Woo-hoo for The Philadelphia Flower Show!!!

The Flower Show is a grown-up gardener’s paradise, and it can be a wonderland of discovery and delight for children as well. The larger-than-life displays offer a unique setting in which to engage youngsters in the beauty of the natural world and ignite a lifelong passion for its precious plant life. The theme for the Flower Show this year is “Passport to the World”. Journey around the globe with breathtaking stops in India, Brazil, the Netherlands, South Africa, New Zealand and Singapore. See thousands of plant and floral design entries of local enthusiasts in hundreds of categories. Don’t miss on the free gardening presentations, 150 held throughout the week, as well as dozens of educational displays that explore the newest gardening trends.

Show organizers have arranged a specially priced $65 Family Fun Pack of discounted tickets offering two adults and two children admission to the Show and free membership in the Pennsylvania Horticultural Society. Students ages 17-24 can purchase tickets for $18 for any day (must have valid student ID; proof of age). Family Fun Pack and Student tickets are available online this year! Click here to purchase.

Jaw-dropping displays such as the 28-foot-tall hot air balloon covered with 79,000 dried flowers at the Show entrance and a life-size elephant in the Indian wedding-inspired exhibit by Jamie Rothstein Floral Design are sure to catch the interest of young people from toddlers to teens. Equally impressive giraffe and lion sculptures stand guard over the South Africa-themed display by the American Institute of Floral Designers (AIFD), and a dragon slithers through a Maori-inspired New Zealand exhibit by Stoney Bank Nurseries.

The next best thing to splashing in a waterfall is actually seeing one. A 15-foot waterfall is a sparkling treat for kids in the Brazilian Amazon exhibit by Burke Brothers Landscaping. This display also features “Rainbows in Flight,” including trained parrots and sun conures flying freely throughout the display, presented by the Philadelphia Zoo.

Shoppers – find a bustling Marketplace with an array of take-home products to get the garden started, the official Flower Show Shoppe with 2010 Show merchandise, and a World Bazaar of beautiful and exotic crafts and products.

Foodies will love the International Wine and Spirits Garden, presented by the PA Wine & Spirits Storesand the International Dessert and Coffee Bar.

Complementing the fabulous exhibits, shopping and great food will be live performances, provided by World Café Live that take audiences to Bollywood, Africa and South America.
Children love to dance, and this year they’ll sway to the music of Bollywood. Performances by dancers and musicians from India and Brazil happen on the Explorer’s Stage in the exhibition hall.

Nourishing the soul and the stomach are two of the great joys of gardening. Kids learn how gardening can help people in the interactive Camden Children’s Garden display, inspired by “soup and salad” and the vegetable gardens that help feed Camden residents. In the PHS Village kids can learn first-hand how to create a home vegetable garden.

Attention Girl Scouts! If your child is a Girl Scout who is 17 years of age or younger and comes to the Show in her Scout uniform on Sunday, March 7, she will be admitted to the Show for $7. Girl Scouts Day at the Show is a time to celebrate the achievements of Scouts who have participated in the new Pennsylvania Horticultural Society patch program, “Planting Seeds, Growing Lives.”
Special Priced Girl Scouts Day tickets ($7) are available on Sunday, March 7 only at the Show Box Office.

Children won’t want to miss the special youth entries (18 years and younger) in the intricate pressed plants category. The theme of this competition is Garden Friends. Also, look for animal topiaries; the weird and the wonderful winners in the plant competitions; and entries by local teens including Lower Merion High School’s front porch, Abington Senior High School’s front porch, Harrington High School’s window box, and Lower Cape May Regional High School’s “succulent scene” window box.

When it’s time to play, take a break in the enjoyable Family Lounge for parents and toddlers. Open daily from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., the Family Lounge is located just outside the Show exhibition halls in Room 203. The folks from Fisher Price ® are on hand this year to hand out goody bags, play games, and provide play areas in the Lounge. Children must be accompanied by adults.

If you plan to capture all the fun in photographs, camera batteries and disposable cameras are available for sale at the official Flower Show Shoppe in the center of the exhibition halls. There’s also a special DVD of the 2010 Show, along with keepsakes for the whole family.

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