A long time ago, in my other life at the garden center, we used to exhibit every year at the VanDusen Garden show in Vancouver. It was the biggest outdoor garden show in Western Canada. Fun, hectic, and very competitive, it was a rush of four days, unlimited budgets, and perfect plants. Showcasing new, unusual, rare, or the just simply beautiful plants. The first year we entered, we won the silver medal for best all over garden design. The next year against some very well known competition my garden design won gold, best overall. Kind of cool for a girl from White Rock, who didn’t know what she wanted to do with her life at that time. I still remember the competition demanding a recount, and getting it. We won by a overwhelming amount of votes. Sadly without a camera then, I have no photos to show you.
Nearly a decade later, along with my Sister [Turf Toter] I finally made a return visit to VanDusen Gardens last week. I made sure to go to the spot on the great lawn, where we had assembled our display garden, and take some pictures of the bare grass, and the garden behind it, this would have to do as a keepsake of garden memories for myself.
When I look at the spots where once so many spectacular displays were, I don’t see hydrangeas, and trees, I see pillars, and trellis, roses cascading down the walls, and fountains splashing. Great garden memories for me. The way a small nursery from White Rock trucked in plants, and materials, and worked together to build a award winning garden display. The heat, the rain, the stress, the amazing sea of people everywhere. Most people go to VanDusen for the stunning collection of plant material. I went for the memories.