As the first buds of spring begin to emerge from the frosty winter earth, Philadelphia welcomes its annualFlower Show, featuring creative and complex exhibits. With displays curated by world renowned floral, garden, and landscape designers, in addition to unique food offerings and artisan shops, the show never seems to disappoint winter-weary Philadelphians. This year’s theme, United by Flowers, was an idiosyncratic fuse, which aimed to unify individuals from all different backgrounds and perspectives through the admiration of flowers and art.
LM’s Flower Show Club has been participating in the competition aspect of the show since 1994, and for the past two years has been led by LM English teacher, Laura Stebitz. The Philadelphia Flower Show consists of several different competition classes, such as arbors, storefront windows, and doorsteps. LM competed against other schools in the “Garden Room” class. Laura Stiebitz and a small group of students designed an exhibit centered around the theme “Community Garden”. Landcraft Environments Wholesale Growers worked with the club to curate a list of plants to be used in the club’s design, and then grew the plants to a healthy state in time for the show. The club created a garden landscape with a circular design with two semi-circle benches, creating a gathering space. The garden included several produce plants such as kale and cilantro. Florals consisted of an array of Pansies, Zinnias, a Dogwood tree, and more. The club had 39 different variations of plants this year, and approximately 215 individual plants total. They conformed to the circle of grass in the center of the design that the benches encompassed, imitating a sort of
rainbow in the front.
The main challenge the LM Flower Show Club faced was finding a balance between creating a showy, original, yet imaginative display while also keeping it accessible. LM’s exhibit has an undoubtedly inspiring aura, intended to encourage visitors to recreate or implement specific aspects into their own home gardens. The club members were proud of their efforts and work this past year, and pleased with the accessibility of their design for the majority of unprofessional gardeners. LM’s exhibit underwent two rounds of judging, with a period to make changes in response to feedback after the first assessment. The first panel of professional gardeners placed LM fourth, reasoning that several flower placements could be improved. However, after Laura Stiebitz returned to the show and redid the exhibit, clustering the plants together to make more of an impact with color and texture, the club proudly placed second in the “Garden Room” class.
Member Maria Reynolds ’24 commented on her experience with this club, stating, “[the] Flower Show is an awesome opportunity to see behind the scenes of a huge event, and all the time, work, and effort that goes on behind every display. I loved working with my peers to design something creative and learn more about horticulture in general!”
Additionally, founding member Jenna Bellamy ’26 commented, “Throughout my time in the club, our members have learned to identify our plants’ botanical names, growing conditions, and more, all while designing an aesthetically pleasing exhibit guided by the theme of the show to ensure a successful exhibition. The exhibit portrays beautiful flowers and springtime edibles radiating around a Mid Atlantic community garden to encapsulate a feeling of togetherness. I am so grateful to have had the opportunity to produce a beautiful display for families in the region to enjoy.”
Overall, the LM Flower Show Club aims to promote a love of the environment, horticulture, and art through their annual exhibit. Club members look forward to improving their work over the next few years and continu-
ing to inspire others to create beautiful gardens.
