XVII The International Exhibition “Green is Life” 

XVII The International Exhibition "Green is Life" 

The International Exhibition “Green is Life” is the principal trade fair in Poland and in Central Eastern Europe for plants, garden technology and landscape architecture. It is the most important industry meeting forum for nurserymen, gardeners, suppliers of goods and services, sales staff, landscape architects and contractors. For sixteen years, it has been regularly organized at the end of August / beginning of September. Numerous exhibitors are the best evidence of the trade fair's reputation, including key Polish and European companies.
The XVII International ,,Green is Life" Exhibition took place in Warsaw on August 28-30 at the EXPO XXI Center.

The special guests at this year's Exhibition were Ms. Maria Kaczyńska – the wife of the President of Poland and Ms. Hanna Gronkiewicz-Waltz – the President of the Capital city of Warsaw.

53% of the exhibition area was occupied by plant producers (150 companies). Stands presenting plants filled up the entire larger EXPO hall (5,250 m2). Polish nurseries and horticulture were represented by 70 companies. The rich assortment of plants, variety of forms, numerous novelties, as well as neat and creative display made this largest presentation of decorative plants in Poland and in this part of Europe an impressive event not only for new guests, but also for regular attendees of the Exhibition.

In the other hall of the facility, exhibitors presented machines, equipment, technologies and products for nursery production, as well as green areas maintenance equipment. Garden equipment and decorations were also exhibited there. The 70 exhibitors representing this sector included, apart from Polish companies, firms from Germany, Holland and Austria. Furthermore, all of the most important trade publishers attended the Exhibition with their range of periodicals, specialized books, manuals and catalogues.

During 3 days, approximately 17 000 individuals visited the Exhibition ,,Green is Life". The first day, Friday, was limited to industry participants, but Saturday was also a day with many visitors that had a professional interest in the trade show. These mainly included: owners of garden centers, sales staff and buyers from wholesalers and markets, landscape architects and designers, garden service providers, officials responsible for public greenery in cities and local administrative districts, as well as producers - nurserymen, gardeners, and suppliers of production components. Visitors were not only drawn by the opportunity to have direct contact with exhibiting companies, but also the rich program of associated events.
This year's Exhibition hosted numerous guests from Russia, Belarus, the Ukraine, the Baltic states, the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Hungary, Germany, Holland, Belgium, France, Great Britain, Ireland, in addition to representatives from other countries in Europe and around the world. It should be emphasized that the Exhibition ,,Green is Life" is a vital forum for international contacts and business meetings - a 'must attend' event for anyone that needs to be in the center of what is happening in the industry.

Rich program
The Exhibition featured numerous events. The program was suited to meet the varied needs of Exhibition visitors. Professionals met on Thursday to participate in the conference devoted to public green areas. The two day meeting “Green City – Around the Water” was attended by 190 people responsible for managing and creating green spaces in cities and municipalities all over Poland. A large group of landscape architects and gardening contractors (over 160 people) was interested in a seminar devoted to new design concepts and trends. The seminar entitled “Profits Depend on Purchases”, conducted by the German expert Matthias Donners, was targeted at garden centre owners and traders.
Yet another event was the conference entitled “City of the Future: Parks and Green Areas Have a Positive Impact on the Environment”, organised by a consortium of Italian scientific institutions and the Embassy of Italy.

Garden on the Wave
Water was the main theme of this year's Exhibition and its slogan was: ”Garden on the Wave”. The Display Garden, located at the entrance of the EXPO hall, alluded to both the theme and the slogan with water as its leitmotif. A city garden, with a square, places to rest, and surrounded by a dense hedge of plants, was designed with great panache by landscape architects from Pleneria.
Water motifs were also present in the arrangements of exhibition stands, as well as associated lectures and presentations. However, the topic of water in city space and landscape architecture was discussed most extensively during the conference on municipal green spaces.

Prizes 
Finals of two contests were held during the Exhibition.
In the GREEN LAUREL contest, the following prizes were awarded:
GREEN LAUREL for the best garden and green areas product to TANAKE Group Sp. z o.o. for PERFECT COOL cooling systems;
HONORABLE MENTION to Zielona Architektura for natural rolled turf.
GREEN LAUREL for the best nursery product to ANT-Polska for the ANT5 sowing line; HONORABLE MENTION to EazyCut/ Pack TTI for the EazyCut 500 Electric.
HONORARY LAUREL of the 17th International Exhibition ”Green is Life” was awarded to Prof. Tomasz J. Nowak of the Wrocław University and Hanna Grzeszczak-Nowak, M.S. Eng., for consequent and creative promotion of ornamental plants and gardening culture.
In the PLANT NOVELTIES CONTEST, the Jury awarded:
GOLD MEDAL for Quercus 'Monument' from Szkółka Drzew i Krzewów Ozdobnych Joanny i Bronisława Szmit;
SILVER MEDAL for Clematis 'Królowa Jadwiga' from the nursery Clematis, Sz. Marczyński, W. Piotrowski, Szkółka Pojemnikowa s.j.
BRONZE MEDAL for Syringa vulgaris ROSE DE MOSCOU® from the nursery Pépinieres Minier S.A (France);
HONORABLE MENTIONS:
Betula utilis 'Long Trunk' from Szkółka Drzew i Krzewów Ozdobnych Joanny i Bronisława Szmit,
Rhus typhina TIGER EYES submitted by Plantmar - Mariusz Lewandowski.

Organisers: Polish Nurserymen Association, Agencja Promocji Zieleni Sp. z o.o.
e-mail: prozielen@zszp.pl