Annual Flower Show and Tea – part 1

Chester Garden Club recorded another successful flower show on July 25th, with over 200 floral designs or specimens entered in the competition, held at the Royal Canadian Legion hall in Chester, Nova Scotia.  The following gallery shows some of the activity observed during the early morning as exhibitors brought in their choice floral arrangements and specimens.  At 10:30 am, the room was closed to all except the judges and their clerks as the serious work of assigning winners in the many classes got underway.  Meanwhile, in the kitchen, other volunteers were busy organizing the hundreds of sandwiches and squares to be served at the afternoon’s tea. To enlarge any image in the gallery, simply click on it with your cursor.

The doors opened to the public at 1:30 PM and among the first visitors were two groups from special care facilities in the area. They were served tea before taking the opportunity to view the exhibits. The total attendance, including the special groups, was close to 200 people, 125 of whom opted for the tea ticket. Some of the visitors are shown below.

Following a rainy spring, an extraordinary heat wave and then more rainy skies, there was some concern about local flower gardens but this year’s show lived up to its tradition of attractive and innovative displays.  Arrangements in the design classes ranged from the miniature to the massive, and included a challenge in which participants were given five objects to use in creating an oriental arrangement.  A small sample of entries is seen in the photo gallery below, which concludes part 1.

The next post will feature more entries and the winners of the 13 trophies awarded at the show.