Hicks Nurseries' annual flower show in Westbury brings on the games

A giant Jenga game is currently taking place in the center of Hicks Nurseries’ greenhouse in Westbury with pieces as high up as 12 feet in the air. This is all part of the 36th Annual Flower & Garden Show, running through March 29, where this year’s theme is "Game of Gardens."

"The gardens are based on various types of games ranging from board games to lawn games to carnival games," landscape designer Ken Muellers says. "These games will resonate nostalgically with a lot of people. I think it’ll be a hit on many levels."

HOW IT WORKS

The show acts as a preview of spring, which is no easy feat, because all the flowers are forced to bloom early using Hicks’ greenhouse method.

"The process starts outside in the cold during the fall. The plants need to have a cold spell and experience some sort of a winter before they can have a spring," Muellers describes. "The first plants come into the greenhouse in late December and get put under heat to start warming them up. There’s a lot of variation, depending on the plants. Some need to be in the heat for 45 days to open up, other plants might need 60 days or maybe just 10 days."

In addition to the Jenga centerpiece, there are eight different game-themed gardens featuring 250 varieties of plants. Here’s a peek into what’s on display.

RAGING RAGING RHINOS

For those who can recall the late ‘70s Milton Bradley game, Hungry Hungry Hippos, Raging Raging Rhinos echoes that sentiment.

"There’s a total of three rhinos surrounded by colorful tropical plants," says Muellers, who designed the garden. "One rhino is bright yellow with yellow calla lilies, African daisies, pico begonias and mahonia. The center rhino is orange with orange clivia, kalanchoe and croton. The third rhino is pink surrounded by pink orchids, mums, pico begonias and calla lilies."

BOARDWALK GAMES

Picture carnival games like target shooting, a basketball hoop or go fish with stuffed animal prizes along a beach boardwalk for this garden. Growing inside will be palm trees, sea grapes,  Gerbera daisies, calla lilies and Dusty miller you might see along the shore in the summer.

READY PLAYER BUILD

This garden, designed by landscape designer Kristen Kelly, contains oversized building blocks and Legos mixed with tropical plants like Bismarck palm, which has gray spiky palm leaves and Del Mar bromeliad, a purplish multicolored flower.

THE JUNGLE’S CALL: RISE OF THE VOLCANO

One of the most elaborate gardens is called The Jungle’s Call: Rise of the Volcano featuring a 10-foot-tall active volcano that smokes every 15 minutes.

"I love the movie ‘Jumanji’ and they made an actual game board out of the film," landscape designer Anthony Musso says. "In the garden there’s a game-winning path to the green jewel, which is an ode to the movie."

The garden shows off giant Australian tree ferns, majesty palm trees, Areca palms and more foliage that gives off the feeling that you are in a rainforest-type of environment.

CHESS GARDEN

Visitors will see kalanchoe flowering along with crabapple trees, topiary roses on a stick, boxwood hedging, peonies, lilacs, dahlias and a fig tree in the Chess Garden.

"The garden has a medieval castle turret right in the center with a moat around it containing Koi fish," landscape designer Peter Hogarty says. "There’s also a checkerboard made of synthetic turf and porcelain tiles with oversized chess pieces."

KINGDOM OF CONFECTIONS

Tapping into the board game Candy Land, Kingdom of Confections, created by landscape designer Ariel Howell, focuses on sweet treats. A giant lollipop, ice cream cone and gingerbread house blend with dwarf flowering almonds, Daphne, pink orchids and kalanchoe. "There’s even a pond in there with a chocolate waterfall," Muellers says. "It will make the kids hungry!"

LAWN GAMES

Put together by landscape designer Craig Donnelly, the Lawn Games Garden has a backyard setting with plants you would find at a typical suburban home. Picture a tree house with a tire swing plus lawn games like horseshoes and bocce among azaleas, rhododendrons, crabapple trees and lilacs.

THE GARDEN OF LIFE

The board game Life becomes the Garden of Life in landscape designer Tom Cahill’s vision containing bright colors of red, yellow and purple with gerbera daisies, hydrangeas and spur flowers.

"There’s a colorful path going through the garden in the center with an oversized spinner from the game," Muellers says. "As you go through the path, you’ll see the various stages of life like a graduation, a wedding and a child’s crib."

FOR KIDS

There will be several activities for children such as a scavenger hunt activity sheet to help them explore the gardens as well as a "Plant a Pea" program.

"Kids get a container with soil and a pea seed that they plant, take home and watch it grow," Muellers says.

Additionally, there is a paid activity where children get to make their own Lego builds and own them for $20 per person.

PLANT SALES

There will be plant sales to coincide with the show such as four geraniums for $5, a flat of 32 pansies for $19.99, and potted tulips, daffodils or hyacinths are $7.99 if you buy three or more.

"After this rough winter, people are dreaming of spring. This show gives them inspiration because it’s a living, breathing preview of the season ahead," director of marketing Eleni Roselli says. "Once you experience it, spring doesn’t feel that far away anymore."