‘The Graduate’ Flower Show showcases blooms and beyond

The 1967 American classic “The Graduate” explores the concept of rebellion and the search for identity amidst the ever-changing world around you. As the theme for the 2024 Garden Club of America Flower Show, contestants showcased various mediums in the spirit of the film, expressing impressive displays of self-exploration in nature.

The North Country Garden Club of Long Island was proud to present award-winning Floral Design, Horticulture, Photography, and Conservation exhibits, inspired by the film and soundtrack by Simon & Garfunkel. The show was separated into four divisions, each with three classes of distinction. Division V, education, involved a comprehensive display of the dangers of microplastics and nanoplastics.

“In The Graduate, Dustin Hoffman, who played Benjamin, walks into his parents’ cocktail party, and his parents’ friend said, ‘I have one word for you, one word for you, the future is plastic,’” explained chair member Christey Robinson. “So we’ve taken it to another level, and we’re saying the future is not plastic. So this is our educational exhibit, which talks all about the realities of plastic.”

The exhibit, created by Division V co-chairs Melissa Worth and Katherine Elms, instructed the dangers of plastics in our food, water, bodies, air, and various consumer products. Additionally, Division V included tips for alternative options to harmful everyday plastics, guidelines for limiting exposure to these plastics, and a table dedicated to the benefits of composting. The display won the Marion Thompson Fuller Brown Conservation Award, which is reserved for exhibits of exceptional educational and visual merit.

“All the exhibits were really great, and it was a great collaboration,” Worth said, admiring the showcase. “It’s a very comprehensive cover of the true dangers of plastics.”

One of the standout exhibits, showcased proudly on the stage of Portledge’s Bahnik Hall, was Division I, Floral Design, Class 1 “Sink, Swim, Seduce.” This unique class featured an underwater floral design in a clear glass container. The 1st place winner of this class, Susan Murray of the Allyn’s Creek Garden Club, chose a design complete with vibrant red, yellow, and green calla lilies, bay flowers, hydrangea and a red toy convertible, sunken to the bottom of the vase.

Division I, Floral Design, Class 4B, involved a segment of the show where participants were given an hour to create a floral arrangement out of an empty tide pod container, emphasizing the importance of finding new uses for harmful plastics and reducing waste. One creative participant, Alexis McAndrew of the North Country Garden Club, integrated the lid of the container into her arrangement, which reflected the deep orange and yellow colors of the tide symbol.

“We were given a number of flowers, and you could either use those flowers or not,” McAndrew explained. “I chose not to use the black, seaweed-like one or the purple, because I was trying to create the tide logo colors.”

“Passion & Beauty,” Division I, Class 2, showcased an attractive array of seductive, red floral arrangements, incorporating a variety of props. One entry involved a mannequin’s leg, donned in lace, as a pot for maroon flowers. The winner’s of the class, Mary Gay Townsend and Jane White, won by using gerbers, wolly red tulips, sagebrush buttercup, and other flowers delicately placed around a wooden branch. The center of the branch held a shiny, red toy car. This arrangement won the Adele Reynal Norris Award.

“Room Service,” Division I, Class 3, involved a functional table set for a champagne breakfast for 2, decorated as the participant chose. The winner of this class, Linda Gardiner, decided on a beautiful, baby blue spread, complete with a bouquet of blue, purple, and white flowers. The table won the Jane Stebbins Greenleaf Award for its outstanding beauty and artistic arrangement.

Participants were invited to showcase their own garden curations in Division II, the horticulture classes. The division was divided into two sections, cut specimens for classes 1-15, and container-grown plants for classes 16-20. Class 19, “Sounds of Silence,” showcased collections of 3 or more homegrown succulents. The 1st place winner of the category, Virginia Pierrepont, created a pot of unusual, vibrant succulents and rocks, earning the Cathy Heyes Horticultural Award.

In the class, “I think I should be going…,” Jean Henning won the esteemed Catherine Beattie Medal with her homegrown dahlia. Judges considered the entry “a vibrant graduate.” The Catherine Beattie Medal is reserved for entries of distinguished vibrancy, prime condition, and perfection of grooming. In the “Here’s to You Mrs. Robinson’’ Par class, Linda McLaughlin earned the Clarissa Willemsen Horticulture Propagation Award for her perfect grooming despite the difficulty of propagation.

In the “Woody Stem” class, Chris Murray of the Little Garden Club of Rye took home the Rosie Jones Horticulture Award for the plant’s exceptional visual appeal and inspirational nature.

The final set of entries, Division III, Photography, offered a wide array of vibrant portraits, staying true to the theme. The best-in-show award went to Phyllis Weekes for the class “Heaven holds a place for those who ‘prey’.” Weekes submitted an artistic portrait of a rooster climbing across stones, amidst a scenic, green expanse. Additionally, Elizabeth Hawkey took home the GCA Novice Award in Photography, for her stunning image of a young, female leopard experiencing “peaceful serenity,” captured in Botswana.