PHS Flower Show 2024 - “United by Flowers” - Philly, PA

If you were to have told me that I would get a chance to spend a windy, yet beautiful day with the ladies in my family. I would have said you have to be joking. But here we are, arm in arm, walking over to the Pennsylvania Convention Center coming from our favorite Chinese restaurant to spend the last day of the show together. This year’s theme “United by Flowers” had us spending a good amount of time taking in the sights and smells of the promenade as you entered Hall A. This year the layout was the same as year’s past but with much more spacing in between the exhibitions to accomodate for larger crowds. Last year the show floor was packed in like sardines and seeing everything in a relaxing manner was hard to come by. 

This year, however, they had planned for the large numbers coming in over the course of the week and a half convention. And the theming was thoughtfully curated by every exhibitor as they displayed unity within each of their displays. As you walk to the right, you will go through a road trip of sorts with displays paying homage to ways that the country comes together. Bringing flowers to one’s home, into a salon and on a road trip in a loved ones car. Is so special. And they captured that so elegantly in the exhibitions. 

The tulip garden was my favorite section last year and I am glad they brought it back this year. The pathways meandering through the varying colors and types of tulips made for a relaxing walk – and it transports you to another place in the world. And that is enough for me. 

There are a lot more to see in the Hamilton Court, with the facade of a martial arts temple is constructed so you can imagine yourself doing the same moves as the little monks that’s stationed around the grounds. You can see the winners of the many exhibitors in the many categories of the Flower Show. I was so excited to see that common house plants and many fruiting and flowering trees were amongst the winners. 

We were on a mission to grab branches of plumeria to root and grow but found out the seller had passed away and the family took time away to grieve. They’ll be back next year – we hope. But we ended up scouring the floor for some plants that we did not have in our growing collection. And was excited to go away with three plants. 

We ended the day with a walk over to the Makers Marketplace before heading back to our car in the parking lot by Cherry Street. I would have to say that this was a nice show to keep coming back to year after year. The exhibitions are bigger and better and the folks that are there are even sweeter than the plants and florals they have on display. 

Words x Photos by Meg Duong