St. Pete’s biggest horticultural celebration is back after a two-year hiatus. The Green Thumb Festival returns to the city with two days of plants, workshops, exhibitions and fun, featuring more than 120 garden, plant and flower vendors and exhibitors. The Green Thumb Festival takes place Saturday and Sunday April 23-24 from 9 am – 4 pm at Walter Fuller Park, 7891 26th Avenue North.
The free festival is part of the city’s annual Arbor Day celebration and includes workshops, a flower show and the Garden Wagon Parade & Decorating Contest, in addition to the vendors on hand. There will also be a butterfly tent, tree sale, food trucks, and children’s crafts areas. And if you need help getting your garden started, the parks and recereation department will be giving away free plants, pine seedlings and mulch.
Workshops hosted by Pinellas County Farm Bureau and UF/IFAS Extension include a build-your-own succulent planter, DIY wildflower seed balls, upcycled herb planter creation, and guided Koko Dema displays. The Garden Club of St. Petersburg will display its creativity through juried floral designs and crafts representing gardens from around the world, and the public is invited to vote for the best of show in both the horticulture and floral design category.
The Garden Wagon Parade & Decorating Contest invites everyone to deck out their wagons and enter the parade, with prizes for youth and adults alike. Entry for the parade is $5.
The Green Thumb Festival was established by the St. Petersburg Parks Department as an Arbor Day celebration on April 11, 1986 at Boyd Hill Nature Preserve. The concept was introduced by the Parks Director at the time, Litdell “Dell” Holmes, to meet the requirements of the prestigious Tree City USA award, and as a result, the City has been a recipient of the award every year since 1986.
Festival attendance is estimated at 30,000 to 35,000 over the two-day event and more than 200 educational and environmental exhibits and vendors participate. The festival continues to be free of charge. Learn more and see the full schedule of events here.
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