The Hong Kong Flower Show, held in Victoria Park from March 11 to 20, was a resounding success, attracting a patronage of over 460 000 people. The theme flower for this year's show was 'Rhododendron'. Apart from over 60 species and cultivars of rhododendrons and other exotic flowers and plants from all over the world, visitors were treated to magnificent floral art displays by horticultural groups from Hong Kong, the Mainland and overseas. In all, there was participation from over 170 horticultural organisations, private firms and government departments from the Mainland, Canada, Finland, France, Germany, Indonesia, Italy, Japan, Malaysia, the Netherlands, Norway, the Philippines, Singapore, South Africa, Spain, Switzerland, the UK and the USA.

	The theme flower of the 2005 Hong Kong Flower Show — the Rhododendron.

In addition to major attractions such as landscape features, floral arrangements, potted plants and bonsai displays, the show also provided a wide range of educational and recreational fringe activities. These included horticultural talks, demonstrations of flower arranging, musical performances, cultural presentations, exhibits, drawing and photo competitions, plant-care workshops and guided visits to promote interest in horticulture and the greening of Hong Kong.

	Musical performances at the flower show.

	Students striving to capture the beauty of flowers in the drawing competition.