By displaying and creating numerous floral designs to reflect the theme of “Gardens of Tomorrow”, The Philadelphia Flower Show (PHS) exhibits their annual event March 1-9 at the Pennsylvania Convention Center.

Each year PHS assembles many different designs and activities to resemble a theme, this year following a futuristic aspect called Gardens of Tomorrow.

The Vice President and Creative Director of The Flower Show, Seth Pearsoll, sees the message theme in three different layers.

The first layer is optimism, which Pearsoll describes as a gardener planting a seed into the ground where it must bloom later. He believes it resembles doing a small act to make the world a better place.

The second layer allows people to explore where the world is going. According to Pearsoll it creates a “real future forward aspect” to the changes in the world. 

The third layer is a fantasy aspect, as it makes the designs more “fun” and “cool.”

“Sort of like a tongue or cheek reference to the future,” Pearsoll said, “with some fun, campy vibes.”

Every theme is planned five years in advance, leaving little room to discuss aspects happening in the real world. The PHS likes to touch on relevant current events slightly but avoids making them the main point.

It was a presidential election year, which assisted PHS in adding their final touches on their theme of the future. According to Pearsoll, he knew there would be a change in one way or another, so his goal was to spread a message that the future, although uncertain, would not be dark. 

  “Individuals can find pockets of light,” Pearsoll said. “We wanted a place where people could feel good about a particular part of their future.”

The creative process of bringing the Gardens of Tomorrow theme to life follows three different timelines. According to Pearsoll, the first cycle starts three to four years out, where they begin to look for partnerships and provide them with a loose definition.

The second cycle chimes to 18 months, where details become more specific and guide partnerships on the correct path.

“You might have a lot of drawings and a lot of exhibitors in line that you want to work with,” Pearsoll said.

The third cycle breaks into ten months as the budget cycle hits around May and June. July is when the organization hits a budget and decides the needed resources. 

“You will have worked on that stuff ahead of time, but now you are really tightening up,” Pearsoll said. “This is when you are really getting into some tactical details.”

According to junior Jackie Lee, she feels the PHS 2025 theme was showcased in the floating cars with flowers in them. 

As for junior Ellie Magnus, she thinks the neon Philadelphia skyline backdrop “exemplified the theme” as it had little apartments on the ground with roots and vines going through. 

Both Lee and Magnus enjoyed the live butterfly experience as they could feed and hold the butterflies. 

“It was such a surreal experience to just be able to feed the butterflies and be surrounded by them,” Lee said.