Contact: Steve Maurer
(215) 988-8833

PHILADELPHIA, (June 1, 2000) - Thousands of gardeners, families, and visitors from the Philadelphia area will celebrate a cornucopia of home-grown bounty as competitors vie for ribbons at the Pennsylvania Horticultural Society’s Philadelphia Harvest Show, September 16 and 17, at the Horticulture Center in Fairmount Park.

"Harvest 2000…and Beyond", with its competitions, activities and displays will celebrate futuristic gardening themes and ideas in a festive weekend of family fun. Prize winning fruits, vegetables, herbs, flowers, pressed plant materials, floral designs, baked goods and preserved projects all set the stage for this "Country-Fair" of successful summer growing. Visitors can attend a variety of educational exhibits and hear guest speakers who will offer free lectures and demonstrations. Youth activities will include scare-crow making, pumpkin painting along with competition categories that include succulents, vegetables, sunflowers, dish gardens, terrariums, annuals, perennials, container gardens and preserved products. Plus, a mini-village with seasonal gifts tools, clothes, furniture, orchids, bonsai, soaps, and gardening supplies will be open with more than 30 marketplace shops.

Special events this year will include a "vegetables-on-wheels" race, a performing rocket skater, and a traveling magician. The annual "Great Pumpkin Pie Contest" will take place on Saturday afternoon with chef, author and restaurateur Walter Staib of City Tavern presiding over the contest. Beekeeper Robert Harvey will don his massive "bee-beard" and demonstrate hive maintenance techniques, Mike McGrath, host of WHYY’s "You Bet Your Garden" will broadcast live from the show on Saturday at 11:00 while answering questions from the Show audience.

The Philadelphia Harvest Show will be held Saturday September 16, and Sunday September 17, at the Horticulture Center on Horticulture Drive in Fairmount Park, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. both days. Admission is $6.00 for adults and $2.00 for children. Individual gardeners, community growers, groups and clubs are all invited to enter. For information about submitting entries call the Pennsylvania Horticultural Society at 215-988-8800.

The Philadelphia Harvest Show is a weekend of Seasonal fun and gardening competition as Philadelphia gardeners display the fruit and labor of their summer projects in hundreds of horticultural and artistic categories. There are competitive classes, educational exhibits, guest speakers, youth activities, a marketplace and harvest related events that include baking contests and bee keeping.

The exotic and bedazzling flora of Hawaii will be celebrated this year with a tropical luau theme. Special floral, artistic and design categories will highlight the lush and tropical island paradise of our 50^th state.

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