WHO KNEW??!! I'm exceedingly proud of the team I worked with and the talent, commitment and hard work they put into making this a very successful display!
R
Showing posts with label The Lost Gardener. Show all posts
Showing posts with label The Lost Gardener. Show all posts
Sunday, March 24, 2013
2013 Northwest Flower and Garden Show: "The Lost Gardener"
WHO KNEW??!! I'm exceedingly proud of the team I worked with and the talent, commitment and hard work they put into making this a very successful display!
R
Saturday, March 16, 2013
Building a show garden: MOVE-IN
It was exactly a month ago on this date that my team and I tackled the ever-daunting and carefully choreographed task of garden show move-in. It's utter organized chaos, but the staff of the convention center and the Flower and Garden Show were so tremendous and very helpful throughout the whole process. It was such a treat and an honor to work alongside such people during such a stressful and tension-filled event.
The teams of contractors I asked to help were absolutely great to work with and the hardscape they installed impressed not only show-goers, but the show managers as well which lead to comments like, "Do they know they're only building for a five day show". heheh
This was the scene when I came in and started scoping out the site as I waited for the first of several trucks to drive in during our allotted time.
It all went so quickly. It was frantic, tension filled, overwhelming, fun and I did my best to keep my cool and made sure to just trust that everything would fall into place. And slowly, it did. It was my very first time placing the rocks Clayton and I selected from Maranakos. Alejandro and his crew at Orion Rockscapes brought in the donated stone to build a striking wall...
...and a very well executed gabion wall at the base of the dry river bed.
One of the funnest aspects of move-in was to get the delivery of plant materials!
The plants brought to Windmill Gardens were absolutely spectacular and so very well grown and cared for. I was overjoyed when they arrived at the Convention Center. My many thanks to their excellent staff!.
With rocks the the most awesome logs from Carter Evans Wood Concepts in place, we stacked recycled pallets, lined them with cardboard and brought in several yards of sawdust fill until we reached the correct level for the plant material to be placed. "Skull Island" was being installed complete with stunning nurse logs Jade let me borrow to give just the right effect.
The carts of plants were wheeled in close by, forced bulbs from Cascade Cuts were delivered and the magic of the Flower and Garden Show begins to unfold as my team and I began placing where plants would go. Student volunteers were so much fun to work with as their enthusiasm for the selection of plants I brought together showed!
We worked well into the evening hours, even past midnight and, to be honest, it was actually a really nice time to actually GARDEN! The awesome lighting guys from Moon Shadow Landscape Lighting were fun to chat with as we all worked at a calm and pleasant pace and, again, the convention center staff were so very kind and understanding.
During the day, it was mostly smiles during a tension filled move-in, but flowers and plants have a way of making people happy!
Even at night (or when they turn the house lights off to test the theatrical lighting, we easily get lost in what we're doing. Volunteers played such an important role in creating this garden and it wouldn't have happened without each and every one of them.
It all started to come together and the result was what we had aimed for: A wild jungle with rare and unusual species of plants represented that transitioned into a more confined and rigid environment.
The teams of contractors I asked to help were absolutely great to work with and the hardscape they installed impressed not only show-goers, but the show managers as well which lead to comments like, "Do they know they're only building for a five day show". heheh
This was the scene when I came in and started scoping out the site as I waited for the first of several trucks to drive in during our allotted time.
It all went so quickly. It was frantic, tension filled, overwhelming, fun and I did my best to keep my cool and made sure to just trust that everything would fall into place. And slowly, it did. It was my very first time placing the rocks Clayton and I selected from Maranakos. Alejandro and his crew at Orion Rockscapes brought in the donated stone to build a striking wall...
...and a very well executed gabion wall at the base of the dry river bed.
One of the funnest aspects of move-in was to get the delivery of plant materials!
The plants brought to Windmill Gardens were absolutely spectacular and so very well grown and cared for. I was overjoyed when they arrived at the Convention Center. My many thanks to their excellent staff!.
With rocks the the most awesome logs from Carter Evans Wood Concepts in place, we stacked recycled pallets, lined them with cardboard and brought in several yards of sawdust fill until we reached the correct level for the plant material to be placed. "Skull Island" was being installed complete with stunning nurse logs Jade let me borrow to give just the right effect.
The carts of plants were wheeled in close by, forced bulbs from Cascade Cuts were delivered and the magic of the Flower and Garden Show begins to unfold as my team and I began placing where plants would go. Student volunteers were so much fun to work with as their enthusiasm for the selection of plants I brought together showed!
We worked well into the evening hours, even past midnight and, to be honest, it was actually a really nice time to actually GARDEN! The awesome lighting guys from Moon Shadow Landscape Lighting were fun to chat with as we all worked at a calm and pleasant pace and, again, the convention center staff were so very kind and understanding.
During the day, it was mostly smiles during a tension filled move-in, but flowers and plants have a way of making people happy!
Even at night (or when they turn the house lights off to test the theatrical lighting, we easily get lost in what we're doing. Volunteers played such an important role in creating this garden and it wouldn't have happened without each and every one of them.
It all started to come together and the result was what we had aimed for: A wild jungle with rare and unusual species of plants represented that transitioned into a more confined and rigid environment.
The rock that was suppose to look "sort of" like a skull became a skull with the help of Orion Rockscapes who practiced at home and fully went for it! Complete with a dry river bed and an exquisite array of wild alpine flowers, grasses ad succulents.
The final product.....coming soon
Saturday, January 19, 2013
Building a Show Garden: Rockin' It with CEM Design and Construction
Clayton and I informally discussed maybe doing a show garden together at the Northwest Flower and Garden Show many years ago. Having just taken the plunge on my own, I wanted to him to have some part of the show to gain the experience and get his work out there. Business has picked up for him considerably, but he was gracious enough to help out with the rock work involved for "The Lost Gardener". That meant my very first visit to the infamous Marenakos Rock Center in Issaquah, WA. They are one of the main sponsors for the show and graciously provide the awesome rocks for almost all of the show gardens being created.
I think we got a few useful pieces to be placed strategically by Mr. Morgan's crew come show time and about three pieces that are in the running as the main focal point of the display.
 |
| This was too small, but still intriguing |
Will we figure it out and make it work?? We'll find out February 16 when Marenako's bring these rocks to the Washington State Convention and Trade Center.
R
Tuesday, January 1, 2013
Building A Show Garden: "The Lost Gardener"
In just a matter of weeks, I'll seemingly disappear (more so!) and hanging on for dear life as I coordinate the construction and installation of my very first show garden for the 2013 Northwest Flower and Garden Show.
The show's overall theme "The Silver Screen: Gardens Go Hollywood" sparked an idea in my head shortly after the 2012 show and a meeting with the show's long time show designer Cyle Eldred. I never intended to ever do a full show garden, but he convinced me that it was a great opportunity to showcase the work I do, get different colleagues involved, and take advantage of the extensive resources the show provides.
So, I took the plunge, typed up a few emails and dropped the exciting news to friends and colleagues who may be interested in contributing. Here's what I came up with and proposed for the show:
This garden was
inspired by themes and elements from the motion pictures Jurassic Park, King
Kong, and Raiders of the Lost Ark. Rather than actually recreating
these movies in a show garden, my aim is to capture various aspects from these
films to depict a gardener's dilemma: the desire for the newest, rarest and
most unusual and how man has stepped in to improve, protect, and alter plants
to satisfy the ever changing environments we live in. 
“The Lost Gardener”
transitions from a wild and mysterious island jungle of assorted woody and
herbaceous species and features a rope bridge that takes an explorer from the
forest and into a clearing where he encounters the iconic “Skull Island” as a
warning of the implications of what could happen to a wild species if removed
from its habitat.
The show's overall theme "The Silver Screen: Gardens Go Hollywood" sparked an idea in my head shortly after the 2012 show and a meeting with the show's long time show designer Cyle Eldred. I never intended to ever do a full show garden, but he convinced me that it was a great opportunity to showcase the work I do, get different colleagues involved, and take advantage of the extensive resources the show provides.
So, I took the plunge, typed up a few emails and dropped the exciting news to friends and colleagues who may be interested in contributing. Here's what I came up with and proposed for the show:
This garden was
inspired by themes and elements from the motion pictures Jurassic Park, King
Kong, and Raiders of the Lost Ark. Rather than actually recreating
these movies in a show garden, my aim is to capture various aspects from these
films to depict a gardener's dilemma: the desire for the newest, rarest and
most unusual and how man has stepped in to improve, protect, and alter plants
to satisfy the ever changing environments we live in. “The Lost Gardener”
transitions from a wild and mysterious island jungle of assorted woody and
herbaceous species and features a rope bridge that takes an explorer from the
forest and into a clearing where he encounters the iconic “Skull Island” as a
warning of the implications of what could happen to a wild species if removed
from its habitat.
A dry river bed of
assorted dryland, alpine, bulbous species, succulents and grasses transitions
to a more rigid and confined landscape with paved surfaces and formally laid
out planting schemes. It will also feature a fence like structure to represent
the high-voltage barriers in Jurassic Park, but instead of dinosaurs being
confined, it’s a rare and endangered plant species.
The garden will display the richest, most diverse plant palette representing a number of small specialty growers in the Pacific Northwest who have generously loaned their finest plants for this exhibit. Many of these growers often keep a low profile or simply don’t have the time or resources to have a display or presence at the flower show. It’s my full intent to support the smaller, local growers who are a wealth of knowledge and expertise; this garden aims to bring our community of adventurous plant nerds and geeks together in a cohesive and sophisticated display that aims to encourage gardeners to seek out and grow something new and extraordinary.
The past few weeks have involved emails with nurseries, meetings with contractors, tweaking the design and making sure I'm on top of what needs to happen now until February rolls around, so there isn't much time.
I hope to have a blog post about each contributor for "Lost Gardener" so people can learn about the wonderful work they do.
I have a stash of plants being forced by a nursery in Sumner, WA called Windmill Gardens who have been hired by the show to force plant material for exhibitors. Here's what things looked like when I came by to check on them: still a ways to go...less than 2 months!!
More soon...I promise! It's almost show time!
Riz
The garden will display the richest, most diverse plant palette representing a number of small specialty growers in the Pacific Northwest who have generously loaned their finest plants for this exhibit. Many of these growers often keep a low profile or simply don’t have the time or resources to have a display or presence at the flower show. It’s my full intent to support the smaller, local growers who are a wealth of knowledge and expertise; this garden aims to bring our community of adventurous plant nerds and geeks together in a cohesive and sophisticated display that aims to encourage gardeners to seek out and grow something new and extraordinary.
 |
| This is a conceptual sketch I drew as a little preview. The skull rock will be done in a different fashion as the likelihood of finding stone close to that shape will be next to impossible. |
 |
| This is the first draft of the schematic I submitted. Call it the base plan if you will. More detailed construction documents are underway so materials are sourced and we can build as much of it before to make move in and install go quickly. |
The past few weeks have involved emails with nurseries, meetings with contractors, tweaking the design and making sure I'm on top of what needs to happen now until February rolls around, so there isn't much time.
I hope to have a blog post about each contributor for "Lost Gardener" so people can learn about the wonderful work they do.
I have a stash of plants being forced by a nursery in Sumner, WA called Windmill Gardens who have been hired by the show to force plant material for exhibitors. Here's what things looked like when I came by to check on them: still a ways to go...less than 2 months!!
It's a long way from a lush tropical jungle, but we'll get there!
More soon...I promise! It's almost show time!
Riz
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)