Home & Garden Show offers inspiration
Eight-day ‘Reinvest in Your Nest’ event features hundreds of exhibitors
Home improvement and garden ideas will be on display at the State Fair Park Exposition Center this weekend and next week as the 93rd Realtors Home & Garden Show opens to a springtime and birdhouse theme.
More than 350 exhibitor booths will offer attendees a look at a variety of interior and exterior products. They’ll also have an opportunity to chat one-onone with industry professionals about landscaping, selling or buying a home, roofing, windows, decks, cabinets, tiling, plumbing, kitchens, baths, decorating, heating, cooling and more, the Realtors said.
The show, with the tag line “Reinvest in Your Nest,” will feature a birdhouse exhibit inspired by Milwaukee neighborhoods. Thirty birdhouses designed by students from Milwaukee High School of the Arts will be on display just inside the show’s main entrance. The students spent the last two months planning, designing and painting to re-create Milwaukee’s notable architecture and landscapes on the birdhouses, which will be available for purchase, with all proceeds benefiting Arts @ Large.
Among other features at the eightday event, which the Realtors’ say is the longest-running home improvement show:
■ A Garden Promenade with 10,000 square feet of landscaped displays created by 12 area landscape designers. Water features and plantings, as well as outdoor kitchens, fire pits, pergolas and pavers are among the elements in each garden.
■ The Fresh Cooking Patio, showcasing the culinary talents of some of Milwaukee’s top chefs. From juicing techniques and best practices for braising lamb to meatless dishes, ethnic cuisine and tasty desserts, attendees can expect a variety of table topics and recipes, the Realtors organization said.
■ The Solutions Stage will offer seminars, demonstrations and question-and-answer sessions by experts. This year’s topics include: conserving water through irrigation systems, how to build a pollinator garden, the benefits of using permeable pavers, how rain barrels reduce storm-water runoff and composting. Plant expert Melinda Myers will make guest appearances throughout the show, as well as actor John McGivern.
Among the features at the show is Garden Promenade with 10,000 square feet of landscaped displays.
■ At the Sustainable Solutions Idea Center, the Milwaukee Metropolitan Sewerage District, Plumbers Local 75 and landscape professionals will demonstrate how to achieve a showplace yard using eco-friendly strategies, while saving money, water and energy. Attendees can also learn golf course secrets for a lush lawn that protect Lake Michigan and nearby rivers, as well as risk-reducers for eliminating water in basements, the Realtors said.
The show runs from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. Friday and Saturday, and 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Sunday, both this weekend and next weekend. The show is closed Monday and Tuesday, but will be open from 4 to 8 p.m. Wednesday and Thursday before transitioning to weekend hours.
Regular admission is $8 for adults. Military personnel with valid military ID and children 12 and younger can enter for free. A special $2 off admission discount offer sponsored by Weather Tight is available to download at
Parking is available at State Fair Park for $6 per car. Free parking will be offered to the first 500 cars that arrive after 5 p.m. on March 29 and 30, compliments of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. Visit mkehgs.com or call (414) 778-4929 for more information.