Boston Flower and Garden Show - A Sure Sign of Spring

3/14/12 - By Audrey Trieschman

If the weather this week hasn’t done enough to give you a case of spring fever, a visit to the Boston Flower and Garden Show - at the Seaport World Trade Center from Wednesday, March 14 through Sunday, March 18 - will certainly do the job. Over 25 garden displays by landscape professionals and area nurseries focus are designed around this year’s theme – First Impressions: Adding WOW Factor to Outdoor Spaces. There is also a full schedule of lectures and demonstrations by top garden writers, industry professionals and chefs, as well as a wide marketplace featuring plants and gardening products.

We had the opportunity to visit the show the first day, and while it is definitely designed for adults, there is plenty to keep the kids’ interest if they do come along.

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As you make your way through the hall, you will find everything from displays built around life-sized house facades to highly detailed miniature gardens. Some key items to look for in the exhibits that wil be most appealing for kids:

  • Jasper’s Garden: A xylophone, toy trucks and storybooks are tucked in and around the plants and flowers of this display, one of the first exhibits you come to. Check out the purple and yellow listening tube, too.
  • A Glass Pear: Right in the center of a formal garden is a three-foot high clear glass pear - quite an unusual lawn ornament.
  • Live Birds: Four bird cages define the edges of another dreamy garden, each housing one or two colorful birds.
  • Flower Hats: The “fashionistas” in the family will enjoy the fun display of hats that are made almost entirely of flowers - check out the dog wearing a flower hat.
  • A Miniature Maple Tree: one of the many evergreens, deciduous trees and flowering trees and plants featured in the Springtime Bonsai display.
  • A Winnie the Pooh Picnic: One of six miniature displays, at the far end of the hall, features Pooh, Tigger, Eyore, Kanga, and Roo. Exquisite!

By far the most kid-friendly exhibit is the Mass Horticultural Society’s Children’s Corner, towards the back of the hall. In the spring and summer, MassHort hosts children’s programs like Weezie’s Story Hour and the the Caterpillar club at its Elm Bank in Wellesley. At the Flower Show, the organization has on hand plenty of information for parents and educators about gardening activities for kids, as well as demonstrations of fun, simple activities you can do at home, with handouts you can take home that explain how to do them:

  • Growing sprouts in a jar
  • Growing beet (or other vegetable) tops - plant them in dirt and they’ll sprout!
  • Using composting worms - kids can dig around and see how they turn garbage into soil

MassHort also has Flower Show scavenger hunts - for younger kids, things that are made out of plants and older kids, garden ornaments - that you can download from the MassHort website before going to the show or pick up at the Children’s Corner. Kids find the items on the hunt, and bring it back to the Children’s Corner for a prize.

There is also a small Activity Area tucked away on the right in the back of the hall, where kids will find activities related to a different theme every day - from seeds and plants and flowers to insects and being green. It is staffed with gardening experts and educators who read stories and offer crafts to kids at the show. The schedule is as follows:

  • Wed: 11am book reading, Flowers
  • Thu: 11am book reading, Vegetables and Me
  • Fri: 11am book reading, In My Backyard
  • Sat: 11am book reading, Growing Up Green; 1pm & 3pm activities and crafts
  • Sun: 11am book reading, Good Bugs! Bad Bugs!; 1pm & 3pm activities and crafts

Boston Flower & Garden Show
March 14 to March 18
Seaport World Trade Center
200 Seaport Boulevard, Boston

Hours: Wed-Sat 9am-9pm; Sun 9am-6pm

Admission: Adults $20; Children (6-17) $10, (under 6) free. Purchase tickets online or at the door.