Q: Where did you get the idea for the show?
A: I grew up in an industrial town in England and community gardens were everywhere, we called them allotments. My father and my uncles had some and grew a lot of our vegetables together. The excess was sold to those who could afford it and given away to those who couldn’t. My father’s big cash crop was large, white and purple chrysanthemums that he sold to florists; and I spent many hours disbudding and tying brown paper bags over the blooms. We used to have a show each year in the local church hall and it was a very exciting time; getting ready for the competitions, eyeing up what everyone else was growing, seeing who might win. Then on the day of the show, taking off the bags and picking the best blooms. No one beat my dad’s chrysanthemums or my uncle Jabez’s fuchsias. I loved that day, it was better than Christmas because it was a community thing, when everyone you knew came together to compete, to share growing tips and hint at the secret ones.
I was a volunteer at the Greenhouse Project and in the Butterfly Garden at Nay Aug Park a couple of years ago and the idea to have a flower show there seemed a great way to help people recover from the isolation suffered during the Covid outbreak. I asked the Scranton Municipal Recreation Authority (SMRA) if it was possible and the answer was an enthusiastic ‘yes!’. In fact, they offered the whole of Nay Aug Park and that was when I decided to involve all the custodians and residents of the park, and it just grew.

Q: What can people expect at this year’s Flower Show?
A: To have a great free family day out, with live music and LOTS to do. Although the flower competition is at the heart of the show, it's so much more than just a flower show.

Q: I'd love to hear about the variety of contest categories.
A: Every flower has a category; if it's growing in your garden you can enter it at the show. Some flowers have their own categories, but there are general categories for any other perennial, annual or biennial not specified. Even if you're not sure what the flower is, the judges know what it is and they'll move it if they need to before they start judging. And the flower doesn't have to be rare or special in any way, it can win just as long as it's the most perfect on the day. The first year it was a really tiny blue hydrangea that won it's category and went on to be Reserve Best in Show. In addition to individual flowers there are other categories for cacti and succulent arrangements, Mason jar posies and fairy gardens. There's even a category for the most creative recycled container! We haven't forgotten the kids, they have their own category which can be an individual entry or class project, and each entrant gets a Nay Aug Park pin. All the categories are on the website https://electriccityflowershow.webador.com I want to encourage everyone to enter, I'd hate someone to think 'my flowers at home are better than that'.

Q: Tell me about the vendors.
A: The first year, 2022, we had 23 local, small business vendors. The second year the number more than doubled, 51, made up of specialist flower growers, artists, artisans, clubs, charities and organizations. Mustn't forget the food, there'll be vendors in the road near the Greenhouse Project, there’s the resident Black Watch Café, and the Underground Miner's will be at the Brook's Mine making their hotdogs again. The vendors must sell items in keeping with the theme of the show, plants, florals, natural and organic products, gardening related, that sort of thing.

Q: Presentations?
A: We have presentations again this year in the Gentile pavilion for most of the day, on all sorts of subjects. No registration is required but seating is limited.

Q: Is there anything new that wasn’t offered last year?
A: Definitely! I'm very excited that we'll have a stall for local artists to sell small numbers of their artwork collectively. We're calling it an Artist's Co-Op. A lot for the kids. Mostly based around the butterfly garden, which is at the other end of the park next to St. Cats. There’ll be ‘Stories in the Park’, nature stories read by retired Scranton schoolteachers with an ASL signer, and volunteers reading in multiple languages. There’ll be an engine from Scranton’s Fire Department and a squad car from the Scranton Police Department. Fun can be had on the sticker hunt, just look for the bubbles and the huge sunflower!

Q: I saw that admission is free. Is it important to offer this event free of charge?
A: Free is the most important aspect of the show. Free to participate for the contestants and vendors, and free to visit and park your car. The Everhart Museum is also opening its doors with free admission and children's activities. This a true community event and as long as I’m the one organizing it, that’s how it will stay.
Free to enter the competition means the show is inclusive to everyone regardless of income. Whether you're a grower and have fields full of flowers, or you have a single flowerpot on your windowsill, you have the same chance of winning Best in Show. You can even enter if you have nowhere to grow anything at all, because you don't have to have grown the flowers in the Mason Jar posy category. And if it's free to participate, with no prize money to complicate things, it's just for fun, some fancy ribbon...and bragging rights.
A free family day out means people have money still in their pockets, visitors can afford to shop all the amazing products on offer by some very talented vendors, supporting those small local businesspeople.

Q: What's the ultimate goal of hosting the Flower Show?
A: Personally, I want people to enjoy growing flowers! To teach the kids and the grandkids everything their parents and grandparents taught them. For Nay Aug Park and the hardworking SMRA, I want the show to become an annual major event for Scranton's premier park, drawing people from all over the county, the state, and maybe, one day, the country. I want the Butterfly Garden to be recognized as one of the biggest and best native pollinator gardens in PA and a 'must see'. Let's make the show famous for bringing community together.

Q: Do you expect the show to become a tradition for years to come?
A: If people continue to enjoy and support it, I see no reason why not.

Q: If there's anything else you would like to add, feel free!
A: Firstly some 'thank you's'. I want to wholeheartedly thank the volunteers. They come to the park and give their time and expertise; without them there wouldn't be a show. And to the judges, they're master gardeners and nationally accredited, without them there wouldn't be a competition. Lastly the major sponsors, the SMRA, local businesses Dwell Real Estate and Ufberg and Associates. All the other sponsors too numerous to mention, a huge 'thank you'.
I must mention that this year Scranton Pride is holding a competition for business owners in Scranton to show off their floral creations. The voting will be through the Scranton Tomorrow’s website until midnight on 'First Friday', and the winner will be invited to show off their planter alongside the Best in Show winner.

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