The heritage listed Royal Exhibition Building and Carlton Gardens will come in to bloom to celebrate the 20th year of the Melbourne International Flower & Garden Show (MIFGS).

The hallmark five day event features world class landscape designs and floral exhibits, taking place from Wednesday, 25 March to Sunday 29 March.

In honour of the Show entering its third decade as the Southern Hemisphere’s premier horticultural event, the Carlton Gardens will play host to the best landscape design talent yet, with the crowd stopping show gardens again providing attendees with inspiration they can take home to their own patch.

Inside the Royal Exhibition Building, leading Australian and international florists will create a range of interactive and memorable floral displays, transforming the hall into a floral wonderland in full bloom. Award winning florists Joseph Massie and Matthew Landers will be hosting workshops and presentations on the live stage, treating audiences to an insight in to how to achieve great floral artistry.

In a first for MIFGS, The Diggers Club will be creating its inaugural Diggers Garden, an extravagant and artful display garden showcasing a range of heirloom vegetables, fruit trees, flowers and imaginative structures. The garden will feature a dynamic program of workshops and demonstrations for budding gardeners and cooks alike from culinary and gardening identities. MIFGS Event Manager, Kathleen Rushford, is looking forward to a spectacular Show in celebration of the special anniversary.

"It’s our 20th year and we’re celebrating by hosting one of the most exciting events yet. The array of talent joining the Show both locally and abroad is really going above and beyond with their garden and floral designs to treat attendees to a horticultural spectacle."

There’s a wide range of activities for the whole family including the award winning Show Gardens, the Sculpture Garden featuring live sculpting sessions, the Great Hall of Flowers with its floral design workshops a s well as the Kids Under Cover Cubby House Challenge to keep the little ones entertained and raise awareness for a great cause.“

Whether you’re looking for inspiration to achieve your dream garden, wanting to pick up a fewhandy tips to make managing your outdoor space
easier, or if you just want to take a moment to stop and smell the roses, MIFGS is sure to satisfy the inner-green thumb in everyone,” said Ms Rushford.
As the most successful horticultural event in the Southern Hemisphere, it is expected that MIFGS will attract more than 110,000 international , national and local visitors across the five days.

Decorating the Royal Exhibition Building and Carlton Gardens, Show goers can expect to see these fantastic displays:

The prestigious and highly coveted Show Garden Design Award series recognises the best in the landscaping business across various categories. The awards are announced on the first day of the Show and are attended by the biggest names in the landscaping and floristry industry.

Luke Rabl from Jenny Smith Gardens, celebrating their 25 year anniversary, will create the Bee Keepers Garden, drawing attention to a fascination with bees with the garden structure
inspiration drawn from architectural forms found in bee honeycomb

Showcasing for the first time at MIFGS, Nathan Burkett will bring his love of crisp and clean lines, nature as art and architectural influences to his first MIFGS show garden . Expect a contemporary interpretation of a formal garden with luxe combination of timber, formed concrete, water and fire all framed in a soft landscape setting

Mark Browning from Cycas Landscape Design, who took out the 2014 Gold Show Garden will be back to create ‘Quietude’ in collaboration with Lisa Ellis,in a celebration of outdoor life, horticulture and bespoke Australian product.

The Local Nurseries Show Garden is presented by localnurseries.com.au, designed by Vivid Design and being built by Semken Landscaping . Look out for a retro - styled garden with a unique water feature .

Jake Adamsons from Hunter Black Design returns again designing a clean, minimalistic garden using a consortium of mediums including stone, timber, water and natural plant life

‘Cross Roads’ is a reflective of Ian Barker’s journey, presented by Australian House & Garden. Push forward through the doorway into a world of plants and amazing features - this will be a garden to look out for

‘Food Forest’ by Phillip Withers and Semken Landscaping will produce a garden which celebrates everything to do with food, with a keen focus on sharing an evening meal at a picnic table setting. Visitors can step into Adam and Eve’s forest complete with apples, berries and smells of rich lavender while the kids can feed the chickens and pick fresh vegetables

The Royal Exhibition Building once again comes to life as the Great Hall of Flowers, playing host to a floral wonderland for the duration of the Show with vibrant exhibits from leading florists and floral designers.
Matthew Landers returns to MIFGS demonstrating the very best of floristry tips and demonstrations on - stage.

The Sculpture Garden will line the central garden path with beautiful pieces of garden art available for purchase. Live sculpting demonstrations will also take place daily.

Live floral design competitions will take place throughout the Show which will see floristry students compete against their peers for the top awards.

Tickets are available for purchase through the RACV at http://bit.ly/mifgs15 or RACV HolidayLine on 13 13 29
.