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february 2008

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February 29, 2008 | out and about

Philadelphia Flower Show: By the numbers

by Jacqueline - Editor

Trumpet Vine
The Philly Flower Show, theflowershow.com, is one of the biggest in the world. This year’s New Orleans-themed edition opens to the general public on Sunday and runs for a week.

I’ll be there next Thursday! I look forward to meeting other flower people and sharing what I learn.

In the meantime, here are 10 numerical facts about the show:

$30 million
Money generated in one week for restaurants, hotels, shops, other businesses, and cultural attractions.

$1 million
Raised for Philadelphia Green, the largest urban greening program in the country.

250,000
Visitors expected.

1827
Year the Pennsylvania Horticultural Society was formed, the nation’s first horticultural society.

150
Vendors from across the U.S. and abroad.

35
Height (in feet) of Edith Bogue Magnolia featured in the “Reflections” exhibit by Stoney Bank Nurseries.

20
Tractor-trailer loads of mulch used in more than 50 exhibits from landscape designers, including orchids on the bayou and a juke joint in the woods. Educational exhibits will focus on sustainability.
13
Bromeliad varieties (1600 individual bromeliads) to be featured at the show. The show will highlight tropical flowers and Southern-style gardening.

10
Acres of plants, floral designs, gardens and related products.

9
Topiary dogs, made from ivy and other plants, staged on grass, complete with fire hydrant!
 

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February 28, 2008 | out and about

Take a leaf out of Kathleen Turner’s book: Send yourself roses, remember you’re special

by Jacqueline - Editor

On Valentine’s Day, I wrote about the release of actress Kathleen Turner’s book: “Send Yourself Roses: Thoughts on My Life, Love and Leading Roles,” amazon.com, co-written with Gloria Feldt.

In the book, Turner talks about her childhood and family, her 20-year marriage and recent separation, motherhood, activism and giving back, her struggle with rheumatoid arthritis, alcohol-dependency, and relaunching her stage career after decades in the movies.

She also reveals what is was like to work with Jack Nicholson, Michael Douglas, William Hurt, Steve Martin, Francis Ford Coppola, John Huston, John Waters and Edward Albee.

Here’s an excerpt and some good advice from Turner:

“Before an opening performance, when I am feeling like I really need an affirmation, I’ll send myself a big bouquet of roses. Why not? Why should I wait around and hope that someone else will send me roses? If someone does, that’s delightful, and I will receive them with pleasure. But if no one does, I won’t have to be blue. I will provide for my emotional needs just as I provide for my material needs. If I don’t treat myself well, if I don’t show my belief in myself, how can I expect anyone else to? …

Cajun Sunrise Rose
"I always try to do something nice for myself after I finish a play or a film. I’d like to share some of the ways I have learned through experience to make my life as rich and full as possible.

"Sometimes solitude is the greatest gift I can give myself. The quietness, the space and the time to be with my thoughts, or just to be have become quite precious. My days get eaten up with busy-ness if I let them. I have to consciously plan to give myself the gift of solitude. Time alone recharges my spirit and mind. Time away from the usual fray is even better. …

"I like to do silly things alone, too, like walking around [New York City], watching people, just being part of it. I like to stop in at little restaurants I have never seen before. And I love to read at a meal. So I go off alone with a book and read and eat someplace I’ve never eaten before. … Even when I was young and poor and just starting out in New York, I’d find some way to give myself a gift once a week, like taking a cab instead of the bus, or buying a single rose even when I couldn’t afford the whole bouquet.

"It doesn’t have to be a big expensive thing. Just something to make sure you remember that you’re special, because you can get pretty downtrodden. You have to celebrate yourself. And giving yourself a little affirmation helps you shake off the many slings and arrows we all get from our critics every day."

(The Cajun Sunrise Rose, shown above, is courtesy of the American Rose Society.)
 

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February 27, 2008 | out and about

Prince Charles, Sir Paul, Oscar-winner Glen Hansard tap power of flowers

by Jacqueline - Editor

Passion Flower
Maybe it’s because flowers are bursting out of spring fashion. Maybe it’s because there were 80,000 flowers at the Oscars, not even counting the parties. Maybe it’s because spring is just around the corner, but flowers keep making headlines among the rich and famous.

• England’s Prince Charles reportedly told singer Lily Allen last week that she should get a Japanese peace flower to cheer her up when she’s feeling down. Prince Charles has long been an advocate of banter with blooms. Maybe she told him: "Everything's Just Wonderful." (Love that song!) The pair met at the London premiere of “The Other Boleyn Girl,” starring Natalie Portman and Scarlett Johansson.

• Sir Paul McCartney sent a bouquet of flowers, lilies to be exact, to Heather Mills just before they were due to appear in divorce court, mirror.co.uk. The flowers were accompanied by a kind note and a reminder that no matter what the outcome, their daughter should come first. Sir Paul also sent Mills flowers prior to her appearance on “Dancing with the Stars” to wish her good luck.

• Irish musician Glen Hansard used a flower analogy to express his amazement at the success of his song “Falling Slowly” from the movie “Once.” (Hansard and his girlfriend Marketa Irglova won the Oscar for their work.) “I feel a bit like a plumber at a flower show,” he told RTE Radio, after the big event in Los Angeles.
 

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February 26, 2008 | floral calendar

Azaleas in spotlight at Chicago conservatory

by Jacqueline - Editor

Age of Azaleas Spring Flower Show
Help celebrate Garfield Park Conservatory's 100 birthday with yearlong events themed CHICAGOASIS: The Greenest Show on Earth. The Age of Azaleas, through May 11, will highlight a changing selection of spring blooming plants, including more than 5,000 bulbs.

When: Through May 11, 2008
Open every day from 9 a.m.-5 p.m. and Thursdays until 8 p.m.
Where: Garfield Park Conservatory, 300 N. Central Park Ave., Chicago
Price: Free
Contact: 312-742-7529, chicagoparkdistrict.com
 


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February 26, 2008 | floral calendar

‘Rhapsody in Green’ at Boston flower show

by Jacqueline - Editor


New England Spring Flower Show
A symbol of spring and one of Boston’s most enduring traditions, the New England Spring Flower Show is now in its 137th year and has grown to be the third-largest flower show in the world.

When: March 8-16, 2008
10 a.m.-9 p.m. Saturdays, weekdays and 10 a.m.-6 p.m. Sundays (Extended hours for members)
Where: Bayside Expo Center, 200 Mount Vernon St., Dorchester, MA
Price: $20 (discounts available)
Contact: www.masshort.org