Find Spring at the Flower & Garden Show
The joys of spring - blooming flowers and greenery of all types winding around steel sculptures and charming small buildings - greet visitors to the Chicago Flower & Garden Show.
Many of the 24 gardens at this year's show, which opens Saturday, March 7, and runs through March 15 at Navy Pier in Chicago, honor major Chicago cultural institutions.
But for some suburban companies, the show means lots of behind-the-scenes nitty-gritty work.
Mindy Clesen loves seeing the budding trees when she walks through her company's greenhouses in Maple Park. She's pretty excited about the signs of success because Ron Clesen's Ornamental Plants Inc. is forcing grasses, perennials and shrubs for the show. Not bad for a wholesaler whose only experience is annuals.
Clesen is doing this for the Shedd Aquarium, which perhaps ironically is building a xeriscape garden. That means it takes advantage of rainfall and requires little additional water. "It's mostly perennials, a lot of grasses," said Clesen. "It's so awesome."
Her favorite is baptisia Purple Smoke, blooming with pea-like flowers.
And of course Clesen's concern is the same as any first-time show contractor: will enough plants bloom on time, not too early or too late?
David Arroyo, of Strictly Stone Inc. in Round Lake, is also pleased with this garden, and says people with "average" lots will be able to relate to the work of Roy Diblik of Northwind Perennial Farm, just over the border in Burlington, Wis. Diblik is known for his natural-looking landscapes.
Natural is not what you'll think when you see the structure Clauss Brothers Inc. of Streamwood built for the Museum of Contemporary Art's "Geo Garden."
The museum will open an exhibit honoring Buckminster Fuller, an early proponent of sustainability, when the flower and garden show closes March 15.
Clauss Brothers created a collection of large steel and Styrofoam squares and triangles inspired by a three-dimensional world map that Fuller invented. The structure is covered with moss and soil to look like it is emerging from the moss-covered earth, said William Smith, project engineer.
"This is what we do, solve problems no one else could solve," said Smith.
Sculpture is also important at the show.
In "Above and Below," Richard Walsh of RikRock Inc. in Arlington Heights will hang three large rotating sculptures from the ceiling above more of his steel works displayed at ground level.
His adjacent garden "Cascades" displays a stone waterfall.
Rather than a gargantuan waterfall of years past, RikRock's exhibit this year is a 3-foot-tall one cascading off a 6-foot steel flower petal. Walsh thinks show goers will be able to imagine something like this in their own gardens.
"People can see a small waterfall and envision a large one but can't see a large one and envision a small one in their own gardens," said Walsh.
Aquascape Designs Inc. of St. Charles, long known for luxury ponds and waterfalls, now says these water features can be part of water-saving systems.
"Sustainable Ponds for a Changing World" features a huge underground storage tank beneath its patio of permeable pavers. These tanks can be any size and can even go under the driveway, said Brian Helfrich, construction manager for Aquascape.
"Water is such a valuable resource," he said. "You can capture the water and filter it and reuse it for irrigation or to wash your car or dog."
And if you are interested in landscaping beauty, you can add a feature like a waterfall or fountain to filter, circulate and aerate the water, he said.
Collegiate Landscape Inc. of Sugar Grove will install the garden's permeable paving system, which company owner Mike Hoorelbek said involves pavers spaced farther apart than normal as well as a base of special gravel to filter the water and let it soak through to the tank.
The company is also building an upscale outdoor kitchen.
And near the kitchen, J & E Nursery Ltd. of Libertyville will plant a small herb and vegetable garden.
Company owner Elizabeth Hoffman wants people to realize that even a small start can put you in the grow-your-own food movement.
"We are trying to make it ornamental to show that culinary gardens can be attractive," she said.
Thus the sages are tri-color and purple, and parsley, rosemary and broccoli provide different textures. And of course there will be tomatoes, even though Hoffman does not consider them particularly decorative.
The companies Hoffman owns usually have a "talked about" plant at the show, but she has trouble predicting which one will attract attention each year.
She's hoping for tiarella this time because she thinks this foliage plant is underused in shade gardens.
An antique Buddha shielded by trees and a fence of sustainable bamboo from Midwest Bamboo Ltd. in Wheaton sets the tone of serenity in another garden. "Reflections: A Spirited Garden of Asian Inspiration" is from Rich's Foxwillow Pines Nursery Inc. of Woodstock.
Rich Eyre feels that people of all religions can learn from the teachings of Buddha, especially as they relate to the balance and importance of nature.
He also likes sculptured trees, similar to bonsai styling, in small gardens. Two Blue Wave Japanese white pines will show this art. Other stars include Japanese Umbrella Pine, prostrate Korean firs and pendulous Colorado blue spruce
The pachysandra is from Midwest Groundcovers of St. Charles.
"America's Backyard" will have lots of blooming color, promises Jeff Cox, landscape architect with Cypress Group of West Chicago, even though the company lost some of its plants to a recent frost in Florida.
A hot tub inside a waterfall is a highlight, and the garden also features gazebos by Leisure Woods of Genoa.
What's a garden show without some new plant varieties? Ball Horticultural Co. of West Chicago will show ones you can find in your garden centers this year.
New coleus will include two - Indian Summer and Henna - that can give you outrageous foliage even in the sun, said Bill Calkins, retail business manager. And Salmon Pink is a new color in the shade-loving Kong series. Building on the award-winning Black Pearl ornamental pepper of a few years ago, Ball presents Sangria with red-purple foliage and Calico's purple, cream and green leaves.
The Zahara series of zinnia includes intense scarlet and yellow ones. The new Easy Wave petunia mix is called Marble, and it specializes in pinks and whites.
Another suburban company, the Brickman Group Ltd. of Mundelein, will give an idea of what the rejuvenated pond at Lincoln Park Zoo will look like in "Nature Boardwalk at Lincoln Park Zoo."
The Chicago Botanic Garden of Glencoe and Mariani Landscape of Lake Bluff are showing rooftop gardens in "Hope for Healing the Planet." It will serve as a preview of a huge rooftop evaluation garden that will open at Chicago Botanic in the fall.
<center><table width="250"><tr><td><p class="News"><b>What:</b> Chicago Flower & Garden Show</p> <p class="News"><b>Dates:</b> March 7-15</p> <p class="News"><b>Hours:</b> 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. Monday through Saturday; 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Sunday.</p> <p class="News"><b>Where:</b> Navy Pier, Chicago</p> <p class="News"><b>Tickets:</b> $12 weekdays; $14 weekends; $5 for ages 4-12 any time.</p> <p class="News"><b>Parking:</b> Discounted to $14 at Navy Pier</p> <p class="News"><b>Extra:</b> Many free seminars and demonstrations as well as a marketplace full of vendors. Preview benefit is $100 at 6-9:30 p.m. Friday, March 6.</p> <p class="News"><b>Information:</b> <a href="http://Chicagoflower.com" target="new">Chicagoflower.com</a> or (773) 435-1250.</p></td></tr></table></center>