2026 FLOWER SHOWView Flyer (opens in a new window)
The Garden Club of Cape May Flower Show will take place on Saturday, May 16, 2026.
Our club's Flower Show is held every other year. This year, we're collaborating with the Mid-Atlantic Center for the Arts for a joint Flower Show and Garden Tour event.
Our Show will be held at Willowcreek Winery in West Cape May, an elegant venue with beautiful Chandeliers, a large stone fireplace, extensive gardens, and convenient parking. MAC's garden tour can be self-guided or taken by trolley, and includes a selection of Cape May gardens, including several owned by our members, and one of our Community Gardens (the Colonial House Museum). The Flower Show is one of the tour stops.
Imagine a MAC trolley tour that includes visits to several beautiful Cape May gardens, followed by a stop at Willowcreek Winery, where you can enjoy a relaxing lunch, a glass of wine, and then stroll around to see the stunning floral and Horticulture displays.
Tina Given, drawing on her wealth of Flower Show experience, will lead as chair of the show. She and her committee have come up with some very creative ideas for the show. In the coming weeks, she will be reaching out to everyone who expressed an interest in helping with the show.
The theme for our show is “A Festival of Flowers and Fairytales.” This theme allows for imaginative and creative designs that are less formal. Whether you create a fun and funky hanging flower arrangement or enter a potted plant that you have been carefully tending, the show is designed to be fun and a learning opportunity, and we hope everyone will enter.
There will be many opportunities at the Membership meetings to learn about flower arranging, and Tina and her team will bring examples of arrangements for you to see.
The information below will help you decide which category or categories (you may enter more than one category) interest you.
How to Start
Pick a category(s)
- Become familiar with fairy tale stories
- If you already own a potted plant, give it lots of TLC. Consider repotting if needed.
- Buy a potted plant or plant bulbs in pots
- Purchase a *container
*Containers can be found online, at a yard sale, in your attic, or in a thrift store such as Art Depot- 1301 Bayshore Rd, Villas, Dollar Tree, Hobby Lobby, VIM thrift, Full of Promise-3156 Rt 9 S., Rio Grande or The Et Cetera shop.
Below is some general information. This webpage will be updated as more show information becomes available.
Flower Show Divisions
(Formal specifications to follow)
The Flower Show is divided into two divisions:
- Design- floral arrangements and displays
- Horticulture-potted plants, cut specimens
1. DESIGN DIVISION - 6 classes based on popular fairy tales.
- Cinderella- inspired by a picture (provided).
- The colors in the picture are the inspiration for the arrangement.
- Tinkerbell- Miniatures, not to exceed 5 inches in any direction. Proportion is important in this class. Choose a container no larger than 3 inches in diameter (smaller is better).
- Snow White-Ikebana-Japanese flower arrangement. There will be a demonstration of this style at a 2026 Membership meeting.
A flower frog pin holder and a low container will be needed. - Rapunzel/Tangled- Hanging, free hanging arrangement suspended from a wooden frame measuring 30"x24"
- The container must not have a flat bottom.
- Beauty and the Beast-Novice (open to anyone who has not won a ribbon higher than Honorable Mention. Your choice of color is any combination of red, blue, and yellow
- Tablescape-Alice in Wonderland- create a full place setting for four people, including a tablecloth, dishes, low arrangement, and napkins. A group of 3 or fewer may enter this category.
2. HORTICULTURE DIVISION- 4 sections consisting of flowering and non-flowering potted plants, cut stems or branches.
Below are examples of Sections from previous shows. The 2026 flower show committee will determine the sections and classes for the 2026 Horticulture Division. This information will be updated if necessary.
- Section A- Single specimen container-grown plants
- Section B- Combination container-grown plantings
- Section C- Cut specimens
- Section D- Exotics and Oddities