A sneak peek of this year’s Philadelphia Flower Show

The Philadelphia Flower Show will make its return to the Pennsylvania Convention Center this spring under the theme “The Garden Electric,” with exhibits meant to invoke the “electric jolt” that accompanies seeing something stunning.

After two years outside in FDR Park, this year’s indoor show will feature some of the largest displays exhibitors have ever created, as well as an immersive entrance garden and a new promenade that will wind guests through the full exhibit. (In years past, the path was more “choose your own adventure,” said Seth Pearsoll, the show’s creative director).

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“I love the flower show. It’s the official end of winter,” said Mayor Jim Kenney at a sneak peek at the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts. The show, which has been at the Convention Center for nearly three decades, typically brings in 250,000 guests and roughly $60 million in tourism dollars for the city. It’s the largest and longest-running event of its kind in the world, organizers said.

In front of a highly Instagram-able burst of pink roses and hydrangeas, the Pennsylvania Horticultural Society sought to increase excitement about the upcoming show, calling it “the most exquisite and beautiful to date” and presenting artistic renderings of some of the exhibits. One, designed by the Philly-based Ill Exotics shop, will be a “Studio 54-inspired disco” made to look like a nightclub overtaken by tropical flowers and foliage. It will include a DJ, dancers, and a bartender, all made from flowers.

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Another, by the Apiary Studio, will display plants that activate only at night. And an exhibit by Treeline Designz, led by Iftikhar Ahmed, will serve as a tribute to children in Ukraine, featuring “a magical, twinkling fairy house, home to the Peace Fairy.”

The show will run March 4-12. Live music, curated by Philly’s Snacktime, will be an important part of the event, Pearsoll said.

» READ MORE: After two years at FDR Park, the Flower Show will return to the Convention Center

Because of the pandemic, the show was held outdoors for the past two years at FDR Park, a change that brought concerns about weather, parking, ticketing, and transportation. The organizers of this year’s show said they hoped to bring inside the best of the outdoor experience, including the feeling of being fully immersed in nature.

“We hope ... you leave inspired by the transformative power of horticulture and you do something with it,” said Matt Rader, president of the Pennsylvania Horticultural Society. “You put your hands in your dirt, you arrange plants, you grow new flowers or vegetables this season, and you begin to build community.”