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Flower and Garden Festival

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

Epcot’s 20th Flower & Garden Festival in Full, Delicious Bloom!

12 March 2013 by Suzannah Otis 1 Comment

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Epcot International Flower & Garden Festival This year marks the 20th annual Epcot International Flower and Garden Festival, held in both Future World and World Showcase around Epcot, and known for its larger-than-life topiaries of our favorite Disney characters and scenes. This year is a little different, however, because the creators of the festival have added a big bonus this year, in the form of 12 booths featuring Spring-inspired culinary dishes and fruit-infused beers, wines and other adult beverages, as well as some non-alcoholic options. As a fan of the Epcot International Food & Wine Festival, I think this is a wonderful addition. With 12 booths, it’s not overwhelming to World Showcase, and the offerings are completely unique and new to the Flower & Garden Festival. This addition of food and wine was 5 years in the making, and I think worth every minute of planning. The items offered are focused on fresh, light flavors, or those reminiscent of the coming summer – as found in the Smokehouse area of the American pavilion. I haven’t had a chance to try all the options yet, but so far my favorite was the “Frushi” or fruit sushi – fresh fruit rolled inside coconut rice. It’s not too sweet, it’s just perfect!

As far as the drink options, the biggest buzz is for the Dole Whip with a shot of Siesta Key spiced rum. I gave this a try – for research purposes of course – and it was a very unique experience. Unless you are a huge fan of rum by itself, I recommend mixing it all up so it’s like a frozen drink vs. trying to drink the rum alone. My favorite adult offering of the festival is the sparkling brut with elderflower syrup, found in the German booth. It was so yummy! I’ll let you discover your own favorites as you stroll around the World Showcase promenade – but don’t forget to visit the Festival Center where the Intermissions Cafe has its own set of drinks and snacks to try.

Dole Whip with Rum

With the addition of the food and wine selections, the Flower & Garden Festival also borrows the passport which is so popular during the Food & Wine Festival. Guests can pick up a Garden Passport at the Festival Center (make sure to get your first stamp there!) and then get a stamp at each garden location and food booth around the festival. It’s a fun activity for adults and kids alike!

Speaking of kids, my 4 year-old tested out all of the kids play areas and gave his thumbs up for the Radiator Springs garden and the Oz garden, both featuring some really fun playground equipment to climb, jump, and explore, as well as comfy seating for parents to supervise. The Tinker Bell and Friends Butterfly House is a perfect theme for the butterfly gardens, and a great learning opportunity with chrysalis collections and new butterflies emerging daily.

Radiator Springs garden

Also be sure to check out the Festival Center over in the former Wonders of Life pavilion, for some great hands-on demonstrations and seminars from the festival sponsor, HGTV. I got to see a sneak peek of some of the seminars from HGTV stars, and guests were learning about some great planting tips and even getting to plant their own little garden starter. The Festival Center also features the fun new Epcot Flower and Garden merchandise for the 2013 – including the Vera Bradley and Disney handbag preview.

Later today I’ll be featuring some of the amazing nighttime gardens, which are another plus this year at the festival and gives some areas an entirely different look than in the day. Until then, because of the sheer number of topiaries, food, play areas, and more at the Epcot Flower and Garden Festival, I made a flickr set to share all the photos I took. I didn’t include photos of everything…you’ll need to get over to Epcot and check out all the delicious fun in person! Right now there over 200 photos in the see. Enjoy!

 

Monsters University topiary
Here’s a sneak peek at the topiaries at night!

And don’t forget the Flower Power concert series, featuring some classic acts which are the perfect accompaniment to the flowers and food found around Epcot. I got a chance to meet Micky Dolenz of The Monkees, and he was thrilled to be a part of the concert series, and hopes to return each year. I hope to see you around the World Showcase lagoon and all of Epcot, enjoying all there is to see at the 20th International Flower and Garden Festival!

Epcot Flower & Garden Festival

 

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Filed Under: Disney Dining, Disney Special Events, Top Stories, Walt Disney World Tagged With: Disney characters, Dole Whip, Dole whip with rum, Epcot Flower and Garden 2013, Epcot Flower and Garden Festival, Epcot Food and Wine Festival, Flower and Garden Festival, fresh fruit, frushi, Future World, kids play areas, Oz garden, Radiator Springs Garden, smokehouse, Tinker Bell butterfly house, topiaries, World Showcase

NEW Epcot International Flower and Garden Festival Merchandise!

7 March 2013 by Suzannah Otis Leave a Comment

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Flower and Garden Festival

This Wednesday was the first day of Epcot International Flower and Garden Festival 2013 and I was, of course, very excited to check out the new merchandise! Every year the festival features some newly designed merchandise while also bringing back old favorites. Even though our weather here in Orlando has been on the cooler side lately the festival merchandise really gives you that spring feeling!

Flower and Garden Festival
Strawberry Mickey Mouse Ears $19.95
Flower and Garden Festival
Ladybug Minne Mouse Ears Headband $22.95
Flower and Garden Festival
Flower and Garden Festival 2013 Women’s Minnie T-shirt
Flower and Garden Festival
Flower and Garden Festival 2013 Kid’s T-shirt $21.95
Flower and Garden Festival
Flower and Garden Festival 2013 Adult T-shirt $24.95
Flower and Garden Festival
Flower and Garden Festival 2013 Mickey “Mow and Grow” T-shirt
Garden Festival Bag
Flower and Garden Festival 2013 Mickey Tote $4.95
Garden Festival Bag
Flower and Garden Festival 2013 Minnie Drawstring Bag $21.95
Garden Festival Mug
Flower and Garden Festival 2013 Mickey/Minnie Coffee Mug $12.95
Garden Festival
Flower and Garden Festival 2013 decanter $16.95
Garden Festival Print
Flower and Garden Festival 2013 Official Print $39.95
Garden Festival Magnet
Flower and Garden Festival 2013 Magnet
Garden Festival stone
Mickey Mouse “Welcome” Garden Stone
Garden Festival statue Grumpy
Flower and Garden Festival Grumpy Garden Statues $29.95
Garden Festival statue Dopey
Flower and Garden Festival Dopey Garden Statues $29.95
Garden Festival statue Tinker Bell
Tinker Bell Garden Stepping Stone $34.95
Garden Festival statue Tinker Bell
Tinker Bell Garden Statue $49.95
Garden Festival statue Pin
Epcot® International Flower & Garden Festival 2013 Jumbo Pin LE 500 $54.95
Garden Festival statue Pin
Epcot® International Flower & Garden Festival 2013 Minnie Mouse Pin LE 5000 $15.95
Garden Festival statue Pin
Epcot® International Flower & Garden Festival 20th Anniversary Pin $14.95
Garden Festival statue Pin
Epcot® International Flower & Garden Festival 2013 Lady & Tramp Pin LE 5000 $14.95

 

 

 

 

The Epcot International Flower and Garden Festival will be held from March 6 – May 19. The place with the best selection of Flower & Garden merchandise is the Festival Center, but you can also find some merchandise around World Showcase and inside Mouse Gear. We’ll be featuring an upcoming post in the next few days covering all the beautiful topiaries and the new food and drink booths added this year, so stay tuned!

So which Flower and Garden merchandise are you most excited to purchase? I will definitely be picking up a pair of LadyBug Minnie Mouse Ears!

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Filed Under: Disney Merchandise, Disney Special Events, Top Stories, Walt Disney World Tagged With: Disney, Disney Merchandise, Disney News, Disney parks, Disney Special Events, Epcot, Epcot Flower and Garden 2013, Epcot Flower and Garden Festival, Epcot International Flower and Garden Festival, flower and garden, Flower and Garden Festival, flower and garden festival 2013, flowers, garden, gardening, Mickey ears, Minnie Mouse, shopping, special event, Walt Disney World, World Showcase

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