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Epcot in Spring

Behind the Scenes Preview of the 2014 Epcot Flower & Garden Festival

28 February 2014 by Suzannah Otis 5 Comments

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2014 Epcot Flower & Garden Festival
New Epcot Flower & Garden Festival logo design map and passport book for 2014

Today I had the honor of attending a small preview of the 21st annual Epcot International Flower & Garden Festival. Hard to believe this is the 21st year, but it is! The Flower and Garden Festival is officially old enough to drink, which is great, because this is the second year that the festival is incorporating food and beverage kiosks and serving unique alcoholic selections amid the topiaries and gardens. More on that later, but for now, let’s discuss rest of the festival, which has really received a reboot this year, in my opinion.

We met with Festival horticulture manager Eric Darden and horticulture manager Heather Will-Browne, who’s also a Disney flower and color palette expert (as well as an *original* opening year Cast Member, celebrating her 43rd year at Walt Disney World!). It was really interesting to hear exactly what goes into the planning, development and construction of the topiaries and garden areas. Eric clued us in about the inspiration for the main entrance topiaries, which he said they have been designing to pay homage to original Disney animated shorts. This year, he said they changed their character looks, basing them on the recent computer animated character designs and making them much more realistic. Rather than having no faces or synthetic facial features, they constructed plant-life faces this year and it really makes a difference in the overall design. The topiaries look sharper, cleaner and much more fun.

Mickey, Minnie and Pluto

New at the Festival this year (that was available for us to see):

  • Gardener’s Palette over by Innoventions East. This color garden features different plantings based on the four seasons, showcasing the colors available to grow, and when open, will also have a kids coloring station.
  • Hummingbirds at Home behind Mouse Gear where the tall birdhouses are. Members of the National Audubon Society are hoping to attract at least one nesting pair of hummingbirds this season, by placing feeders and hummingbird friendly flowers around this garden. Society members are currently tracking the hummingbirds migration and will update their current location daily, so be sure to stop by and check in. I’m really excited by this and hope to see these tiny little guys flitting about! You can also hear presentations from the National Audubon Society in the Festival Center, so check your guide.
  • Mike & Sulley’s Monstrous Garden takes last year’s showcase topiaries of Mike Wazowski and James P. “Sulley” Sullivan from Monster’s University and placed them in the kids playground area, which was Oz the Great and Powerful themed last year. The entire playground is Monster themed from the jungle gyms to the artificial grass featuring giant monster footprints. It’s a really cute area, and like last year, features shaded seating areas for parents while the kids play. I loved listening to the soundtrack from Oz last year, so I’ll be interested to hear the music selections this time around.

Kermit and Miss Piggy Topiary

  • Kermit and Miss Piggy Topiaries in between Italy and Germany, celebrating the opening of Muppets Most Wanted in theatres March 21 – and the all new Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs gang have been updated as well. There is also the first ever topiary photo opportunity with Goofy and a topiary soccer ball, in the Donald and Goofy garden between Future World and World Showcase.

There are a few other new areas this year, and of course the food options, or Outdoor Kitchens, which I’ll post about after the official opening of the Festival on March 5. Until then, I hope you enjoyed this little taste of what’s to come. I’m quite excited about the Festival this year and can’t wait to head back, enjoy the flowers, food, and concerts too.

Here’s a gallery of some of gardens we saw today:

The color wheel in garden form
Color garden
Hummingbird Habitat
Mater topiary under construction
Dad Gum!
Dad Gum Dad Gum!
Kids playground behind Mater
Instructions for the kids activity at Mater’s playground
Lightning McQueen in a new location this year
Lightning McQueen
The Goofy and Donald garden topiary photo op
The Goofy and Donald garden topiary photo op
A topiary soccer ball will be by Goofy for guest photos
Donald topiary
Mike and Sulley
Sulley print!
New Snow White, with a face!
The Seven Dwarfs
The rest of the Seven Dwarfs
Kermit and Miss Piggy
Kermit and Miss Piggy

Check back for more posts and info on the 2014 Epcot International Flower & Garden Festival soon!

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Filed Under: Disney Special Events, Top Stories, Walt Disney World Tagged With: #EpcotInSpring, 2014 Epcot International Flower & Garden Festival, Disney topiaries, Epcot, Epcot Flower and Garden Festival, Epcot in Spring, Epcot topiaries, Flower and Garden Festival, Walt Disney World

Nightime Magic at Epcot’s Flower and Garden Festival

12 March 2013 by Suzannah Otis 1 Comment

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The 20th annual Epcot International Flower & Garden Festival has really outdone itself this year with the addition of dining and drinking options at 12 booths around the World Showcase. In addition, there are some special nighttime effects for many of the topiaries, making the Festival a must-visit, day and night. I was so enchanted by a few of these displays, I had to create a special post to share the photos I took at night. I hope you enjoy the gallery of nighttime magic at the Flower and Garden Festival!

Fab 5 topiaries at night

 

Click to enter a slideshow of the images below:

Epcot Flower and Garden Festival at night
The monorail station has projections of the Flower & Garden logo, flowers, and butterflies on the monorail track
Fab 5 topiaries at night
The fab 5 still look great at night
Mickey topiary at night
Mickey is ready for a BBQ
Pluto topiary at night
…and so is Pluto!
Phineas and Ferb topiary at night
Phineas and Ferb have color-changing LED lights around them
Tow Mater topiary at night
Tow Mater
Lightning McQueen topiary at night
Lightning McQueen
Epcot's Garden Retreat at night
The Garden Retreat is a lovely seating area, day or night
Tinker Bell topiary at night
Tinker Bell and Periwinkle are the hit of the nighttime gardens
Tinker Bell topiary at night
Color-changing LED lights at the base accent the green laser lights on the fairies
Tinker Bell topiary at night
I could spend all night here!
Tinker Bell topiary at night
Close-up of sparkly Tink
Oz the Great and Powerful Garden
The Oz garden sign looks wonderful at night
Monsters University topiary
The Monsters University scene looks just as great at night
Monsters University topiary
Mike Wazowski, with braces!
Monsters University topiary
Monsters University topiary
Monsters University topiary
Monsters University topiary
Monsters University topiary
Monsters University topiary
Monsters University topiary
Monsters University topiary
Sully’s back spikes
Monsters University topiary
I love the shadows cast by the Monsters University gate
Monsters University topiary
Close-up of monster hands
Moose in Canada pavilion at night
Lit up moose in the Canada gardens
Beauty and the Beast topiaries at night
Beauty and the Beast
Beast topiary at night
Beast is a little scary as a close-up!
Lotso topiary at night
Lotso looks very happy, but I’d watch out for him…
Lady and the Tramp topiary at night
Lady and the Tramp
China dragon topiary at night
The dragon in China spits mist
China dragon topiary at night
I think the dragon in China should be there year-round
Norway troll topiary at night
A friendly troll?

 

Oz garden poppies
Hand-blown glass poppies in the Oz garden are beautiful at night!

 

Which display is your favorite at night? Mine is definitely Tinker Bell and Periwinkle – the fairy music playing in the background is the perfect touch!

Make sure you see our other posts on the Epcot International Flower and Garden Festival!

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Filed Under: Disney Special Events, Photos From the Parks, Top Stories, Walt Disney World Tagged With: China pavilion, Chinese dragon, Daisy Duck, Donald Duck, Epcot, Epcot at night, EPCOT Center, Epcot Flower and Garden 2013, Epcot Flower and Garden Festival, Epcot in Spring, Epcot International Flower and Garden Festival, Goofy, Italy pavilion, Lady and the Tramp, Lotso, Mickey Mouse, Mickey topiary, Mike Wazowski, Minnie Mouse, Monsters University, Night gardens, Norway pavilion, Norway troll, Periwinkle, Phineas and Ferb, pluto, Sully, tinker bell, topiaries, topiary, World Showcase

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