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Lights, Camera, Bloom! Movie-Themed Flower Show Now Open

By Hadas Kuznits

PHILADELPHIA (CBS) - Saturday marked opening day of the 2015 Philadelphia Flower Show.

Sam Lemheney, chief of shows and events for the Pennsylvania Horticulture Society, says it took about ten days to set up and everything didn't exactly run smoothly:

"During set up, it was really too cold for some of our plants. Some of our plants didn't make it off the trucks because they got hit by the cold real quick. When it's sub zero temperatures, it only takes about ten seconds for some of the plants to get damaged, and we did lose some plants along the way, but we always grow more than we need."

Sam Lemheney flower show
Sam Lemheney (Credit: Hadas Kuznits)

Lemheney says all the exhibits this year have been inspired by the movies:

"We have the grand marquis that's covered in 100,000 flowers, sky tracking lights that go through the ceiling that make you feel like you're at this world premiere, and then you walk into the movie theater and we have this giant movie screen and huge chandeliers that are covered in flowers and our masterpiece floral design that's over 16 feet tall and has over 5,000 roses alone in that one arrangement."

flower show insert 1
(Credit: Hadas Kuznits)

Lemheney says there are about one million fresh-cut flowers on the floor which, he points out, have a limited lifespan:

"A lot of the flowers in the show will only last about half the show, so there's a lot of work on Tuesday and Wednesday nights when our exhibitors come in and replace almost every cut flower that you see on the show floor."

The show runs through March 8th at the Pennsylvania Convention Center.

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