Construction For 2017 Flower Show Underway
PHILADELPHIA (CBS) -- Construction of the 2017 Philadelphia Flower Show, "Holland: Flowering the World," is underway at the Pennsylvania Convention Center.
"What do I want to get done today? Ha ha! As much as we possibly can! We have a lot of details, and a lot of exhibitors that came on the floor today, so a lot of their construction, placement of the bed lines and the mulch are happening," said Sam Lemheney, Chief of Shows and Events for the Flower Show.
Mini-front end loaders are moving mulch all over the Pennsylvania Convention Center floor, large trees are being placed, and structures are being built. Jan is in charge of the latter.
"We're combining the seams on the bridge, because the bridge came in pieces, so now we're just marrying everything together," she said.
The bridge, lined with delft tiles and moss, is one of the first things visitors will see entering the show.
Other structures are already in place: windmills which have been used in the Netherlands since the 1500s, the Eco-Dome, and a Willow exhibit created by garden landscape architect Nico Wissing.
"If you break out of a lot of concrete, and you let in flow the rain water, then you're gonna have an oasis, that's my reconnection to nature," said Wissing.
The Flower Show's Alan Joffee says the Dutch are leading the way on sustainability.
"They are the developers of what's called the Dutch Wave, so an approach to natural landscaping. It's very planned, very well thought-out, but the key is to create sustainable gardens that can exist with low maintenance," she said.
The Flower Show opens on Saturday, March 11th to the general public.
