Philadelphia Flower Show 2026- Phoenix Rising.

I feel totally passive-agressive about this exhibit. It's one of the large ones, done by Laurel-Brook Gardens of Pennsylvania and Delaware.

The description talks about what can happen when nature regenerates after a fire.

I really, really loved the display- rustic, full of flowers in gleeful abandon. But this would really, really never happen without someone making it be so.

This angle shows some rusted farm machinery and the end of a bridge. Flowering cherry trees, redbud, daffodils and more are blooming.

Here's another beautiful angle with things that would never grow together.

Here's the other side of the path to the bridge. There is native wild black cherry, some dwarf crested iris (which you can't see clearly), balsam fir (although an ornamental variety) and daffodils which could conceivably have naturalized.

Now for some plant closeups. In this section there is the ornamental balsam, blue moss phlox, daffodils, and Mount Airy fothergilla (a garden cultivar of witch hazel). None are truly native.

Here is Dwarf Crested Iris which is native and grows wild some in Michigan but especially a bit to our south, so perectly suited for a Pennsylvania show. This is a high quality wild plant.

And last, this is is a Heuchera that I want. Technically Heuchera are native to North America, but they've been tinkered with so much that the cultivars aren't anything like the native plants. The variety is 'Topaz Jazz.' It's combined with a yellow yarrow (ornamental) and some yellow daffodils.

Here's what I find disturbing about this exhibit. It's not that they've combined all kinds of things that don't grow together or even that they've mixed ornamentals and natives. That's really standard procedure at the Flower Show. We want our fantasy plant fix!

What I object to is the implication in the description that this will happen all by itself if we'd just let the land heal. It's sort of "New Age" nonsense. I'm sure most of the people who visit have no idea this is nonsense, and I get that. I HOPE the exhibitors who appear to be garden professionals don't think this would happen.

My old farm machinery is surrounded by spotted knapweed, various uninteresting grasses, autumn olive and some ditch lilies. That's what has happened in about 60-70 years of letting the land go natural.

I worked on various projects today. Got a lot done. Way too much to do yet. I've been asked when I'll get back to Moose in Boots. I don't know. Many things much more pressing on my list right now.

See PFS 2026- American Landscapes