dancing with Matisse (created by Keeyla Meadows) the playful, colorful stepping stones immediately caught my attention. The terracotta shapes on a bench added some extra happiness to this garden. To add more shapes and colors, Leslie Codina’s ceramic sculptures (ranging in price from $400 to $600) would be a perfect fit for your kids’ garden.

Playhouses

Thinking of kids gardens, of course play structures or playhouses came to my mind as well. Some cute ones can be found on Barbara Butler’s site, and I’m pretty sure my kids would totally see the Mobile Gardening in Transition containers (created by Enviromagic) as some kind of playhouse!

A recurring theme at the Flower and Garden Show that really popped out at me was the integration of “old” stuff in the designs.

I grew up with “MORTS” - Mom’s Old Rusty Things. Seriously. My mom loved funky metal tools and implements, gears and whatnot, and every time we moved (often) she’d re-hang her morts on the backyard deck or patio. Inside the house were the antiques.

So whether it’s nature or nurture, I have a love for old stuff too. And I appreciated it in the display gardens. Certainly, there was a great deal of construction with salvaged lumber, and many designers re-purposed things for functional uses.

But more specifically, I mean old things used on display for their inherent beauty.

In Cool Living there were old door panels in the living wall.

Mary Te Selle re-implemented lots of stuff in Return to Paradiso. In fact, that was kind of her point. She, too, had old doors as part of her garden walls.

Even some of the vendors offered re-purposed items for people to use in their gardens like the designers do.

Artist Phillip Glashoff’s garden sculpture gives new life to cast offs, like this fanciful screwdriver guy.

Beyond Borders / It’s Cactus offers metal garden art made from 55 gallon oil barrels and glass wall vases made from recycled beverage bottles.

Before 10am Saturday morning, we were “virgins.”  Yes, you read correctly!  It was our VERY FIRST time attending the SF Flower and Garden Show and we LOVED every single minute of the TEN hours in this “gardening ecstasy”!

We were like Alice in Garden-land or perhaps Dorothy in Garden of Oz!  We’ve never had a “gardening experience” quite like this before!  We kept a steady pace and perused EVERY display garden and exhibit booth, shopped at the marketplace, ate at the food court and attended one seminar.

For us, the show was all about being INSPIRED!  Since we are newbies to gardening, we were like sponges!  Here are our favorite parts of the show.

The Seminar

Having learned that we aren’t yet retired like our parents, we realize our true limitations to creating all our garden endeavors… and maintaining them. We both work our 9-5’s during the week, and with all that we have to do already, the front yard remains wild and overgrown. Our succulents and agaves that we got last year are still in their store-bought containers with weeds growing out of them. We often come home to little cards and flyers, slipped into the slot of our front door: “Landscaping and gardening- Please call.”

Starved for motivation and inspiration, we attended “Mediterranean Plants” with Sean Hogan of Cistus Nursery. Equipped with our notepads, ballpoints, and bright eyes we looked toward the slide show screen. We never imagined the existence of so many varieties of drought tolerant, hardy, little- or no-water plants in so many colors, sizes, and heights with spectacular blooms of a full spectrum.

Our favorites include Carpenteria califlornica, Styrax officinalis (native Asian shrub with big white flowers), Gladiolus tristus (smaller South African species with lemon fragrance), rock roses that could live in the toughest conditions, Chilean lobelias (with pink white flowers) that can reach 8’ tall for height, pincushion fuchsia ground covers, and the red blooming clusters of Telopea speciosissima.

We ran out of there to Annie’s Annuals and Perennials, where we found many rare and unusual varieties that fit our newly learned needs.

Favorite Gardens

For the People’s Choice Award, we voted for Actinomycetes, Worms, and Fungi, Oh My! In the spirit of addressing our concerns of environmental responsibility, we thought they did an excellent job of reminding us we can use everyday inexpensive recycled building materials to create a bountiful urban garden. When we saw the BioIntensive mounds, we patted ourselves on the back for having attempted that method of gardening with great success last spring.  We had the opportunity to meet Alane Weber of the San Mateo County RecycleWorks Master Composter program, who explained to me about using wattle to form the sides of a perfect circular vegetable garden. It was great to see the re-use of broken concrete, usually piled up at construction sites and dumps. Stacked neatly into a triangular garden with moss between its cracks, it served its purpose and made perfect sense.

Of the Container Gardens, Dancing with Matisse by Keeyla Meadows caught our eyes and drew us into a spectacle of colors, vibrant with reds from pathways to petals. “Love in the time of global warming” was indeed what we experienced throughout this exhibit.

Marketplace

Fiskars:  This booth definitely has the BEST DEALS and the Fiskar people are really fun! The “show prices” of all garden tools were 40% off regular retail prices!  The BIG SELLER of the show was definitely the Fiskar Ropeless Pole Pruner, which is 40% off of $92!  (Do the math!)  We also purchased, the Fiskar Pruner, which is certified by the Arthritis Foundation 40% off of $27.  It’s ergonomic and takes little hand strength to use!  (Kellie loved this because she has tendonitis in her hand and wrist) We also bought a mini leaf rake and regular leaf rake.  These were deals we couldn’t refuse.

(We met Joe Lamp’l aka Joe Gardener, at the Fiskar booth.  He wanted to say “Hey” to Jasmine! ☺)

Wildflower Seed Company:  GOOD DEAL on the lightweight Telescopic 6.5 feet Pruner for “show price” of $69.  (Savings of $15).  This pruner is great for cutting fruits off because it HOLDS onto the branch, so the fruit doesn’t drop.  The handle is like a “gun” style handle, which is ergonomic.

Cascade Sales:  GOOD DEAL on a Worm Factory composter for “show price of $85.  (Savings of $20)  The man working the booth was very knowledgeable.

Smith & Hawkins:  FREE seed packets and ask for your 30% off coupon good at any Smith & Hawkins retail stores.  Also, if you loved those vertical succulent garden displays, you can purchase one here for $399.

Display Garden Designer How-Tos

As we strolled through the Display Gardens, if there was something that we thought that would be cost effective and simple for us to attempt in our garden, we asked the Garden Designers/Creators how to they did it.  They were all very friendly and shared helpful information!

Paver Pro and Fiddleleaf Fine Gardens:  If you liked the tumbled glass in these displays, then check out Red Shovel Glass Co.  You can get some glass for only $2 per pound at their Building Resources in San Francisco.

Simonds Design:  Angular (broken rock/gravel) such as Black and Tan make better walking paths than round rocks, because it compacts nicely

Arborealis Landscape Design:  The walking path or rock garden that looks like golden beige compacted dirt is decomposed granite ¼” x dust which is very cost effective and easy to make. (3) 1” layers for pathways.  Just wet and compact each layer.

Bayer Garden Design:  The marble (clear glass round rocks) can be purchased at Michaels, the arts and crafts store.

G. Anders Gardens:  The Living Driveways/ Patios can be purchased at Bill’s Ace Hardware in Contra Costa County!  Yeah!

The gardens and landscape design at today’s San Francisco Flower and Garden Show are truly amazing and beautiful. Every detail is honed, shaped and executed with exquisite precision and panache. Even the organic garden display was flawless. Those of us who are “down-in-the-dirt” garden-types know that our plant stakes are probably not going to be of uniform shape or even similar material, but that the garden itself is the unifying factor to which we devote our time, skills and love. We have a grand design in mind that changes and morphs into different incarnations with the change of the seasons and the passage of time.

Problem Solvers

I saw today’s show as a beginning of endless possibilities. As I wandered through the gardens, I saw ideas for problem spots in my terraced hillside garden. Adding pavers in a perpetual damp spot and brightening a shady spot with a colorful art glass piece seemed like perfect and reachable solutions once I saw the inspired designs.

Garden Clubs and Associations

The displays and booths that drew my attention most were the garden clubs and garden associations. They were staffed with eager people ready to speak their passion and offer advice and even a little hand-holding, if needed. The California Horticulture Society in the Educational and Non-Profit Exhibit area and the California Garden Clubs at the main entrance were staffed with friendly folks ready with recommendations and ideas on what to plant where. In the plant market, Corralitos Gardens Booth #1138 had members of The American Dahlia Society on hand with explicit instructions on how and when to make the most of their dahlia starts.

The Official Flower of San Francisco

The dahlia is the official flower of San Francisco. Although I can coax a beautiful plant from a seed, cutting or even an ignored cast-off from someone else’s garden into a thriving beauty, I have been vexed by dahlias. They thrive for months then are quickly and sadly ravaged by slugs, molds or gophers. Those lucky enough to survive have been clumsily hacked to pieces when I attempted to divide them. No, I was assured, that I too can be a happy dahlia gardener! I left their booth with explicit instructions on how to make the most of my dahlia corms and starts. Before dark this evening, I had them well watered and planted in pots to transplant at a later date. I will protect them in gopher cages at their final destination and look forward to colorful displays from summer to fall.

Seeds

As a vegetable gardener as well, I was drawn to the seed packets walls. Few things are as rewarding as seeing the vegetable sprouts spring to life in the garden patch. The seed selection at Franchi Old World Italian Seeds at Booth #1221 was amazing! I had to stop myself from buying more than I could possibly plant. A bonus of the garden show as a whole was the give-away seeds. I picked up a variety of vegetable and a wild flower seeds from many of the displays free for the asking.

Tools

Another interest to me was the scope of garden tools available. Anything from a trowel to a nozzle head to a power tiller could be found. One of the most useful and beautiful sets of tools I found were at the Fisher Blacksmithing booth #208. For $40 a hand tool or $100 a set could be had a hand crafted, pop-welded trowel, rake and weed puller.

Back home in the garden

Tomorrow morning when I plant my rainbow carrots seeds amongst others and pull, hopefully, the last of the invading oxalis, I will be glad I focused on the basic information, plants and seeds I brought home from the garden show. While I have a cup of coffee while watching my garden grow, I can look over the materials I picked up to inspire me to the endless possibilities.

Marketplace

Savvy shoppers come to the Flower and Garden Show equipped with rolling crates and carts.

The show also provides a Package Check, which saves purchases and energy - park your delicate orchid instead of bumping it through the crowd. There’s even a Large Package Pickup service: you can pull up to the loading dock for your new, life-sized, giraffe-eating-acacia statue.

I challenge you to think of a garden-relevant item that isn’t for sale in the marketplace. Seeds, seedlings, soil and fertilizer - of course! Containers, tools, apparel - check! And then there are artistic and utilitarian items galore for the garden and the home, showcasing plant beauty, leveraging natural ingredients, you name it.

I had to approach the whole Marketplace as a journalist, not a shopper, or I would have wiped out our account! Here are just a few that caught my eye.

• Suzana Marie Thomas of Paint Misbehavin’ “puts the Fun in the functional” with her folding screens and umbrellas. They are 100% water repellent and the paint is formulated to resist fading. Oooh la!

• This year Angus Macauley’s painted items includes floor mats. He and booth partner, ceramic artist Julie Reisner (http://www.juliereisner.com) tried to talk me into walking on them. Nothing doing. He assured me that it was sealed and resilient, but I couldn’t make my feet do it. He admitted that I wasn’t alone, and at least one customer has hung theirs.

• Artist Jesse Nguyen is as personable as he is talented. His hand-crafted home accessories and lacquer paintings include materials such as mother-of-pearl, abalone, buffalo horn, and his own special touch - eggshell. I have my eye on one of his hanging silk lanterns.

• The haunting beauty of the Sacred Stones garden sculptures made me come to a standstill. The mother-and-son team of artists, Deborah and Casey Bridges, work with cast stone and light-weight aggregates to create pieces imbued with the appearance of ancient wisdom.

CLICK on photos to enlarge! They’re worth a thousand words each, you know.

Little People

Young ‘uns bloom aplenty at the show. There are tots in arms, toddlin’ tykes and astute riders such as Miss. Anne here. Anne is a three-year Flower and Garden Show veteran. She’s sporting new gardening gloves from the Marketplace. I think mom and friends are going to have to either rein in their spending soon, or evict Anne from the wagon!

All-in-all, the kids I saw were having a blast. And the show does a great job of welcoming them - there’s free child care; Sproutopia - a children’s area full of great hands-on activities and demonstrations; and the Sprout Stage, with shows especially for the budding young gardener.

And on the show floor? Lots of young faces taking in the beauty. The garden designers and staffers are a good-natured, down-to-earth (ahem) bunch. When a tow-headed visitor of about three set some of the floor moss adrift in Mary Te Selle’s courtyard fountain, in The Return of Paradiso, she was quick to whisk it out with a smile and simple explanation. The boy may not have left the show with a functional understanding of fountain pumps and filters, but I’ll bet he took away a great impression of gardening and the cultivation of beauty.

Big People

After hours of walking, I finally remembered to eat and rest. In the main exhibit hall dining area, I shared a table with Karin. She hails from the big island of Hawaii, and came to the Bay Area specifically for the show! She, and her sister and mom, flew from the islands to Vegas, to greet the newest great-grandchild of the family, then to San Francisco and the show, and will return to Vegas and then home. Traveling to the show by air prevented her from buying anything too large, which was a mixed blessing!

Any other out-of-state show attendees? Give a shout-out for your home town!

If “God is in the details” then the San Francisco Flower and Garden Show is heaven on earth.

Of course reams can be written, odes composed and gigabytes blogged about the intricate detail in a single orchid blossom. But what I’m talking about is the attention to detail by the garden designers, landscape artists and hardscape professionals. It’s polish. It’s flair. It’s the eye plus the chutzpah to try.

Divine Inspirations

In Cool Living, Jennifer Kearney and Susan Fenelon didn’t merely remember the doghouse. Check out the woof. Err, roof.

The Actinomycetes, Worms and Fungi, OH MY! team didn’t miss the opportunity to make a statement about water-sucking lawns.

Tucked in the corner of their garden is a display of sheet mulching as a technique to smother your lawn and reclaim soil for color and flavor.

Rebecca Cole’s Sky’s the Limit is her vision for a rooftop garden befitting a NY penthouse. Note the panels she used for the city backdrop.

She also has chimney vents and other structural realities in the display, showing that a winning garden show entry can be realistically implemented on an urban roof, and that an urban roof garden can realistically be a winning garden show entry.

Decking is not just a floor, but a palette for Dave Cummings of Tilden Landscaping. He set the moon and the stars in the deck of recycled lumber in Moonshadow. If that’s not enough, he inlaid a dramatic sunburst in the patio. Who says you can’t have it all, baby?

CLICK on photos to enlarge! They’re worth a thousand words each, you know.