Cinematic Themes Tell WSNLA’s Garden Story
The award-winning design duo, Heidi Skievaski and Kryssie Maybay of Sublime Garden Design is teaming up with the Washington State Nursery and Landscaping Association (WSNLA) to create a garden for the 2013 Northwest Flower & Garden Show titled “Living Amongst the Stars – The Garden Takes Center Stage.”
Sublime Landscape Design offers full design services, with a philosophy of creating gardens that promote health and well-being. Owner & designer Heidi Skievaski is a Certified Professional Horticulturist (CPH), and partner Kryssie MayBay is a licensed landscape architect, specializing in hardscapes. Together they create gardens that not only feel good, they are good for you.
Sublime Garden Design created this show-stopping garden in 2012 – the winner of the People’s Choice Award.
Show attendees will undoubtedly remember their 2012 show garden, “The Resonating Sounds of Nature.” It was a crowd favorite with its drums beating to the computerized rhythm of raindrops, and won the People’s Choice Award.
WSNLA is a statewide nursery association representing all facets of the industry. They have been creating lush show gardens since 2002. Their 2012 garden, “Winter’s Come and Gone – A Lullaby,” was a depiction of the classic American folk song designed by Gregory Smaus of Native Root Designs.
The “Living Amongst the Stars” garden will tell a story utilizing the elements and structure of the theater: plot, characters, sound, lighting, dialog, and movement. It aims to be a modern, glamorous Northwest garden that invites the viewer to live outside under the stars, escaping into a different world by entering the garden and embracing a different character.
Sublime and WSNLA are looking far and wide to find some unique elements and introduce them to show goers. There will be a two-person spa called a “Diamond Spa” that is made from stainless steel. These spas are custom made for every customer, so all are one-of-a-kind.
The Stepstone pavers they are using are also new to the region. They are long and narrow and resemble planking, so they give the appearance of decking, and can be set in many different patterns. The narrow modular pavers are the modern brick, but updated with blasted surface details.
One of the great features of the garden show is the opportunity to see so many different products integrated into the fully-built show gardens. You can actually see and feel the products, and get a better idea how they might look in your own garden – something that’s hard to do in a showroom.
Walden Garden Services and Lyndon Landscapes designed this rustic garden with WSNLA in 2009.
The plant selections will be right out of a red-carpet roster. They are looking for all kinds of plants with the word ‘star’ in the name or plants named after real celebrities. Star Jasmine is sure to make an appearance; Audrey Hepburn, Elizabeth Taylor and Marilyn Monroe all have roses named after them.
The Northwest Flower & Garden Show is a Mecca for both well-seasoned and new gardeners. It will be held February 20 – 24, 2013 at the Washington State Convention Center. Tickets are on sale now – they would make the perfect Valentine’s gift for your garden-loving sweetie! ~ Janet
Grasses, Mums & Clematis to Tempt You
Audiences at the Northwest Flower & Garden Show love seminars that help them solve their pesky gardening problems; seminars that inspire them to new garden designs; and seminars that give them practical how-to tips.
But what they all boil down to is this: Plants, plants and more plants — the best ones to use, how to care for them, how to combine them, which ones to eat, and more.
We have a thing about plant lust here in the Northwest. In some cases, professional help is needed for our universal obsession over plants. So naturally we’ll have some seminars devoted exclusively to our plant obsession. Here are a few for starters: Saxon Holt, talking about the greatness of grasses; Ray Gray and Christopher Brookes marveling us with Chrysanthemums, and Laura Watson surely giving us plant envy with Clematis.
We’ve got over 100 free seminars to choose from! There is no better value in gardening education. Log in and lean about all our speakers with the “Speakers at a Glance” page on our website. ~ Janet
Outdoors and the Living is Easy
There is no more beautiful place in the country than the Pacific Northwest in the glorious days of summer. Perfect temperatures, no humidity, blue skies.
These past show gardens for the Northwest Flower & Garden Show are filled with a wealth of ideas and inspiration on how to create a relaxing retreat, no matter the size of your outdoor space. Some are just 6 feet wide, perfect for a condo or apartment balcony. Others are sized just right for an urban home. All have wonderful design ideas that you can adapt to your own garden.
So go ahead – steal shamelessly! You’ll be glad you did when summer arrives in a few months!
(Above) Karen Stefonick Design created this intimate garden dining area for the 2006 garden show, coordinating the color of pillows and tableware with the bright red stems of a coral bark maple (Acer palmatum ‘Sangokaku’).
It doesn’t take a lot of space to create an outdoor dining area, as shown by this 2007 garden by Under the Arbor Landscape. Add a rooftop, a table and chairs and nestle it into a lovely garden with some shrubs for privacy.
In 2008 Falling Water Designs created a sunken garden made from stone blocks and added a fire pit for some warmth on chilly evenings.
A monochromatic color scheme can make a space feel larger. In 2008 Garden Dreams Design created this soothing celadon green garden with a long couch and coffee table. Perfect for stretching out with a good book or just having a snooze.
SereneScapes went in the other direction in 2008, with an outdoor seating area that pops with orange and lime green to liven up the conversation.
The Washington State Nursery & Landscape Professionals (WSNLA) went rustic in 2008, designing this fire pit seating area near a cabin. The red cushions echo the color of the arbor and nearby plants.
The design team from the Association of Professional Landscape Designers (APLD) showed what you can do with a very small space to create a restful seating area. This is a garden only 15 x 15 ft. in the show’s ‘Living it Up’ gardens in 2009.
Another 2009 ‘Living it Up’ garden, by Octavia Chambliss Garden Design, includes decking, dining for two and a reading chair.
The Creative Gardener went Mediterranean for the 2009 show, with a large stone patio behind intricate iron gardens and a rich, warm color scheme.
GreenStone Designs built this small space balcony garden for the 2009 show, with bold containers and glass ‘spears with spheres’ by show exhibitor Glass Gardens NW.
Karen Stefonick Design built this stunning garden perfect for entertaining for the 2009 show, with a flagstone patio, a large wooden arbor and two seating areas.
Here’s a contemporary but intimate conversation area by Under the Arbor Landscape, with a conversation area that includes striped pillows that coordinate with the eye-popping orange wall behind it.
The Association of Professional Landscape Designers (APLD) designed this striking outdoor living space, with both stone and deck hardscapes to define the two seating areas. The uplighting makes the small contemporary space seem even more dramatic.
NW Bloom EcoLogical Landscapes designed this urban farm for the 2010 show, winning multiple awards. The edible garden included a pizza oven near the dining area.
The Washington Association of Landscape Professionals (WALP) installed this outdoor kitchen for the 2010 show. Nearby was a larger dining space and a TV viewing area for the ultimate in outdoor family entertaining.
The 2010 WALP garden even included a pizza oven. Now that’s living large.
Karen Stefonick Design won the Founder’s Cup for this amazing outdoor living area. The judges were impressed that the garden was filled with inexpensive materials easily available to homeowners.
Show attendees loved this edible garden and dining area by Cascade Edible Landscapes built for the 2012 show. The VW has been converted into a chicken coop and mini greenhouse.
Dakara Landscape Design nestled two Adirondack chaise lounges and a dining table on a flagstone patio under an arbor for the 2012 show. What a perfect place to entertain – or take a nap.
Did you know that all of our show gardens are archived on our website? You can get information about any of our talented garden designers there, so just browse the albums for more ideas. ~ Janet
2014 Subaru Forester Will Take You By Storm
Subaru owners know that their car is not only built to last – it was built to handle whatever the weather dishes out — rain, wind, snow, even the occasional cyclone if you find yourself in the land of Oz.
Subaru’s garden on the skybridge for the 2013 Northwest Flower & Garden Show, titled “Taking You by Storm,” inspired by the book, “The Wizard of Oz.” Familiar characters will be relying on their trusty Subaru to get them out of the whirling storm to safety. They don’t need a magical good witch – they have the all-new 2014 Subaru Forester. They’ll be giving out packets of poppy seeds so be sure to stop by.
The 2013 Subaru garden on the sky bridge will “Take You by Storm” with their ‘Wizard of Oz’ themed garden.
The Subaru Forester in the display garden will amaze you with its roominess and style, but it’s what you don’t see that’s important too – this Subaru is a Partial Zero Emission Vehicle(PZEV), meaning it is among the cleanest, most fuel-efficient vehicles available in the U.S. Gardeners love their green, and this vehicle was built in a zero landfill facility too!
Even the Scarecrow would recognize the Forester’s innovative features designed to streamline your daily tasks, and the Tin Man would think the Forester is all heart with the acclaimed Subaru BOXER engine providing powerful, yet smooth acceleration along with the added safety of low center of gravity.
At the 2012 garden show Subaru had an old-fashioned hoedown, complete with a rustic red barn and some folksy cowgirls – and a cherry red Subaru!
The imaginative show garden will include deciduous trees and the famous ‘talking trees’ will be integrated into the set, along with local plants. When you visit the skybridge, be sure to see all the giveaways Subaru has in store for you and enter to win a very special prize!
In the South Lobby, next to the music stage, Subaru will be featuring “There’s No Place Like Home – and the Great Outdoors!” with another Oz-themed garden. A Subaru Forester will be set in a garden of blazing poppies, leading to the Emerald City. The display is also interactive — families can have their photo taken with mockups of the Oz characters, and they will be able to automatically send their photo to their various social media sites or e-mailed.
“There’s No Place Like Home – and the Great Outdoors” will be the theme of the 2013 Subaru garden in the South Lobby that will greet showgoers when they arrive.
When you visit the Subaru display in the sky bridge, pick up a pack of colorful poppy seeds, so you can bring a little bit of Oz home with you for your own garden.
You and your friends can travel around your own Emerald City and through the woods in style and safety in the all-new 2014 Forester. Live all your adventures in a Subaru.
If you already own a Subaru, you can win free tickets by sending us a photo of your Subaru in Action. Details here.
The Northwest Flower & Garden Show will be held February 20 – 24, 2013 at the Washington State Convention Center in Seattle. Tickets are on sale now. ~ Janet
Seminars by Esteemed Show Judges
Every year the Northwest Flower & Garden Show welcomes three leading names from the gardening world to judge the acclaimed show gardens — assigning them Gold, Silver or Bronze medals, and voting on their choice for the coveted Founder’s Cup — the Best in Show award. The Show Judges also give memorable must-see lectures, always hugely popular with our show attendees.
This year our show judges will be Rosemary Alexander, founder of The English Gardening School and author of The Essential Garden Maintenance Workbook; Susan Cohan, APLD, designer & co-founder/editor, Leaf magazine; and Thomas Hobbs, author, “Shocking Beauty” & owner, Southlands Nursery.
To find out more about our stellar lineup of over 90 speakers (plus 70 book signings!) visit the Seminars pages on our website. It’s the largest roster of garden seminars of any garden show in the world – a testimony to the legions of gardeners here in the Northwest and around the U.S. who flock to the show for a celebratory start of Spring. Early Bird tickets are on sale now. ~ Janet
Enjoy Old-fashioned Movies in the Park
People of a certain age will no doubt remember the time when they could take their family to a park and enjoy some wholesome family entertainment with the latest movie release of the 50’s.
Now you can get a touch of nostalgia for those idyllic days with “Backyard Box Office,” a garden created by James Sprague, CPH, owner of Fancy Plants Gardens, Inc. in Bothell, for the 2013 Northwest Flower & Garden Show.
James loves to design gardens that hark back to a kinder, gentler age. Attendees at the 2012 show raved about his rendition of the classic “Peter and the Wolf” symphony. Many were heard whistling some of the symphony’s most memorable tunes.
Shrubs, bulbs and Primroses added bursts of color to the garden – a look anyone can achieve at home, even in February.
For his 1,000 sq. ft 2013 display garden, James will recreate a movie theater in a park which could be in anyone’s back yard. The movie “screen” will be created using glass art hanging from a pergola. Bedrock Industries will be providing the glass, and all will be made entirely from recycled glass.
Look for a patio for dining and relaxing, the classic red velvet rope, and a nearby lawn that serves as amphitheater seating. It’s all surrounded by lush gardens and a large metal ‘flower’ made from old, oversized movie reels.
Follow James on his Facebook page as he shares some of the elements that will be going into this garden.
Fancy Plants Gardens was inspired by the classic symphony, “Peter and the Wolf,” for their 2012 garden.
Imagine the entire family with friends and neighbors stretching out on the lush lawn enjoying popcorn and watching a movie on a late July evening.
And in keeping with the movie theater theme, James is incorporating popcorn box planters and buttered popcorn-themed plants, such as bright white hydrangeas, golden yellow bulbs, primroses and, of course, Popcorn Viburnum.
To see the gardens from past shows visit our website. Tickets are on sale now and you save $4 with our Early Bird tickets. There’s so much to see and do at the show, a 2-Day Pass is a great value. Make it a wonderful weekend adventure with a night in a downtown Seattle hotel. Book a hotel through our website and enjoy terrific rates and special amenities and discounts available exclusively for our show attendees. ~ Janet
Local Faves Speaking at Garden Show
It wouldn’t be a Northwest Flower & Garden Show without Ciscoe! Find out when he’ll be entertaining the crowds, along with local favorites – garden writer Marianne Binetti (who has spoken at every show for the past 24 years!), horticulturist Richie Steffen, photographer David Perry, designer Phil Wood (part of the award-winning design trio for the Arboretum Foundation show garden) and horthead Riz Reyes (doing his first show garden this year).
If you want to check out all of our 100+ seminars, just go to our quick and easy “Speakers at a Glance” page. If you know what day you want to attend, you can find the entire seminar schedule by each day. Early Bird tickets are on sale now. At only $16, you get nonstop seminars from 9 am to 8 pm. It’s the best value in horticulture education around! ~ Janet
Dr. Decks Goes Sci-Fi in Garden Show
Jason Russell, aka Tacoma’s Dr. Decks, loves to build decks for outdoor living. But he’s not content to build plain old rectangles of straight cedar boards. That’s so old-school.
Jason’s forte is to build decks with amazing style and integrated features. He’s designed some “now you see it, now you don’t” features for decks that will be incorporated into his display garden at the 2013 Northwest Flower & Garden Show. (For the 2012 show, Jason’s deck featured a large, flat-screen television that could be raised or lowered by remote control.)
So Jason is building the ultimate garden and deck just right for a visiting alien. You read that right. His garden is titled “Alien on Vacation.” After all, even slimy creatures want to get away and relax.
Jason ‘Dr. Decks’ Russell’s “Alien on Vacation” deck in progress for the 2013 show.
For the plant lover, Jason’s garden will feature a “circle of death zone,” incorporating some of the Northwest’s plants known for being particularly prickly – nettles, thistles, Venus Fly Traps, and holly.
The garden will also feature a life-sized deck inlay of the xenomorph creature in the Alien movies. Not to worry — this creature will be made from PVC deck board and will showcase experimental board bending and custom inlays. But it illustrates how any kind of design can be built into a deck to suit a home owner’s imagination and style. Last February the deck Jason built was an exact replica of a portion of the Frankenstrat guitar made famous by Eddie Van Halen.
A focal point will be the S.H.E.P. — the ‘Suspended Human Entertainment Pod’, designed for individuals to relax and enjoy their digital media. A massive water wall will slide apart to reveal deck automation which Jason dubs a Deck Flip Chair.
Of course it wouldn’t be an Alien motif without the requisite eggs, so look for a cluster of egg-shaped barbeques. Neon and metal art sculpture by local artists Kevin Russell and Miguel Edwards will enhance the out-of-this-world scene.
Jason built this deck for a 2012 garden called ‘Coloring the Blues,” by Elements of Nature, Inc.
All this amazing innovation will be packed into a garden only 15 x 15 feet, revealing what home owners can do even in the most limited space. You don’t have to have a green thumb to create an amazing outdoor oasis.
Follow Jason DrDecks Russell on Facebook to see how this garden is emerging as Jason brings to life an alien encounter that is actually a good thing for humans wanting an outdoor living space right here on Earth.
You won’t want to miss this out-of-the-world show garden, or all the incredible gardens at the 2013 Northwest Flower & Garden Show. Get your tickets now on our website or Facebook pages, or at a local retail ticket outlet. ~ Janet
Preventing “What the $%^#@” Gardening
Gardening disasters can take many forms, yet they all have one thing in common – no one wants them! These four seminars at the Northwest Flower & Garden Show will help you avoid a possible disaster, with some knowledge, know-how and planning. Be prepared! If you want to avoid “aftermath,” then an ounce of prevention from these top speakers will be worth it.
Whether you’re trying to avoid your house from sliding off a cliff (that can’t be good), or simply want to steer clear of planting garden treasures that die on you – repeatedly – don’t miss the masters of avoiding disaster. Amanda Thomsen, Andrew Keys, Meghan Fuller and Elliott Menashe all aim to help you never have to utter discouraging words as you survey your garden. (Click on their names to get their full bio and seminar schedule.)
With over 100 stellar seminars to choose from, you’re going to need to clone yourself. Log on to our seminar schedule and plot your strategy to squeeze in as many seminars as possible. Not to mention the 70 author book signings we’ve got lined up for you to line your gardening library shelf.
Follow us on our Facebook page to find out more about these speakers and show.
My tip – get the Two-Day Pass! At only $24 for two days at the show, it leaves you with time to see everything, and still have plenty of time for seminars. (But then, I’m totally biased.) ~ Janet
Arboretum Foundation Heads Down Under
The design team at the Arboretum Foundation is taking its cue for their 2013 show garden from J.R.R. Tolkien’s classic fantasy novel, The Hobbit, for their 2013 garden at the Northwest Flower & Garden Show.
“A Hobbit’s New Zealand Garden” recreates an imaginary small, lush world of hobbits as envisioned by the award-winning design team of Phil Wood, Robert Williams and Bob Lilly. They are the co-creators of the past two Arboretum Foundation gardens at the Northwest Flower & Garden Show, both of which won Gold Medals and the Pacific Horticulture Award.
The garden will be composed of plants native to New Zealand that generally do well in our region. It celebrates the new eco-geographic forest to be planted in the Arboretum’s Pacific Connection’s Garden next year.
A serene woodland Spring garden created by the Arboretum Foundation for the 2010 garden show.
You’ll find yourself transported ‘down under’ when you see the house tucked into a hillside covered with sedges and ferns. A stone pathway leads to a round hobbit-sized door. An aged picket fence borders a small inner garden, with a tree fern standing sentry nearby.
Next to the house is a bog filled with colorful New Zealand flax (Phormium) and surrounded by drifts of sedges (Carex), for a wind-swept feel. Fog seeps in, lending an air of mystery. Color pops from the flowers of Libertia and foliage of Coprosma, and on top of the hill a small grove of tea trees (Leptospermum) forms a backdrop to the garden.
Children of all ages will want to take a peek inside the diminutive hobbit house. But parents will appreciate how most of the plants in the garden are drought tolerant, and, once established, are also low maintenance. The garden will showcase how these plants can compliment any typical Northwest home garden.
Award-winning bird habitat garden designed by the Arboretum Foundation and the Seattle Audubon Society.
The Arboretum Foundation is a nonprofit organization supporting the renowned 230-acre Washington Park Arboretum in Seattle. They hope to raise $5.5 million to complete construction of the 2.25 acre New Zealand Forest in 2013 as part of Phase II of the Pacific Connections Garden.
Tickets are on sale now for the 25th annual show, to be held February 20 – 24, 2013 at the Washington State Convention Center in Seattle. For a sneak preview of the Arboretum Foundation’s New Zealand garden and all the inspirational show gardens, join them for the Opening Night Party, with proceeds supporting the Arboretum Foundation. ~ Janet
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