It may seem quite random, but much thought goes into a Flower Show theme. The Flower Show Chairman and her schedule committee thinks about past themes and decides on something new and innovative. Once established, the schedule planning begins. The show schedule must be given to the club members at least 3 months before the event (as per the Flower Show Handbook) and as our show is in March, the schedule is started, scrutinized, written, rewritten, fine tuned and finally completed and given to our members in November.
Club members who have never participated in this process do not realize what this committee does during “their summer” to have this in member’s hands by November. We discuss all the aspects of the event and try to incorporate enough diversity so as to involve all club members (no easy task). The approach is light-hearted and serious, frustrating and exciting. We agree, we disagree, we discuss and we laugh. It is also a great way to meet with our friends, old and new, during our long summer months when garden club does not meet. This year we feel we have come up with an exciting and colorful show with a touch of whimsy!
One aspect of the process involves deciding what type of designs most of the designers would like to do. Again, no easy task, as we have many very talented advanced, intermediate and beginner designers and pleasing everyone is not always easy – but we try. This year we are looking for colorful arrangements, so we try to imagine what kinds of designs might result from the specifications of each class, and adjust the name and requirements of each class accordingly. Finally, we consider the staging, including the room, the light, the traffic pattern and the pedestals or other materials we have available or will purchase.
This November you will get a chance to see the results of all our hard work. Then it’s your turn to use your imagination to bring the schedule to life. This year there will be workshops that pertain directly to the designs in the schedule. Designing is fun and can be a very interesting process. Come out and get involved, learn, practice, try, see, and enjoy!
~ by Roberta Ross, Flower Show Chair