Fires, Quakes Prompt Chelsea Flower Show’s Cancellation

FOUNTAIN VALLEY — A commercial flower show scheduled for March 18-21 at Mile Square Park in Fountain Valley has been called off.

The Chelsea America Flower Show was canceled Wednesday because exhibitors were unable to keep their commitment to participate because of the recent string of natural disasters, show promoters said.

Joni Nelson, founder of the show headquartered in New York, said in a statement that the cancellation best serves the interests of the public and exhibitors, many of whom are in the landscape and commercial nursery business. She said the commitment to producing future shows in Southern California is unchanged.

Next month’s show was to have been the second in what the organizers hoped would become an annual event in Southern California. Flower shows are designed to foster an interest in gardening and have been long established in cities with short growing seasons, including Seattle, Boston and Philadelphia. They typically feature display gardens, new products and seminars.

Last year’s Chelsea America show, held in Pacific Palisades, was rained out two of the four scheduled days. It had 70 exhibitors and drew an estimated 20,000 people.

Although it has a similar name, the Chelsea America Flower Show is not affiliated with the Chelsea Flower Show in England, produced by the Royal Horticultural Society. The society is challenging the use of the Chelsea name in U.S. Trademark Court.

The Chelsea America organization said Wednesday that scheduled exhibitors in the Fountain Valley show were being contacted individually and would be offered a refund of any fees paid or the option of applying the money toward registration for a 1995 show.