A garden festival is a festival and exposition held to celebrate the arts of gardening, garden design, landscaping and landscape architecture. There are local garden festivals, regional garden festivals, national garden festivals and international garden festivals. The idea probably originated with Germany's Bundesgartenschau. The UK held five garden festivals in the period 1984–1992.
To qualify as an international exhibition, an expo must be recognised by the Bureau International des Expositions (BIE), which was established by a diplomatic international convention, signed in Paris, in 1928. Horticultural expos can also be recognised by the International Association of Horticultural Producers (IAHP / AIPH). To qualify as a national exhibition, a garden festival must be recognised by a national government.
Because garden design is becoming more popular and featuring on TV, there is an ever-growing number of garden festivals: permanent and temporary, official and non-official. One of the best known is International Garden Festival held on a permanent site at Chaumont in France. Despite the name, Chaumont does not come within the BIE definition of an 'international' festival. Other shows feature garden design but describe themselves as 'flower shows'. The best-known example in this category, the Chelsea Flower Show, emphasises garden design. It spun off a Chelsea Fringe events in 2012 which featured a variety of unusual gardens and gardening across London.
List of International Garden Festivals (BIE recognised)
Country | City | Name | Year | Theme | BIE recognised[1] |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Germany | Ruhr Region from Dortmund to Duisburg | Green Ruhr 2027 | 2027 | Stadt der Städte | Yes |
Qatar | Doha | Qatar Expo 2021[2] | 2023 | Green Desert, Better Environment | Yes |
Netherlands | Amsterdam-Almere | Floriade Amsterdam-Almere 2022 | 2022 | Growing Green Cities | Yes |
China | Beijing | Expo 2019 Beijing China | 2019 | Live Green, Live Better | Yes |
Turkey | Antalya | Expo 2016 Antalya | 2016 | Flowers and Children | Yes |
Netherlands | Venlo | Floriade 2012 Venlo | 2012 | Be part of the theatre in nature; get closer to the quality of life | Yes |
Thailand | Chiang Mai | International Horticultural Exposition Royal Flora Ratchaphruek 2006 | 2006 | To Express the Love for Humanity | Yes |
Germany | Rostock | IGA Rostock 2003 – Internationale Gartenbauausstellung 2003 Hansestadt Rostock | 2003 | A Seaside Park. A new flowered world | Yes |
Netherlands | Haarlemmermeer | Floriade 2002 | 2002 | The contribution of the Netherlands horticulture and international horticulture in the quality of life in the 21st century | Yes |
China | Kunming | International Horticultural Exhibition Kunming 1999 | 1999 | Man and Nature - Marching into the 21st century | Yes |
Germany | Stuttgart | IGA Stuttgart 93 – V Internationale Gartenbauausstellung | 1993 | City and Nature - Responsible Approach | Yes |
Netherlands | Zoetermeer | Floriade The Hague-Zoetermeer 1992 | 1992 | Horticulture is being involved in a continuous process of renewal in the field of quality, technique, science and management | Yes |
Japan | Osaka | International Garden and Greenery Exposition, Osaka, Japan 1990 | 1990 | The Harmonious Coexistence of Nature and Mankind | Yes |
Great Britain | Liverpool | International Garden Festival Liverpool '84 | 1984 | The progress accomplished by International and National Horticulture | Yes |
Germany | Munich | IGA 83 München – IV Internationale Gartenbauausstellung | 1983 | International Horticulture | Yes |
Netherlands | Amsterdam | Floriade Amsterdam 1982 | 1982 | International Horticulture | Yes |
Canada | Montreal | Floralies Internationales de Montréal | 1980 | Relationship between man’s socio-cultural activities and his physical environment | Yes |
Austria | Vienna | WIG 74 – Wiener Internationale Gartenschau 1974 | 1974 | International Horticulture | Yes |
Germany | Hamburg | Internationale Gartenbauausstellung 73 | 1973 | International Horticulture | Yes |
Netherlands | Amsterdam | Floriade Amsterdam 1972 | 1972 | Efforts accomplished by International Horticulture | Yes |
France | Paris | Floralies Internationales Paris 1969 | 1969 | Flowers of France and Flowers of the World | Yes |
Austria | Vienna | WIG 64 – Wiener Internationale Gartenschau | 1964 | International Horticulture | Yes |
Germany | Hamburg | IGA 63 – Internationale Gartenbauausstellung Hamburg 1963 | 1963 | Horticulture of all Categories from the Point of View of Economics and Culture | Yes |
Netherlands | Rotterdam | Floriade International Horticultural Exhibition 1960 | 1960 | International Horticulture | Yes |
List of other garden festivals
Country | City | Festival name | Year(s) | Dates | Type | AIPH classification[3] | BIE recognised[1] |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
United States | Columbus, Ohio | AmeriFlora '92 | 1992 | April 3 – October 12 | International | No | |
France | Dijon | Florissimo | 2005, 2010, 2015 | National | B2 | No | |
Brazil | Festival de Holambra | ExpoFlora[4] | 2005 | National | B2 | No | |
China | Shenyang | International Horticultural Exposition 2006 | 2006 | May 1 – October 31 | International | A2/B1 | No |
Singapore | Singapore | Singapore Garden Festival | 2006 and biennially since | December 16–25 | International | n/a | No |
Myanmar | Pyin Oo Lwin | National Kandawgyi Gardens | 2005–2017 | December | National | N/A | No |
France | Dijon | Florissimo | 2010 | March 11–21 | National | No | |
Republic of China | Taipei | Taipei International Flora Exposition | 2010–2011 | November 6 – April 25 | International | A2/B1 | No |
Australia | Melbourne | Melbourne International Flower and Garden Show | 1995— | March 30 – April 3 | International | n/a | No |
China | Xi'an | International Horticultural Exposition 2011 | 2011 | April 22 – October 28 | International | A2/B1 | No |
South Korea | Suncheon | Suncheon International Garden Expo(Korea) | 2013 | April 20 – October 20 | International | A2/B1 | No |
China | Jinzhou | International Horticultural Exposition 2013 | 2013 | May 10 – October 31 | International | A2/B1 | No |
China | Qingdao | Qingdao International Horticultural Exposition 2014 | 2014 | April 25 – October 25 | International | A2/B1 | No |
France | Dijon | Florissimo | 2015 | March | National | No | |
China | Tangshan | Tangshan International Horticultural Exposition 2016 | 2016 | May – Oct | International | A2/B1 | No[5] |
Republic of China | Taichung | 2018 Taichung World Flora Exposition | 2018 | Nov. 3, 2018-Apr. 24, 2019 | International | A2/B1 | No |
Australia | Canberra | Floriade, Canberra | 1988— | September 16 — October 15, 2023 | National | No | |
China | Yangzhou | Yangzhou International Horticultural Exposition 2021 | 2021 | April 8 – October 8 | International | A2/B1 | No |
References
- Andrew C. Theokas Grounds for Review: The Garden Festival in Urban Planning and Design (Liverpool University Press, 2004 ISBN 0-85323-539-2)
- 1 2 "International Horticultural Exhibitions". Archived from the original on 8 June 2011. Retrieved 22 January 2011.
- ↑ Expositions, Bureau International (7 June 2019). "Qatar develops "Green Desert" vision for Horticultural Expo 2021 Doha". BIE. Archived from the original on 12 April 2023. Retrieved 7 June 2019.
- ↑ "International Horticultural Exhibitions: History of exhibitions". AIPH. Archived from the original on 22 November 2019. Retrieved 20 June 2016.
- ↑ "40ª Expoflora • Holambra | O Maior Festival de Flores e Plantas do Brasil". Expoflora Holambra. Archived from the original on 7 June 2023. Retrieved 25 June 2023.
- ↑ "AIPH | Exhibitions, actual programme". Archived from the original on 15 July 2014. Retrieved 11 August 2014.