When April rolls around and the white tents emerge in Spreckels Park, Coronado locals know it’s time for the annual Flower Show. The show is presented by the Coronado Floral Association with support from the City of Coronado, and this year marked the 102nd anniversary. Each year welcomes a new theme and this year’s, “Ocean of Flowers,” was perfect for this beach community. Guests flocked to the park on Saturday and Sunday, April 20 and 21 to take in the beauty of the flowers, arrangements and displays as well as partake in the activities offered.
Blue sky and sunshine enhanced the spring feeling of the packed event. Music courtesy of the Coronado Concert Band entertained guests as they walked tent-to-tent, checking out the many floral exhibits as well as booths for local artists, retailers, and restaurants.
The show is divided into five divisions: Horticulture, Design, Special Exhibits, Youth, and Botanical Arts. Each is separated into their own tents with their awards presented to the winning plants and designs.
Division I Horticulture’s sections each had a different theme to follow: “Waves of Roses,” “Sail Away” container plants, “Cockles of Cut Flowers,” “Bonsai Beach,” “Ocean Breeze” orchids, “Secrets of the Sea” succulents and cacti.
The rose section contained thirty-three classes of roses and had lines growing out of the tent with guests wanting to smell the fragrance and admire the roses up close.
Coronado High senior Addison Welsh shared, “I’ve gone to the flower shows before. I live very close and I think it’s a very sweet event so I try to always attend them. My favorite part is the competition between the fragrant roses. It is so amazing to me how intense and beautiful they smell and it impresses me every time.”
Division II showcased oceanic creativity in design. The petite designs included fresh and dried flowers. Designs were judged based on how they interpreted the themes, “Tradewinds” and “Seas of Wonder.”
The “Bouquets on Board” floral designs combined architecture and flora while also allowing guests to vote on their favorite one. Similarly, guests could vote (using a pirate doubloon) at the “Treasure Island” Picture Boxes. This tent had four themes: “Mermaid’s Grotto,” “By the Light of the Moon,” “Bring Me that Horizon,” and “Message in a Bottle.” Each entry was displayed in a dark tent with a lightbulb illuminating their singular box displays.
The final design exhibit was the “Table Settings by the Seashore” tent, which displayed classy functional tables decorated with accessories and fresh plants.
The Special Exhibits in Division III began with Section A’s noncompetitive educational exhibits. Coronado Girls Scout Troop #6017 presented their sustainable ideas to safeguard pets. Environmental Librarian Tara Davies helped coordinate the Public Library’s booth that distributed native wildflower seeds and a crafts station. The Coronado Public Library also displayed the different trophies from past Coronado Flower Shows.
The Water Conservation Garden and Master Gardeners Plant Clinic were in attendance to help inform the public on their missions. Finally, Emerald Keepers interns taught guests about sustainable swaps to single-use plastics, distributed live ladybugs to gardeners interested in ridding themselves of aphids, and encouraged guests to attend their upcoming Earth Month events.
Emerald Keepers intern Charlotte Kuite volunteered at their booth. She says, “I enjoyed meeting all the people and being able to teach everyone about the ways we can make our planet more sustainable and clean up our oceans.”
As always, the humorous Men’s Creations tent featured a “Flotsam and Jetsam” theme in its creations that were judged by popular vote of attendees.
Youth participation (Division IV) at the flower show is encouraged in the form of dried bean picture plates and the always charming “Zoo’s Who” for the younger crowd. Zoo’s Who encourages youth participants to exclusively use vegetables and fruits to create unique animal sculptures using not much more than toothpicks. The most popular choice of animal this year appeared to be a turtle with either a watermelon, cantaloupe, or pineapple shell. Other youth entries included growing plants, miniature arrangements, and flower arrangements.
Finally, the Division V Botanical Arts section showcased photography and even had a youth category called “Budding Photographers.” Other entries were in “Flowers,” “Flowers and Critters,” “Miscellaneous,” and “Special Challenge” classes.
The Coronado Flower Show is a majorly anticipated event that allows anyone to express their love for nature during Earth Month. Now that the tents are taken down, we can only excitedly await to see what the 103rd annual show will have in store for us.
