San Francisco Garden Show 2014

INSPIRED is the theme of this year’s San Francisco Flower and Garden Show, which wraps up its five-day run at the San Mateo Convention Center today. My aunt and I made our annual trip to the show on Saturday (we have been coming to the show, on and off, over the last 15 years). And inspired we were—by the seminars, the gardens, the beauty, the great ideas, and the enthusiasm of gardeners both young and old. This year, with the burden of severe drought on everyone’s mind, the threads of using native plants and conserving water ran through the fiber of the show.

The Grand Allee - raised beds with Mediterranean trees and plants

No City Water for this Garden, created by New Leaf Landscaping and Clearwater Design, showed an interesting idea for integrating water catchment and reuse right into the garden design. Using caught rainwater and recycled gray water, a native garden can be kept beautiful with no city water. This is the kind of thinking we need.

Water storage - large tanks store rain water and gray water

I was immediately drawn to the Roof Top Garden, created by the Foothill College Environmental Horticultural Design program, with its cozy and inviting garden up on the roof; and to the Agave garden, created by the Arizona State University Landscape Architecture program, with its emphasis on hardscaping from repurposed material, and on plantings that mix beautiful native plants and food production.

Roof top garden - planter with colorful plants

Repurposed hardscaping and agave plants

For pure fun and fantasy, I spent some time in Vulcania: An Oasis for the Soul by Clearwater Design. It is hard to ignore the whimsical mini-Nautalis (of Captain Nemo fame) set in a tropical garden with exotic plants, a lagoon, and a glowing red volcano.

The Nautalis - from Burning Man to the San Francisco Garden Show

I was also charmed by the “vine orb” featured in Old Vine by Terra Forma Landscape. Using a metal structure for the foundation, pruned grape vines were woven to create a unique gazebo. This is a great idea for using the materials around us to create something beautiful and functional.

Repurposed grape vines provide a unique shelter

These are some of my favorites, but we were inspired by so much more!