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Saturday, January 19, 2002
Show season is blooming Olympia couple bring their skills, enthusiasm to annual Tacoma show SARAH JACKSON, THE OLYMPIAN Originally published Saturday, January 19, 2002
OLYMPIA -- This time of year, Jean and Bill Canfield often find themselves at the center of things.
But it's not because they're preparing for a bountiful spring with the 20,000 rhodies on their land north of Olympia, also blessed with an orchard, vegetable gardens and dazzling dahlias and azaleas.
They're getting ready for the 2002 GMC Tacoma Home and Garden Show.
Two cordless phones in their home on Libby Road ring regularly. They never know when garden celebrities Ciscoe Morris or Marianne Binetti might be calling.
Mostly the calls are for Jean -- busy, again, coordinating gardening demos and seminars for the show.
"You speak early because we open at 11," Jean chirps into one phone to Rick Longnecker of J&I Power Equipment of Olympia. "Rick Longnecker! We couldn't do this show without you. You're in the theater -- 45 minutes. You can do it."
Jean clicks the phone, which beeps as it goes off.
"He does a great program on how to maintain your equipment -- really good hints," Jean says excitedly. "I try to find people who are knowledgeable. Some people know a heck of a lot, but are not good speakers. I try to balance the program."
For 15 years, Jean's coordinated all of the garden-oriented seminars and demonstrations for the largest combined home and garden show in the state.
Showgoers will find more than 80 demonstrations between Jean's selections and demos arranged by the Pierce County Master Gardeners in the exhibition hall -- in addition to more than 25 seminar speakers.
Even more demos and speakers will fill the dome portion of the Tacoma Dome, focused more on trends in interior decorating and home ownership.
Once a conference manager for Washington State University's Cooperative Extension, Jean today works as an independent meeting planner on events such as the Tacoma Home and Garden Show, a five-day event starting Jan. 30.
"You pick up a lot of new ideas. It's fun, really, because, actually, I have yet to meet a gardener that wasn't a nice person," Jean said. "It gets to be almost like a family. We're all happy to see each other."
Bill, Jean's good-humored husband of 50 years and a former president of the local American Rhododendron Society, has spoken at the show for nearly as many years as Jean has scheduled speakers.
Bill, whose demonstration talks at the show sometimes draw standing-room-only crowds of more than 50 at a time, employs a healthy sense of humor.
"I never know what he's going to do next," Jean said. "One time, he was demonstrating pruning and I walked down and here he was with a hanky tied over his eyes saying, 'You don't need to see what you're doing, you just feel.'
"He was pruning away," Jean said. "He's funny sometimes."
This year, Bill, also owner of Waterwheel Nursery on the couple's property, will talk about pruning rhododendrons damaged by winter storms, how to choose the right rhododendron for the right spot and how to get started with azaleas.
Bill will emphasize that rhodies can take a lot of pruning -- more than roses.
"They are tough. We've got big ones as high as the ceilings. I kid them a lot," Bill said of showgoers who attend his popular seminars. "They say, 'I'm afraid to prune my rhodies.' "
When the event kicks off at the Tacoma Dome, Jean and Bill will be at the show every day -- Jean, bustling about to introduce speakers and ensure all the seminars go as planned, while Bill helps out and presents his own demos.
Bob O'Loughlin, producer of the event by O'Loughlin Trade Shows of Tacoma, said the Canfields make an excellent team.
"They're awesome," O'Loughlin said. "I can't think of a better couple to work with. Jean has coordinated the speakers for us -- which is a very complicated job -- and her husband, Bill, is the support man. They're great people."
Beyond the Canfields, South Sound residents have been an integral part of the sprawling show -- with more than 750 booths -- for years.
This year, the Olympia presence at the show includes appearances by:
- Jack Kiley, a well-known rose exhibitor, a member of the Olympia Rose Society and an accredited horticultural judge. Kiley will conduct a seminar at 4 p.m. Feb. 1 on English Austin Roses, a shrub-type rose especially bred for repeat blooms, hardiness and ease of care. He'll be in the theater in the exhibition hall.
- Mike McCloud, "The Mad Wacker" of Olympia, a consulting rosarian and an accredited rose judge for the American Rose Society. McCloud received his nickname when pruning and caring for his original collection of more than 1,000 plants. After he retired, he cut his garden down to only 250 roses. McCloud will speak at 7 p.m. Feb. 1 on the three Ps of rose culture -- pruning, planting and picking. He'll also be in the theater in the exhibition hall.
- Evonne Peryea of Tumwater, owner of Plantasia nursery and a local landscape designer. She'll present "I'm Tired of Yard Work" at 3 p.m. Feb. 2 in the theater. Peryea, an experienced Master Gardener, will explain labor-saving tips to help gardeners better manage yard work and decrease landscape maintenance.
- Wayne Parpala of Olympia, a member of the Olympia Rose Society. Parpala will talk about rose culture and pruning at 2 p.m. Jan. 31 in the demonstration area of the exhibition hall.
- Bill Canfield will present "Pruning Rhodies to Repair Winter Storm Damage" at 7 p.m. Jan. 30 and Feb. 2; "Starting Azaleas from Seeds or Cuttings" at 4 p.m. Jan. 31; and "Choosing the Right Rhody for the Right Place" at 4 p.m. Feb. 1 in demonstration area.
- Rick Longnecker of J&I Power Equipment of Olympia will speak at noon Feb. 3, also in the demonstration area.
Olympia businesses exhibiting at show include:
- Second Use Building Materials of Olympia and Seattle, which removes and resells usable fixtures, doors, windows and other elements from buildings being remodeled or demolished.
- Desco Audio & Video of Olympia, seller of home theater and audio equipment.
- Cell Tell/Sky Systems of Olympia, seller of satellite TVs as well as cellphone equipment.
- The Lily Pad of Olympia, a family-owned company selling lily bulbs, day lilies, perennials, peonies and tree peonies for the past 15 years at the Olympia Farmers Market.
Bill and Jean believe the home show is a jumping off point for many businesses.
"We've been at the show so long, we find people who bring in their ideas," Bill said. "Pretty soon, they can't come to the shows anymore. They're too busy on their own."
Jean likes the wide variety of experts.
"The home show's kind of a regional show," Jean said. "It's a busy place and it's fun."
Sarah Jackson writes for The Olympian and can be reached at 360-704-6871 or olyjax@yahoo.com.
- What: 2002 GMC Tacoma Home and Garden Show with more than 750 exhibits and a colorful display of Americana.
- Where: Tacoma Dome.
- When: This year's show runs from 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. Jan. 30 and 31, 11 a.m.-10 p.m. Feb. 1 and Feb. 2 and 11 a.m.-4 p.m. Feb. 3.
- Cost: Admission is $8. Two-day passes are $12. Tickets are sold at the door. Visit www.otsusa.com or call 253-756-2121 for more information.
The Olympian Copyright 2002 |
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