Williamson’s Flower Show Exhibit Receives Three Top Awards

“Springtime in the Wetlands,” Williamson’s exhibit in the Philadelphia Flower Show which offered visitors a depiction of wetlands, received three top awards: the Philadelphia Horticultural Society Award of Merit for an outstanding exhibit in the academic educational category; the Bulkley Medal of the Garden Club of America for a special exhibit in the field of conservation; and a Special Achievement Award of the Garden Club Federation of Pennsylvania for an exhibit of unusual excellence in the category of conservation.

The Bulkley Medal is awarded to only one exhibit in the entire show and the Garden Club only offers its award to two exhibits (one larger than 1,000 square feet and, Williamson’s category, one smaller than 1,000 square feet).

Visitors walked through the exhibit on a boardwalk to view trees and plants taken from wetlands. A pond, beaver lodge, and trees actually gnawed on by beavers added to the exhibit’s realism. Children were able to sit in a blind and binoculars and spotting scope were available to learn their proper uses. Ten panels with color photographs and information educated the public in many aspects of wetlands from native plants to wildlife to flood control. For the first time, a PowerPoint presentation depicting students working on the exhibit from its inception to completion, was part of a Williamson exhibit.