UpDate - Vol. 14, No. 26, Page 3
April 6, 1995
Best of Philly; College of Ag groups win flower show awards

     Six-and-a-half indoor acres filled with 55 tractor trailer loads
of mulch is an unlikely time machine, but nearly a quarter of a
million visitors to the 1995 Philadelphia Flower Show entered a time
warp that hurtled them to plant displays depicting past and future
gardens.
     Two of these exhibits, designed and executed by groups from the
College of Agricultural Sciences, caught the attention of the crowd
and the judges.
     The Friends of the University of Delaware Botanic Gardens (UDBG)
took a blue ribbon when it looked 15 years into the past. For the
show's container class, the group decorated a sunny corner of a
residence hall room using pots and baskets blooming with the Blue
Hen's blue and gold colors. And the Department of Plant and Soil
Sciences received an honorable mention for traveling to Colonial times
to interpret a garden suited for modern-day gentlefolk, complete with
flowering trees, shrubs, annuals, herbs and vegetables.
     Jane Warter, co-leader of the UDBG Friends group, said they chose
1980-the spring after UD won the NCAA Division II National Football
Championship. They invited viewers to gaze back in time and visit the
quarterback's dorm where, as a plant science major, he was hybridizing
plants. The display garnered 99 out of a possible 100 points.
     Team spirit permeated the Friends group, which included Warter,
Karin Arentzen, Peg Baseden, Gerri Gomersall and Nancy Nicholson.
Teresa Holton acted as an adviser.
     "The five of us worked as equals," Warter said. "We were a team.
We all agreed, pitched in and discussed what worked and what didn't."
     Attention to details started months ago. With a budget of only
$500, planning was essential. In October the group planted seeds of
gold nasturtiums, blue lobelia, blue and yellow pansies and yellow
marigolds that would fill the hanging baskets and flower pots in the
display.
     "We were able to grow our own flowers because we have access to
the Fischer Greenhouse Laboratory and the expert help of the college's
staff," Warter said.
     Nicholson painted a backdrop-a view of Old College-to be glimpsed
through the dorm window. As show time approached, other props,
including a period dorm desk, books, photos and even a worn pair of
sneakers, were secured. Warter said Don Diefendorf, housing and
conference services, supplied some of the props. Scott Selheimer,
University sports information director, was a resource for the 1979
football information. A dormitory desk and chair, a football helmet,
Delaware T-shirt and UD banner gave the display authenticity.
     Warter said a flower show committee approved all plant materials.
The group had to remove any yellow leaves or drooping blossoms. They
dusted plant leaves and even wiped away stray drops of water.
     The work wasn't over when the show opened. Two of the group had
to travel to Philadelphia early each morning to groom the plants
before the show opened to the public.
     "We were amazed by the sheer number of people working and how the
show was put together," Warter commented. "It was great fun working
behind the scenes."
     Karen Gartley, who co-chaired the plant and soil sciences group
with Kate Murray and Cathy Olson, agreed.
     "It's almost like being in show business," she said. "We worked
beside commercial exhibitors, and everybody helped everyone else
out-borrowing a shovel or helping unload."
     The 20-foot-by-20-foot exhibit, a modern interpretation of a
Colonial garden, took six vanloads of plants and three days to
complete. In addition to the three co-chairpersons, 15 others helped
pull the exhibit together, including Georgia Black, Paul and Sue
Dennison, Dick Dion, Ed and Samantha Gartley, Teresa Holton, Ed Klima,
John Laker, Chad Nelson, Yvonne Sallade, Gary Smith, Ann Vokes,
Jennifer Wood and Denise Woods. A stipend of $3,800 from the
Philadelphia Flower Show financed the project. Gartley said some
exhibitors have spent up to $20,000 in this class.
     To stay within budget, the group grew most of its plants. The
centerpiece of the garden, a huge copper cauldron, was borrowed from
one member's neighbor. An informal planting of flowers and herbs,
including sage, thyme and rosemary, surrounded the cauldron. Four
paths of crushed oyster shells fanned out from the herb garden,
forming peripheral gardens between the paths. These gardens included
cherry trees, boxwoods, roses, daylilies and dozens of annuals such as
Johnny-jump-ups, nasturtiums and snapdragons. The group even wedged in
a few vegetables, such as spinach, lettuces, tomatoes and beets. All
plants were authentic 18th-century varieties or modern cultivars of
period plants.
     In addition to its honorable mention, the garden earned three
other awards: The Garden Club Federation of Pennsylvania gave it a
special achievement award in horticulture for gardens under 1,000
square feet; the Men's Garden Club of Delaware Valley awarded the
garden a trophy for containing plants suited to the Delaware Valley in
a setting that can be maintained by one person; and the Philadelphia
unit of the Herb Society of America honored the exhibit for
outstanding use of herbs.
     Although the public recognition was satisfying, Gartley said,
"The greatest reward was being able to pull off our creative ideas at
the biggest, oldest, most prestigious flower show in the United
States."
                                                        -Claire McCabe