By Jim Melwert

PHILADELPHIA (CBS) - Forget the groundhog, here in Philadelphia, we know spring’s right around the corner when the Philadelphia International Flower Show comes to town.

You can imagine all the work that goes into building 10 acres of a tropical paradise for this year’s theme “Islands of Aloha”.  Right now, there are piles of mulch, gravel, and stone mixed in among the palm trees and tropical plants. 
 
Alan Jaffe with the Pennsylvania Horticultural Society says getting all the flowers at their prime for opening day is a science developed over the 183 years of the show, for example, he says keeping the massive room at just the right temperature, and, of course timing. 

“Bringing the plants to bloom leading up so we know they’ll be not quite open by Friday night.  By Saturday, Sunday they’ll really start to peak and they’ll maintain their color throughout the show that way.”
 
Exhibitors say they expect 11-hour days to make sure everything’s just right for Sunday’s opening.

“It’s very exciting, it’s like being at a theatrical production and you’re watching all these great elements coming together.”