Canada Blooms thrives in its new, smaller location
The new home of Canada Blooms seems more intimate and human, with its atmospheric, subdued lighting
Downsizing hurts. It’s hard to swap a big roomy space for a smaller one.
Yet in the case of Canada Blooms, here’s the surprise: I think it works.
And that’s welcome news, because our annual flower and garden festival has endured some tough times since its debut, two decades ago, at the Toronto Convention Centre downtown.
Corporate sponsors have drifted away. So have some of our best landscapers and garden designers, because installing this indoor show at the tail end of winter is a colossal amount of work, and monetary rewards are slim.
However, in its new scaled-down surroundings — a hall located behind the Home Show in the Enercare Centre — Blooms is looking pretty good this year. And the reason, I think, can be summed up in a single word.
Lighting. Or rather, the lack of it. This new space has a relatively low ceiling that’s mostly painted black. The display gardens beneath are illuminated only with spotlights.
But hey, how agreeable this is. Am I the only person who hated the industrial atmosphere of previous Blooms shows (both downtown and at the Enercare Centre)?
The gardens were always spaced too far apart. The lighting was cold and harsh. I rarely felt any sense of theatre or excitement, wandering around the exhibits. The new home of Canada Blooms may be smaller, but it seems more intimate and human — and that’s undoubtedly due to the atmospheric, subdued lighting (plus narrower pathways between the gardens and the overall compactness of the show). For the first time this year, I actually pictured myself sitting on one of those make-believe patios at night, sipping a glass of wine and staring at the moon. What I particularly liked this year:
Landscape Ontario’s garden: a mosscovered hillside, an amazing waterfall, a great big gnome and a long row of flourishing vegetable plants. All installed with the aim of encouraging young people to make a career in horticulture. Truly impressive, guys.
City of Toronto’s piano man, decked out in top hat and tails, made entirely from sedum plants.
Toronto Botanical Gardens’ honeytasting bar. A fun, environmentally friendly idea, which persuaded me to buy four bottles of honey, all local.
Tall Alice in Wonderland planters, containing the new Oscar Peterson rose.
Two tree-house installations. (Boo to the safety police who decreed that we couldn’t climb up there.)
A neat garden fence and gazebo in Genoscape’s garden, made from wooden shingles.
The shocking pink “coffee filter” dress, in the Garden Club’s floral displays.
Parklane’s “rain garden.” It showed, in a fun way, how to divert rain from eavestroughs, so it doesn’t keep gushing into the city’s storm sewers.
Big, beautiful containers of fresh cut flowers, all grown in Ontario. What I didn’t like: Loud rock music blaring from the Aqua Spa and Royal Stone garden at the show’s entrance. Intrusive, unnecessary and annoying, especially at 10 a.m.
Poor lighting around the outer edges of the show. It marred the excellent “frontdoor” display gardens and the Garden Club’s contribution.
Not enough signs. Where were the gardening talks going on? I couldn’t find them.
Canada Blooms ends Sunday at 5 p.m. I’ll be on the Celebrity Stage at 11a.m. that day, taking part in a contest. Come down and say Hi. soniaday.com