The 2014 Northwest Flower and Garden Show: Art in Bloom

Northwest Flower and Garden Show, Feb 5-9, Washington State Convention Center, Seattle 

By Jennifer Rotermund
Photos by Loren Alexanian

Nature inspires me. In fact, I’m notorious for bringing home tree branches curved naturally into whimsical shapes or bundles of ornamental grasses that I’ve cut back with the intention of braiding them into a wreath. I look at a garden and see endless potential for artistic expression. It makes sense; humans are inextricably connected to nature. We cannot help but feel that pull and be inspired.

The 2014 Northwest Flower and Garden Show has begun, and it runs through this Sunday. The theme for this year is “Art in Bloom,” so, of course, there is something for everyone. Classes on every hot topic an avid Seattle gardener would want to know are packed into every hour of every day of the show. Booths filled with gorgeous garden art, tools, books, clothes, and everything else you can think of for every budget size are available at wonderful “in show” discounts.

But it’s the show gardens that always draw us in. Just when we’re ready for Spring, here are flowers as far as the eye can see arranged in ways we’ve never thought of before. After all, that is the artist’s true skill, correct? This year’s garden show designers delight us with interpretations of art in the garden that take us to Mexico City, the Far East, or simply that dream backyard we imagine with the cute little work shed or tranquil seating area. There are whimsical bird houses and a wide variety of water features creatively surrounded by colorful Spring flowers, shrubs with brightly colored bark and every texture of conifer you can imagine.

The show runs from February 5 through February 9 at the Washington State Convention Center. The hours are 9am to 8pm Wednesday through Saturday and 9am to 6pm on Sunday. Ticket prices are $22 for an all-day pass for an adult and $31 for a two-day pass, $5 for youth ages 13 - 17, and children 12 and younger may attend for free.

If you are feeling weary from Winter, or would simply like a break from the freezing temperatures and their effect on your garden, come on over to the Flower and Garden Show for some inspiration, a burst of creativity and a well-deserved infusion of Spring.    

And, for you plant geeks who attend the show every year, this year’s gardens skip the previous year’s mainstay, Sarcococca confusa, in favor of Edgeworthia tomentosa and Hamamelis mollis - what a refreshing change of pace!

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Jennifer Rotermund is the owner of Gaiaceous Gardens (an urban farming and wildlife gardening business with a teaching garden/urban farm and certified wildlife habitat/ sanctuary located in Shoreline). She is a Permaculture Designer, is certified by the National Wildlife Federation as a Habitat Steward and serves as a Docent at the Kruckeberg Gardens. She is also an ordained minister with a particular focus on earth-based forms of spirituality.