(News Release)
The Lung Association
presents
“Blooming
Beautiful”
The
Stratford Garden Festival is fifteen years old and it’s still “Blooming
Beautiful”! This annual celebration of
all things gardening continues to draw people from across southern Ontario and
win praise for the caliber of the show. In fact, the Stratford Garden Festival
was honoured to be named 2014 “Festival of the Year” by the Canadian Garden Tourism Council. This
success is shared by all the dreamers and planners, landscapers and exhibitors,
sponsors and volunteers past and present whose efforts have created such a
wonderful longstanding event and important fundraiser for The Lung Association.
Presented
by The Lung Association and sponsored by Orr Insurance and Investment, The
Stratford Garden Festival is now celebrating its 15th anniversary. Since
its beginning in 2001, a net of more than $800,000 has been raised through this
event to support The Lung Association in its medical research commitments and
lung health initiatives around asthma and COPD, such as the Asthma Action Program, BreathWorks and Your Healthy Home. With as many as one in five people in the
province living with some kind of breathing problem, the work of The Lung
Association is more important than ever.
The Gardens
Eight
gardens will showcase the talent and creativity of area landscapers and offer
inspiration for the gardening season ahead.
Visitors will discover ideas to apply to their own gardens - from water
features to the use of colour and form, from designing a quiet green oasis to
creating a modern setting for outdoor entertaining – and meet some of the
experts who can assist them in creating that magic at home.
Richard
Ivey of Richard’s Lawn and Garden Care is placing a vintage 1926 Model T car as
the focal point of his garden while Sebringville Garden Centre will create a
fairy glen of leafy ferns and cool moss, the perfect home for magical
inhabitants.
A
number of beautifully-designed planters on display in the lobby will create a sense
of anticipation and greet visitors with a “Blooming Beautiful” taste of spring.
The Marketplace
The
Stratford Garden Festival offers a Marketplace bursting with items to tempt the
garden enthusiast. From the latest in
plants and seeds to hand-crafted pottery, from garden accessories to whimsical
bird houses, and from metal work to local honey and jams, there is something to
suit every taste and budget. The
Marketplace will feature a number of exhibitors new to the Stratford Garden
Festival in 2015 as well as many returning favourites.
The Speaker Series
Everyone from the
gardening novice to the seasoned green thumb will learn something at the
ongoing Speaker Series where Ontario’s top garden gurus will give you the real
dirt on gardening.
Frank Ferragine
(aka “Frankie Flowers”) of Breakfast Television will share his thoughts on “The
Crazy World of Gardening”.
Carson Arthur of
HGTV’s show, Critical Listings, will advise
on where best to invest your gardening and landscaping dollars in “Growing Your
Investment”, Sean James will discuss
the planning that goes into “Maturing a Garden”, and Miriam Goldberger will share her expertise on “Taming Wildflowers”.
Garden writer and
columnist David Hobson will speak
about “Great Plants, Great Gardens” while Garden Making Magazines’s Beckie Fox will get people off to a
great start with her presentation “New Garden?
What To Do First”.
Other presentations over
the four days include “The 7 Habits of Highly Successful Vegetable Growers”, “Preserving
Your Produce”, “Seed Saving 101”, “Growing Gourmet”, “Mini Hosta”, “Colour in
Your Garden – It Isn’t Just for Flowers” as well as Seasonal Flower Arranging
demonstrations.
SPECIAL EVENTS
Seniors’ Tea – March 5
The
Garden Festival is open to everyone today but gardening aficionados 65 and over
are encouraged to come out on Thursday, March 5. This is an opportunity to enjoy the gardens,
visit the Marketplace and take in the speakers when the show tends to be less
crowded. With their $9 general admission,
seniors will receive a complimentary gourmet cookie and cup of tea.
Sponsored by Action Health
Care
Opening Garden Party – March
5
The Opening Garden Party is
the ultimate sneak peek. From 6 - 8:30
pm guests can mingle with friends, wander through beautiful gardens and browse
the Marketplace while enjoying a glass of red or white from Pelee Island Winery
or a thirst-quencher from a craft brewery.
A wonderful selection of canapés showcasing the Flavours of Perth prepared
by local restaurants will tempt the palate and live music in the gardens will add
to the fun. Auctioneer extraordinaire Stratford
mayor Dan Mathieson and emcee Kevin Hulley will get the bids going on a host of
things both fun and fabulous.
Tickets
to the Opening Garden Party are $30/person
Sponsored
by Parlee Law Offices and supported by Pelee Island Winery,The Parlour Inn, A
Vintage Hotel and Home & Company Real Estate
Family Fun Night – March 6
Family Fun Night, from 5 - 8 pm, offers a
rollicking good time for the whole family.
While their parents take in the gardens and Marketplace, the “little
sprouts” can create a garden craft, enjoy story-telling and face painting,
munch on free refreshments and take part in a scavenger hunt. As always, kids are admitted free.
Sponsored by Marklevitz
Architects and supported by Shoppers Drug Mart
The
Canadian Grub Café
Visitors
to the Stratford Garden Festival will be able to enjoy a variety of delicious
light lunch items from Canadian Grub Café. Chef Robert Rose was featured last year on
Food Network’s Chopped Canada.
Admission
to the Stratford Garden Festival is $9. at the door. Children twelve and under are free. Tickets to the Opening Garden Party can be
ordered by calling The Lung Association at 519-271-7500. More information on directions, group
discounts, special events and speaker schedule is available at www.stratfordgardenfestival.com
or by calling The Lung Association.
At
A Glance
Event: The Stratford Garden Festival
Date: March 5 – 8, 2015
Hours: Thursday, March
5
12 noon - 5 pm
Friday,
March 6 10 am - 8 pm
Saturday,
March 7 10 am – 5:30 pm
Sunday,
March 8
10 am - 5pm
Where: Stratford
Rotary Complex, 353 McCarthy Road, Stratford - directions on website www.stratfordgardenfestival.com
Admission: $9. at the door. Children 12 and under free
Group Rate: Pre-arranged groups of 12 or more
are $7/person
Theme: “Blooming Beautiful”
Presented
by: A
fundraiser to support the work of The Lung Association
Event
Sponsor: Orr
Insurance and Investment
Website: www.stratfordgardenfestival.com
Email: dherman@on.lung.ca
Phone: 519-271-7500
Contact: Deedee Herman, Area Manager
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