Annual showcase to return to Hudson Valley Community College Friday, March 23 – Sunday, March 25
TROY, N.Y. – Upstate New York’s premier garden and flower show will mark its 31st year when the annual Capital District Garden & Flower Show returns to the 60,000-square foot McDonough Sports Complex at Hudson Valley Community College, Friday March 23 through Sunday, March 25.
Renowned for its full-scale landscape exhibits and creatively designed gardens, the Capital District Garden & Flower Show brings together local landscape professionals to transform the arena into a backyard environment complete with shrubs, trees, flowers, ponds, waterfalls, retaining walls, sidewalks and lawns. The exhibits require months of planning and precise timing to force early blooms on thousands of flowers with breathtaking results.
“For 31 years, the Capital District Garden & Flower Show has marked the annual arrival of spring to upstate New York. We are excited to once again showcase an array of picturesque blooming exhibits,” said Pennie Gonzalez, event manager for the Capital District Garden & Flower Show. “We want to inspire people to get outside, enjoy nature and imagine the possibilities for their own gardens. We encourage local gardeners and floral enthusiasts to join us for this year’s event.”
The centerpiece of the Capital District Garden & Flower Show is the annual Floral Design Competition, which features approximately 100 amazing and amusing exhibits presented by area professional floral designers, garden club members and amateurs. First, second and third place winners in fourteen categories are selected by an expert panel of judges. Ribbons are awarded for Best of Show and Most Creative. Show attendees can vote for their favorite floral design through 1 p.m. on Sunday.
Capital District Garden & Flower Show guests will have the opportunity to attend a variety of demonstrations, lectures and presentations from local and regional experts, including expert gardener and acclaimed author Tovah Martin. Other speakers include Fred Bregalia of Landis Arboretum; Peter Bowden of Hewitt’s Garden Center; Suzanne Balet-Haight of Balet Flowers and Design; and educators and master gardeners from Cornell Cooperative Extension. A complete list of seminars, lectures and demonstrations held during the three-day show is available online at www.gardenandflowershow.com.
Additional highlights of the 2018 Capital District Garden & Flower Show include:
- Over 16,000 square feet of fully blooming gardens
- A garden marketplace featuring over 160 outdoor living, farm-to-table and garden themed retail exhibits, tools, books, patio furniture and many unique garden and craft items
- More perennial, flower, succulent, plant, seed and bulb vendors than ever before
- Wonders of Spring-themed sand sculpture by artist Phil Singer, which will be created in real time at the venue throughout the weekend
- Wine tastings from ten New York State wineries
- A children’s play land, presented by Backyard Sheds and Gazebos
- Soil testing by Cornell Cooperative Extension for a minimum donation
- Concessions from Prime Catering
The 2018 Capital District Garden and Flower Show will be held Friday, March 23 from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m.; Saturday, March 24 from 9 a.m. to 7 p.m.; and Sunday, March 25 from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Tickets to the Capital District Garden & Flower Show are $14 at the door; children 12 and under are free with paid adult. Discount advance tickets are available online for $12. A two-day admission pass is $20. Friday, March 23 is MVP Health Care Senior Day with $10 tickets for individuals age 62 and older. Limit one discount per admission. Parking is free.
Partial proceeds from the Capital District Garden & Flower Show benefit Wildwood Programs, which is celebrating 51 years of serving individuals of all ages with developmental disabilities, complex learning disabilities and autism.
For more information about the Capital District Garden & Flower Show, visit www.gardenandflowershow.com or follow the show on Facebook.