The surest sign that Spring is ready to sprout is Saturday’s opening of the nine day Philadelphia Flower Show, this year devoted to Holland which is shipping in 12,000 fresh tulips and debuting one 19 years in the making named just for the city of brotherly love.
“This is our special gesture from the Netherlands,” said Ton Akkerman, the Dutch agricultural counselor, told Secrets from his Washington embassy office.
The show, at the Pennsylvania Convention Center, draws thousands and and is the biggest event put on by the Pennsylvania Horticultural Society.
We’re giving a new breed of #tulip to #Philadelphia for the @PhilaFlowerShow. Help us name the flower. https://t.co/n3z2PmzgbQ@visitphilly pic.twitter.com/2ear39M2Ea
— Netherlands Embassy ?? (@NLintheUSA) March 1, 2017
Each year features a theme, and this year’s is “Holland: Flowering the World.”
And because the Netherlands is the world’s top producer of flowering bulbs, flowers and even fresh food, the government has gone all out to help, orchestrating its support out of its Washington embassy.
“If you are in the show, if you are the focus country, then it means that your country is important,” Akkerman said.
And not just to sell flowers. The official said that the show is important for other trade and to show off agricultural advances being made in the tiny country. For that, it is debuting the huge Dutch “Ecodome,” which showcases sustainability and innovation.
He said that it is the first time the Ecodome has crossed the Atlantic and it will be placed directly in the center of the show, which typically features large flower and tree displays that compete for ribbons, a market and even individual plant competitions from society members.
Ecodome rises as Philadelphia #FlowerShow is assembledhttps://t.co/Abym2IIYXe #gardening @BurlcoTimes photo: Rich Kennedy pic.twitter.com/DAx50pUCe8
— Netherlands Embassy ?? (@NLintheUSA) March 3, 2017
A show official said it will also feature typical Dutch features such as windmills, wooden shoes, canals and a tulip field.
Akkerman said that on the eve of the Saturday opening the new Philadelphia tulip will be displayed and its name announced. The embassy has been conducting an online naming poll to to choose between Philly Belle, Philly Love and Pretty Philly. Philly Belle is leading.
Top Dutch designers are also arriving to show off their efforts.
“We are thrilled to have these stars of Dutch garden design working with our award winning flower show designers on the exhibits,” said Sam Lemheney, the society’s show chief. “This flower show will inspire guests with new ways of thinking about gardening in a changing world, and dazzle them with the colors and creativity of Holland’s floriculture,” Lemheney added.
The show dates to 1829 and attracts about 250,000 to the convention center in central Philadelphia, next to the famed Reading Terminal Market.
Paul Bedard, the Washington Examiner’s “Washington Secrets” columnist, can be contacted at [email protected]
