Maryland Home & Garden Show to include major horticulture element for

Daily Record, The (Baltimore), Mar 6, 2004 by Mark Cheshire

When asked to use the word horticulture in a sentence, the comically mutinous writer Dorothy Parker quipped: You can lead a whore to culture, but you can't make her think.

Humor and political correctness aside, there's not likely to be any such confusion, willful or otherwise, at the Maryland Home & Garden Show this weekend and next.

That's because for the first time in the event's 22-year history, there will be a major horticulture element, and the region's plant and garden enthusiasts, weary from being neglected by the big chain stores, are sure to have their game faces on.

I know that plant people are really excited about the show. They're psyched to get something different than they see at Frank's, Lowe's and other such stores, said Elizabeth Hopkins, who sits on the board of directors for the Baltimore Conservatory Association and helped coordinate the show.

While chain stores tend to stick to a narrow line of common varieties, the show will have a plethora of exotics, from a range of tropicals and orchids to carnivorous plants (be sure to keep an eye on your children).

Until this year, the Home & Garden Show skewed heavily toward home improvement, and with considerable success, drawing as many as 70,000 visitors to Timonium Fairgrounds during the six-day event.

But the show's organizers weren't content, so they chose to put more emphasis on gardening. The decision to pursue accomplished and aspiring green thumbs makes sense.

U.S. spending on lawn and garden items surged 5 percent to $39.6 billion in 2002, the most recent year for which data are available, according to the National Garden Association.

And if the proliferation of television shows devoted to gardening and landscaping is any indication, the popularity of horticulture continues to grow faster than the national debt.

Taking a break from setting up the show this week, Jay Plummer, vice president of S&L Productions Inc, which organizes and operates the show, said his company is committed to cultivating the new gardening features.

To get things started, the Glen Burnie-based firm is providing free exhibit space to gardening retailers this year rather than charging for it. About 30 such exhibitors are expected.

We want to draw horticulturalists, Plummer said. It's in the long- term interests of this show.

In exchange for the free space, retailers will commit 15 percent of their gross receipts to the Baltimore Conservatory Association, a nonprofit that promotes all things green and operates the 1880 Palm House. Located next to the Baltimore Zoo in Druid Hill Park, the Victorian-era glass house has been closed to the public for the last two years, undergoing $5 million in renovation work. It's scheduled to reopen in May.

Revenue from the show will be a big boost for the house, Hopkins said. Likewise, the new garden offerings will be a big boost to Marylanders.

Researchers at Rutgers University recently found that flowers make people happier and more social, and heighten their feelings of life satisfaction.

Skeptics should try it before they dismiss it.

When asked what she loves about gardening, Hopkins, who hosts a radio show focused on business, paused and then laughed, admitting the answer would seem new-agey.

When I garden, I just feel connected to everything, she said.

She's right, of course. If you remain incredulous, I recommend you head out to Timonium. The alternative is becoming as cynical as Dorothy Parker but without the sense of humor.

MARYLAND SPRING HOME & GARDEN SHOW

The show hours are as follows:

Friday, March 5: 4 p.m. - 9 p.m.

Saturday, March 6: 10 a.m. - 9 p.m.

Sunday, March 7: 10 a.m. - 6 p.m.

Friday, March 12: 10 a.m. - 9 p.m.

Saturday, March 13: 10 a.m. - 9 p.m.

Sunday, March 14: 10 a.m. - 6 p.m.

For more information: 410-863-1180 or www.mdhomeandgarden.com