I hope all of you have read Part One, "Why Host a Daylily Show?"  I have received numerous questions from AHS members about daylily shows. This subject has also come up often on the AHS Email Robin. So I asked Nikki Schmith, Chair of Photographic Media, from Region 2; Joann Stewart, Chair of Exhibition Judges Records,  from Region 5; and Gwen Pennington, a member of the Ombudsman Committee from Region 6, for their thoughts on why a club should hold a daylily show. For this part of their response, they discussed how a club can make the show more fun and interesting for the public and club members alike.

QUESTION: HOW CAN WE MAKE THE SHOW MORE INFORMATIVE AND INTERESTING FOR THE PUBLIC?

Joann Stewart writes, "Education is the key to getting the public involved."  She suggests having easels with information about exhibition judges' training and qualifications and a list of rules for judging located close to the exhibit tables, not off to the side where no one sees the information.

These materials  can be focal points for an impatient public while judging is taking place, giving  onlookers something to read while they wait. There should be an explanation somewhere about the award ribbons and their significance, and about the significance of the head table entries.

Most people aren't aware that hybrid daylilies are registered. If, however, the public is made aware that entries are judged by their adherence to registered characteristics, the judging process makes instant sense to them, even if they've never seen a registered daylily before that moment. Samples of daylily registrations might also be on an easel, with the AHS system of points shown beside it, along with the explanation that exhibits are judged only in comparison to others in the same class, not against all other entries, until they reach the head table.

Joann wants to make sure to get the public involved. She suggests, "Have a big sign saying 'People's Choice' and ask onlookers to vote for their favorite daylily. Provide containers for tickets at each exhibit, and after judging is concluded, put the winners out at displays in a central location. Give out a limited numbers of tickets to onlookers with instructions to submit their ticket for their choice in each division. This gives you a chance to explain the divisions of a show. Give a prize (ideally a club or AHS membership) for the winner whose ticket is drawn out of the container of the daylily with the most votes."

Joann also suggests,  "give the most outgoing person in the club the job of standing near the education table, handing out information, smiling and answering questions. I can't emphasize enough the importance of smiling at passersby, and engaging them if you can."

QUESTION: HOW CAN WE MAKE OUR DAYLILY SHOW MORE ENJOYABLE FOR OUR CLUB MEMBERS?

The Albuquerque Daylily Club has a potluck the night before the show for our judges. Since we get our judges from out of state, they usually arrive the day before the show. As judges' chair, I host a "Gourmet Potluck."  Our club members sign up for what they are going to bring and it is always one of the best meals of the year. We have it early in the evening so the members can get back home to prepare for the next day.

For our winners, we give a daylily nursery gift certificate, which the members love spending! Many clubs give crystal or other prizes, but we know our members would rather get a daylily, so the gift certificates are perfect. All the commercial nurseries have them.

Some of our members have small gardens and are reluctant to cut a scape for a show. So, we have added a photography exhibit. Gwen mentions that "This is a way of allowing members to share other interests." The photography exhibit can also incorporate various categories. This year not only did Albuquerque have a class for "Single Flower or Clumps of Growing Daylilies" but also one for "Landscape/Design Featuring Daylilies" and one for "Special Effects Featuring Daylilies." The photography division has been very popular with many of the members.

Joann has another idea of adding incentives for club participation. "Daylily clubs have a limited number of members who are actively engaged in club affairs, and these members generally feel overworked and underappreciated by the end of the year. Shows do take energy! Some clubs have member benefits (like bonus points) to reward workers. If your club doesn't have this system, there are other incentives a club might offer to get more members involved."

Joann goes on to say "Determine your show goals (more people to help set up, dismantle, enter exhibits, become clerks, etc.) and find ways to entice helpers. This might be as small as a $5 gift certificate to a fast food restaurant for people helping set up or take down, or as large as a drawing for an AHS membership, a really nice daylily, or a nice bottle of wine. The gift might also be offered for other volunteer activities, such as  helping divide clumps for a plant sale."

Nikki offers some ideas about how to get the exhibitors enthused and organized. She suggests, "Have the chair get the show tags early from AHS and distribute them. Have a quick learning session on how to fill them out correctly and completely. Hold a grooming clinic a couple of weeks before the show. Add an off-scape section."  She also suggests adding a photography contest. "Add a novice section that allows first-timers to enter without too much fear. Carpool to nearby shows , if possible,  to see what's being done. Offer a chance for a raffle prize of good value (a new introduction, a book about daylilies, a three-year membership to AHS, etc.) to all exhibitors. You could offer them one chance to win for every scape they enter."

In closing this discussion, Joann writes,  "Once club members have done it, and realized the companionship and sense of accomplishment to be found in putting on a good show, they're likely to repeat the experience. Above all, having fun is the most important part of a show, so try to create ways to achieve that goal." Nikki adds, "The purpose of a daylily show is to get people inspired about daylilies, and we can't do that if our members don't bring in a few to share. I promise, if you bring scapes to the show and participate with an open mind, you will have a great time.  You will have connected with the club, you will have connected to the national organization, and you will have connected with the other daylily fans like yourself. Having a show for your local gardening public is a tradition worth the effort."