Part of what makes the Northwest Flower and Garden Show so appealing is that it takes place in January: grey skies and inclement weather make downtown Seattle seem so dreary and lifeless, but inside the Convention Center the Show is full of life with flowers and trees and plants of all sorts. In addition to being a useful resource for anyone interested in growing things, it’s a nice break from the gloom of winter, like a mini-vacation.

Every year the NWF&GS has a theme. This year’s is “Beauty & Functionality”, emphasizing garden designs that are both attractive and useful. In a city where many people have very small yards–if they’re lucky enough to have a yard at all–there’s a real value in maximizing the space available to you.

The display gardens created by professional garden designers are the centerpiece of the show and this year they offered the 2010 Judging Panel a serious challenge as all of them were extremely well done, utilizing the theme in many creative and beautiful ways. The judges awarded seven Gold, six Silver, seven Bronze, and two Crystal awards to the regional creators who integrated sustainable features into their full-scale display gardens. The Founder’s Cup, awarded to the Best in Show, went to Le Jardin Home & Garden Design and B. Bissell General Contractor, LLC for their collaborative work called “Ahead of the Curve”.

Another great garden was Seattle Tilth and NW Bloom EcoLogical
Landscapes’ “A Family’s Little Farm in the City”. Organic produce grows in raised beds and containers; goats chew weeds and produce milk, and chickens help aerate the soil via their mobile “tractor coop”. This garden is a closed loop system in which nothing is wasted. Rain wise principles, composting and solar power are a part of this garden’s every day life. In addition to a Gold Award, “A Family’s Little Farm in the City” won the American Horticultural Society Environment Award, the Pacific Horticultural Society Award, the Sunset Western Living Award and the 425 Magazine Award.

All of the gardens were lovely. One of my top favorites was Plantwoman Design’s Silver Award winning “Swimming a la Naturale” which centered a natural water pond in the midst of low-maintenance shrubs and plants designed to attract wildlife to your yard to share your chlorine-free pool with you.

Seattle Urban Farm Company earned a Gold award for “Crops for Clunkers” which cleverly repurposed an old pick-up truck into a mobile garden.

Don’t have a full yard? Container gardening continues to grow – and it’s not just plants in pots crowded onto a patio, there’s still plenty of room for creativity.

To learn more about the gardens and their designers, visit the NWF&GS website. The show continues through Sunday at the Convention Center.