Plant, flower festival showcases colors of the season

FLORENCE — There were pumpkins to the left, pumpkins to the right and flowers galore during the opening day of the Fall Plant & Flower Show Friday at the Pee Dee Farmer’s Market.

Traffic was heavy, but Maxine Norton of McColl was oblivious to all the flutter. She was seated at a bench engrossed in the best-selling book “Tuesdays With Morrie” by Mitch Albom.

“I came over here with my daughter-in-law,” she said, looking up from the book for a brief gander at the festive crowd. “She loves flowers so much and has a beautiful garden. Her yard is just exceptional.”

But any slack was taken up by Karen Bellos of Florence. Although she was looking for a fire bush, she got sidetracked and purchased two cardinal guards.

“They (cardinal guards) are tall and will attract butterflies, bees and humming birds,” said Bellos, past president of the Wildwood Garden Club and Florence Garden Society.

Helping Bellos was Katherine Mincey of Wolfe Gardens. Mincey was wearing a shirt that read: “Most people who drive me nuts are in my family.”

“People are pretty much buying a little bit of everything,” Mincey said. “We’re doing good with our grasses, mums, cardinal guards and Japanese maple and river birch trees.”

Further on down, Doris Hamilton of Dillon was eyeing some pansies.

“There are a lot of pretty flowers here,” she said, “but I’m looking at the purple and yellow pansies. I want to put them around my mailbox.”

Sylvia Bethea of Hamer was accompanying Hamilton.

“This is my first year here,” she said. “All the flowers are beautiful this fall.”

It sounded almost Shakespearean, “Double, double toil and trouble; Fire burn and cauldron bubble,” at Low Country Kettle Corn.

Clay Smith wasn’t looking for trouble, but he had the fire burning and cauldron bubbling as he stirred the popcorn with a paddle.

“Kettle corn is sweet and salty and prepared with corn oil, not butter,” said Smith’s wife, Charlotte. “It’s low-fat with no trans fat. It’s a great snack.”

Wendy Williams and Alda Amick of Irmo were seated on a bench plotting their strategy. They came with Redeemer Lutheran Church’s Leisure Times 55 and Over group.

“We started out at the (S.C.) Cotton Museum in Bishopville, ate lunch and just got here,” Williams said. “I came last year and really enjoyed it. They have lots more crafts and pottery here than they have in Columbia.”

“There’s a couple of empty seats on the bus near where I’m sitting,” Amick said. “I see some pretty flowers that look like they would like to ride home in those seats.”

Jana Goss of Florence said she hadn’t planned to spend any money. But that changed the minute she walked in the building.

“I’ve done a pretty good job of spending so far,” she said with a laugh. “I’ve already loaded the wagon down with pumpkins, herbs and a lemon tree.”

Ivory Wilson, owner of I.L. Wilson Farms and Wilson Produce, has been at the Farmer’s Market for six years, but has been selling produce for 40 years.

“People are buying a little bit of everything,” he said. “We’ve been selling pumpkins, flowers and produce.”

Jackie Moore is the flower show director. She works with the S.C. Department of Agriculture in Columbia.

“We have five shows a year, two in Florence, two in Greenville and one in Columbia,” she said. “We’re already planning for the next show here in the spring of 2009.”

If you`re going
What: Fall Plant & Flower Show
When: 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. Saturday, noon to 5 p.m. Sunday
Where: Pee Dee State Farmer’s Market, Florence.
Info: Call (843) 665-5154 or visit http://www.pdfarmersmarket.sc.gov