The Garden Show will run from 10:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Saturday, and from noon to 4 p.m. on Sunday. The event is free and open to the public.

The center of the mall will be filled with flowers, plants and foliage grown by members of the club and others in the community.

Many of the flowers and plants come from the entrants’ gardens — or grown in gardens of friends and neighbors.

“Some people have plants in their houses, rather than do a lot of gardening outdoors,” club member Nancy Phillips said. “So they’ll bring those, so it’s really interesting to see the horticulture, all the different kinds. We have tables and tables and tables of horticulture.”

She said she often sees plants like African violets, hibiscus, cacti, begonias and more.

The horticulture division entries are judged on the plant as a specimen, while the design divisions are entries judged on how the entrant used the plants and flowers to create a design to fit the design prompt.

Each class within the divisions are themed after a different song from the 1950s — “Great Balls of Fire,” “Dream a Little Dream,” “Wake Up Little Susie” and more. There are a variety of awards and ribbons awarded for the show.

Phillips encourages people who aren’t entering their plants and flowers to come out to the show too.

“It’s the only event of its kind in town, in Fort Dodge,” she said. “The many, many horticulture exhibits alone are interesting.”

She said there are often some unusual plants on display during the show.

“I know one lady, she grows orchids,” Phillips said. “Sometimes she brings 18 different pots of plants that she’s grown.”

There’s so much to see and the event is family-friendly, she added.

“Kids like to look, too,” she said. “I took my grandsons one year and they were … their eyes just got big.”

Gardeners who are not members of the garden club are allowed to enter the show. For information on entering and the different classes and divisions, call club President Shirley Wolf at 515-544-3288.