It’s officially fall, but you wouldn’t notice it if you happen to be in the Plants & Flowers exhibits at the San Joaquin County Fair. Thriving inside Building 6 of the county fairgrounds are fresh and fragrant flowers of many varieties, plus an equal number of potted specimens including a good number of bonsai plants which are perennial favorites.

Doris Ashcroft, a Master Gardener and one of the volunteers in the horticulture exhibit building Friday, said the visitor traffic has been steady.

“We’ve had a lot of people come,” she said Friday about three hours after the gates opened at noon. “People that come in say (the exhibit) is beautiful and they enjoy it.”

She said she was not aware if changing the date of the fair from June to September had any impact at all on the number of flowers and plants entered this year. “I didn’t work in the building last year, so I can’t tell you what the ratio is,” she said.

However, she commented that “the cut flower specimens are probably less because there aren’t as many in bloom at this time of the year.”

The landscaping around the water feature centerpiece inside the Plants and Flowers building this year is courtesy of Silverado Nursery of Ripon. Among the plants provided by the nursery are grapes, lemon trees, and purple fountain grass. These are spread out around the waterfall that is a permanent feature inside this building exhibit.

Silverado Nursery also provided the eye-catching weeping cherry that is the design anchor for a patio setting that greets visitors at the door.

You may not be able to purchase any of the plants or flower specimens on display, but you can bring home some informational garden freebies courtesy of the San Joaquin Master Gardeners which has a booth inside the building.

They are also there to “answer questions, give out information and brochures on various garden problems,” Ashcroft said.

The fair is open from noon to 10 p.m. through Sunday which is the last day of this year’s event.