The Philadelphia Flower Show is a major annual event with a long history. It is a great opportunity to chase the winter blahs by wandering through a huge space full of blossoming plants and pretend it's spring! The show raises money to support gardening and other programs by the Philadelphia Horticultural Society.

This year's show celebrated the 100th anniversary of the National Parks and included scenes from many which incorporated sculpture from natural materials and all sorts of creative displays. There was even a room full of garden railway layouts done with railroad models by Bachmann, a Philadelphia company, that had at least symbolic representations of of some national parks.

We also toured the live butterfly room for something unusual. One could attract the creatures with cotton swabs dipped in some sort of sugary stuff. There were also impressive examples of bonsai, and a huge display of plants maintained by individuals which won awards in various categories — orchids, cactus, etc.