Pound Ridge Flower Show A Bloomin’ Success

POUND RIDGE, N.Y. – The rooms inside Conant Hall exploded with a palette of colors Friday afternoon as the biennial Pound Ridge Garden Club Flower Show got under way for its two-day exhibition.

The theme for this year’s show was “If Only Every Day Were a Holiday,” and it featured artistically arranged flowers celebrating holidays throughout the year. Designs themed for Mother’s Day, Valentine’s Day, Fourth of July, Thanksgiving, Columbus Day, Halloween and Chinese New Year were spread through the hall’s main room.

In addition to the holiday designs, the show featured two other competitive divisions – horticulture and special exhibits. Each division was broken down into classes.

Judy Kennedy took two top-exhibitor awards for the holiday design division. Kennedy won the Holiday Excellence Award, which was given to the highest-scoring exhibit in the entire design division. She also took home the Designer’s Choice Award.

Some of the other winners in design division included Mary Miranda, who came away with the First Award for Class 3: "July 4th Fireworks"; and Joan Goldberg, who received the First Award for Class 7: "1492 Sailed the Ocean Blue" (Columbus Day).

Goldberg said she thought about her design, which incorporated a species of philodendron and bird of paradise flowers, for a long time before beginning work on it.

“I was planning it my mind for a while. It takes weeks,” she said.

Miranda, who serves as the club’s membership chair, said the members experience a sense of accomplishment when they put on the flower show.

“The camaraderie of the club is what this show is all about,” she said. “People who are entering in the same categories actually help each other out.”

The club began in 1941 and Miranda said that, as far as she knows, it’s been staging flower shows since the beginning. She said it’s difficult to pick one particular show that’s stood out above the rest.

“It’s hard to say because they’ve all had different themes and they’ve all been so great,” she said.

The event was judged by three national judges from outside the Pound Ridge Garden Club before the doors opened on Friday so attendees would know who the ribbon winners are when they toured the exhibits.

“Pound Ridge Garden Club members are renowned for the artistry of their designs,” said Barbara Mayer, a member of the club’s publicity committee. “Past shows have garnered awards at both the regional and national levels.” 

The show continues from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday. Admission is free. Conant Hall is located at 257 Westchester Ave. (Route 137) in Pound Ridge.

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