Hollandia Botanical Gardens Bulb Festival ʻ08
The event, attracting nearly 1000 people to the HBG site, is now history. Its primary result is that a growing number of citizens now know about our project in a tangible way. They have set foot on the ground dedicated to the Garden; they have seen actual floral displays in bloom there; they have also seen vivid depictions of the plan for the Garden that is to take shape in that very place. We have been thoroughly pleased with the positive comments that so many visitors made and the evident sense of community pride that our project has inspired.
We are leaving the Bulb Festival section in place for visitors to the web site as an illustration of HBG's efforts throughout the year.
The Bulb Festival is a preview of the planned public Garden that is to arise on our 11-acre site. Over a two-year period, HBG volunteers have planted 18,000 bulbs plus 10,000 supplemental bulbs in twenty beds. Our goal is that the blooms will provide a glimpse of the much more extensive displays you will encounter at the site once the Garden is built. To see the plan for the Garden, including artist conceptions of selected portions, go to the Master Plan Pictures section.
In addition to the array of blooms (with cooperation from the weather!), the Festival includes a variety of activities for adults and children as well as the opportunity to purchase high quality bulbs and other interesting items for your home and garden. See the Event Schedule below. For a readily printable version, click the download schedule link just beneath the heading.
Sponsored by  |  |  |
Festival Leaders C&N Industrial Contractors, Inc.
Wal-Mart: Tuttle Road Store | Festival Patrons Bill Marine Auto Center
Johnson’s Lamp Shop
Scarff’s Nursery
Schneider’s Florist | Festival Partners David E. Garrett Jewelers
Garrigan’s Office Plus
Harding Road Pharmacy
Mel Marsh
Wallace and Turner Insurance, Inc. |
We also gratefully acknowledge the support of the Center City Association, Huffman Tree Company, the Kissell Center, Marvin’s Organic Gardens, National Trail Parks and Recreation, and Varment Guard for services provided to the Festival.
Event Schedule*
| Saturday, April 19 | Sunday, April 20 |
| 10:00 Speaker: Linda Sever, Weaving with Natural Plant Materials from the Landscape | 11:00-11:15 Performance: Chinese Dragon Dancers |
| 11:00-12:00 Performance: Springfield Youth Symphony Ensembles | 11:30-12:30 Performance: Just Eve, Wittenberg Women Students Vocal Group |
| 12:00-1:00 Performance: Julie Garrigan, Harpist | 1:00 Speaker: Wes Duren from Marvin’s Organic
Gardens, Rain Gardens |
| 1:00 Speaker: Gerald S. Wegner, Ph.D.,BCE, Insect Pests of Dried Plant Material and Wood | 2:00-3:00 Performance: Springfield Banjo
and Brass |
2:00-3:00 Performance: Stuffed Possum and Cornbread -- Ol’ Time Fiddle Band | 3:00 Speaker: Brian Kampman from Robert Rothschild Farm, Seasonal Chores |
| 3:00 Speaker: Amber Haynes, Using Native Bulbs and Spring Bloomers in the Landscape | |
4:00-5:00 Performance: WittFree Rock Band | *Festival events and attractions are subject to change. |
Master Plan Presentation. Between scheduled events, Executive Director Paul Parlato will make a brief presentation highlighting the plan for construction of the Garden.
Festival ’08 is all about bulbs for the home garden. In addition to viewing the blooms in the Hollandia Botanical Garden site, you have the opportunity to purchase high quality bulbs from the Leo Berbee Bulb Company, including those that are showcased in our beds.
Vendors. A variety of craft items, including whimsical wind chimes, children's books, and organic papermaking supplies, will be offered for sale.
Food Choices from area vendors will include Rudy's Smokehouse, HBG hot dogs and chips, and Young's Jersey Dairy ice cream cups.
Children's Activities available throughout the event will include take-home pansy planting, raffia weaving, face painting, and a "Flower Face" photo board.
Parking: Entrance to the Festival is at Warder and Water Streets. The official Festival parking location is the lot of the Kissell Center on Warder near N. Limestone Street (easy access from N. Fountain Avenue and Warder). HBG will provide passenger trailer shuttle service to and from the Garden site at Warder and Water Streets. (Because of bridge construction, the entrance at Sherman Avenue is closed.) Visitors may also opt to park on nearby streets and walk to the entrance. For persons with mobility concerns, HBG will provide golf cart transportation from the entrance to the main Festival area and back.
QUESTIONS? Contact the HBG Office: 322-3122 or
hbg@att.net.