Philadelphia Flower Show 2013 - Brilliant!

I spent Friday at the Philadelphia Flower Show. The theme this year was Brilliant, and while I thought that would mean English Gardens, it was more a jewel type thing. Slightly disappointed, but the Flower Show is always informative and fun nevertheless.

There were the gates and the walk way with the huge birch trees and Big Ben - all impressive and very British, but I attend the Flower show for inspiration for my garden. I am not recreating scenes from London any time soon.

However there were some lovely plant combinations that were inspiring.  I did notice that they combine flowers that look lovely but could never be planted together, sun loving plants with shade loving plants, spring bloomers along with autumn bloomers. It like those flower garden designs you can get on-line - they are fabulous, but yours will never look like that. There were delphinium every where. I guess they are a British garden staple. I should try them again. The ones I planted last year did not do very well.

I find myself drawn to winding garden paths - I would like to try to make my perennial/herb garden path more intriguing.

I really loved these swimming fish garden sculptures - but at $80.00 a fish, they are never coming to swim amongst my flowers.

I was a bit disappointed that there was not one vegetable garden display. There were lettuces, cabbages and chard amongst the flowers, but no vegetable plots for me to drool over. It is, after all, a Flower Show.

I met my daughter for dinner and she said she was glad I wasn't wearing a silly hat like so many people she had seen while waiting for me. I guess hats are very British too. (And I am sorry for calling your hat silly if this is you....but it is, really.)
I did hear a few interesting lectures and really did thoroughly enjoy myself. And I did come away with some creative ideas that I hope incorporate into the Potager.
The Philadelphia Flower show was great fun - as always.