By Yours Truly and Jan Engoren
Now’s the best time for home and garden tours South Florida. With spring in the air, local gardens, nurseries and botanical gardens are showing off their latest acquisitions, and homes are opening their doors and gardens to the public. The variety includes one day tours or festivals, and others are self guided tours offered throughout the year. A few of the nine ideas in Parts 1 and 2 that we highlight range from the annual Miami Villagers Garden tour and the white perfumed gardens in Key West to a “Secret Garden Tour” in Fort Lauderdale, and a blanket of bromeliads and a trove of topiaries in Miami. Together with a panel of plant experts and demonstrations at Gardenfest! in Vero Beach, and more, flowers and gardens are erupting in a burst of color and fragrance. Here is Part 1 featuring the one day tours and festivals. In Part 2 you’ll find the gardens for self guided tours.
Annual Home and Garden Tours South Florida
Gardenfest! Hosted by the Garden Club of Indian River County
Celebrating its 20th year, the Garden Club of Indian River County hosts Gardenfest! Nature’s Finest Marketplace at Vero Beach’s Riverside Park, Feb. 5-6. Over the weekend, the park transforms into one of the largest free and family-friendly garden shows in the state. With over 85 participating vendors and 20,000 garden enthusiasts, the event has become one of the major attractions for the Treasure Coast and Vero Beach’s premier annual gardening event.
Gardenfest! chairs have scoured the south to bring the highest quality plants to attendees, such as Florida natives, unusual tropicals and unique plant specimens as well as garden accessories such as planters, pottery, fountains, furniture and other accessories.
In addition, a perennial favorite, “Ask the Experts,” returns each day with free lectures, demonstrations and Q&A sessions. Sample topics this year include Bromeliads 101 with Sally Gawler, President, Indian River Bromeliad Society, Creative Container Gardening with Nickie Munroe, IRC Environmental Horticultural Agent at UF and Orchids for Beginners with Paul Price of Busy Bee Lawn and Garden Center.
Plants for sale include palms, ferns, orchids, bromeliads, Florida natives, herbs, succulents, bamboo, fruit trees, bonsai, roses and geraniums. In addition, there will be a food court, including Vero Beach’s own 14 Bones BBQ and a youth activity tent for younger gardeners.Proceeds from Gardenfest! help fund the club’s community outreach programs aimed at enhancing, preserving, and beautifying the landscape of Indian River County and provide scholarships for county youths.
Gardenfest! as always, has free admission and parking – rain or shine. Attendees are encouraged to bring their own wagons. Riverside Park is located at 3260 Riverside Park Dr., Vero Beach. Hours on Saturday are 9 a.m. – 5 p.m. and on Sunday from 9 a.m. – 4 p.m. Visit gardenclubofirc.org or call 772-567-4602.
The Miami Villagers Garden Tour
Long a staple of home and garden tours South Florida is The Miami Villagers Garden tour. Tour a garden and support historic preservation at the same time. Hosted by The Miami Villagers, a Coral Gables not-for-profit organization dedicated to the restoration and preservation of historic sites in Miami-Dade County, the group is Miami-Dade County’s oldest historic preservation organization, founded in 1966.
Despite being interrupted by COVID-19 last year, this year’s House and Garden Tours, are on in the Redlands, scheduled for Mar. 12. On-site will be a gift boutique, the popular Attic Treasures vintage shop, light refreshments, and a raffle of a hand-crafted quilt themed, “Pandemic Pandemonium in the Garden.“
Members started the quilt as a tribute to their Garden Tours during the COVID-19 quarantine. Unable to carry on with normal life, many members turned to their gardens and took time to enjoy the outdoors. A photo of the quilt will be on display at the tour.
Tour-goers will receive a map to guide them to each location, where members of The Villagers will be on hand to direct them and share information on each home or garden’s distinctive features. Raffle tickets will be on sale prior to the tour and the winner will not need to be present to win.All proceeds support the preservation and protection of historic sites. Visit thevillagersinc.org
Fort Lauderdale Garden Club
The Fort Lauderdale Garden Club hosts their “Secret Garden Tour,” Saturday, February 26, from 9 a.m. – 3 p.m. Drive-through tours of some of the most beautiful, private gardens in Fort Lauderdale. Visit one of the magnificent waterfront gardens featuring the Garden Shoppe, vendors, plant sales, raffles and more.
Advance Tickets – $30 – Day of the Event – $40 (if available). To purchase tickets visit flgc.org.
The Fort Lauderdale Garden Club is located in Hugh Taylor Birch State Park in Fort Lauderdale on the beach at A1A.
19th Annual Delray Beach Home Tour
Garden hop and do good at the same time. On Wednesday, March 9 from 10 a.m. – 4 p.m., the Delray Beach Home Tour offers a unique opportunity to experience exquisite interiors and lush gardens in the scenic Lake Ida neighborhood of Delray Beach.
Proceeds from the event benefit the Achievement Centers for Children & Families, a non-profit which supports children and families throughout Delray Beach and surrounding communities. The Home Tour features a variety of private homes that range from elegant Florida bungalows, to lakeside estates with lush tropical gardens providing home decorating and gardening enthusiasts with an inside look into the world of distinctive Delray living.
Guests will enjoy a leisurely day exploring unique residences, a catered luncheon and trolley service between homes.
Tickets for the Delray Home Tour are $100 per person until February 23rd and will increase to $125 on February 24th. COVID-19 safety protocols will be in place at Home Tour. For more information, to purchase tickets or become a sponsor, visit achievementcentersfl.org/delray-home-tour or call (561) 266-0003.
Want to see leading botanical gardens in South Florida? Check out the list of best walks and even night lights!
Botanical Gardens in Miami: Best Walks and NIghtlights
8 Responses
Love this story idea (even if the inclusion of Vero Beach in South Florida is pretty funny!). Happy to hear about the Villagers and their efforts re historic preservation. It irks me to see all the beautiful historic homes being torn down for these unimaginative cube houses.
Thank you. I checked and see that Vero Beach is not considered South Florida. And though I like and appreciate contemporary architecture, I agree that there are way too many unimaginative, cookie cutter cube houses just as there were way too many unimaginative “Mediterranean” styled houses when they were in vogue.
Please include Patch of Heaven Sanctuary in Part 2. We are a 20 acre non-profit Nature preserve in the Redland area of Miami. Large scale gardens, forest, water features and historic homes can be experienced on self-guided tours. A 5,000 sq. ft. Butterfly house is almost complete and we intend to run 7 days a week at that time. Currently we open Thur, Fri, Sat, & Sun from 8-4. Please check our IG @patchofheavensanctuary
Or our website patchofheavensanctuary.org
Also let me know if you would like to visit.
Thank you for letting me know about this. I will definitely go and check it out. Sounds wonderful.
Before coming to this site, I clicked on :
“Home and Garden Tours South Florida – MiamiCuratedhttps://www.miamicurated.com › things-to-do › home-a…Jan 31, 2022 — Nine top picks for home and garden tours South Florida, one day events and festivals and self guided tours offered year round.”
It said Nine top picks…there aren’t nine events listed here.
Tnank you, you’re right. What happened is that originally the post included nine picks. Then I broke the post up into two separate posts (parts 1 and 2) and didn’t correct the original description.
ok..so where can I see the part 2 ?
There’s a link to part 2 in the first paragraph in Part 1.