Spring Festivals and Flower Shows

Spring is round the corner, even though it might not feel like it is, and in cel­eb­ra­tion of Spring it's a good time to let you know about some of the Spring Festivals and flower shows hap­pen­ing in South Africa in the com­ing weeks ...

The Fouriesburg Spring Fair takes from on Friday 4 and Saturday 5 September 2009, in Fouriesburg (near Clarens) in the Free State. There will be cherry blos­som orch­ard tours, organic farm tours, demon­stra­tions on eco farm­ing, art exhib­i­tions and walks to San paint­ings. There is so much hap­pen­ing at this fair with food stalls and jumble sales and of course lots of fresh pro­duce avail­able to purchase.

Your chil­dren will be enter­tained with pony rides and other fun activ­it­ies. Entrance is free, how­ever you will need to book tick­ets for the coun­try and folk music even­ing on Friday.

Contact the Fouriesburg Information Centre for more inform­a­tion +27 (0)58 223‑0429 or +27 (0)79 897‑1669.

Magoebaskloof in Limpopo holds their annual Magoebaskloof Spring Festival from Saturday 19 to Sunday 27 September 2009. You will be able to visit a num­ber of the local gar­dens that are on show and browse through one of the mar­kets that are held.

A fest­ival high­light is the orchid exhib­i­tion with a selec­tion of these beau­ti­ful flowers on sale. The Cheerio Gardens are well known for their aza­leas and cherry blos­soms. The ‘Most Romantic Garden of the Decade’ as decided by a lead­ing South African décor magazine is the formal English garden, Kings Walden, in Agatha which is near Tzaneen.

For more inform­a­tion tele­phone +27 (0)15 276‑4880 / +27 (0)15 276‑4828.

The Yellow Arum Lily Festival in Roossenekal, Mpumalanga takes place from Friday to Sunday (27–29 September 2009). Roossenekal is not widely known to most South African’s how­ever it is home to the Yellow Arum Lily (Zantedeschia pentlandia).

This stun­ning spe­cies is yel­low with a black-purple inside bot­tom is a pro­tec­ted spe­cies and is on the endangered Red Data list. You are NOT allowed to pick these flowers or dig them up. The fest­ival will give you the oppor­tun­ity to pur­chase the Yellow Arum Lily from registered propag­at­ors who propag­ate them from seeds or from the small bulbs form­ing nat­ur­ally from the big bulbs.

For more inform­a­tion you can con­tact Christine Ackerman on +27 (0)13 273‑7123 or +27 (0)82 550‑6896.

The Sunday Tribune Garden and Leisure Show in Pietermaritzburg is on the week­end of 25–27 September 2009. Here you will find exhib­i­tion space both under cover and open air of approx­im­ately 16 000 square metres.

There are demon­stra­tions and talks in the Floral Art divi­sion and the Bonsai Society will show­case some of their finest bonsai’s. There will be a large num­ber of plants and flowers for sale as well as spe­cial­ised plant material.

For more inform­a­tion you can tele­phone +27 (0)33 345‑6274.

The Hogsback Spring Festival in the Eastern Cape runs for over a month from 24 September to 31 October 2009. The Hogsback Garden Club invites you to come and visit the beau­ti­ful local gar­dens with wide vari­et­ies of exotic plants.

Take a guided tour of 2 gar­dens in the morn­ing or you can tour the gar­dens at your leis­ure without a guide. From Friday 25 to Sunday 27 September you are able to pur­chase plants, take part in fun activ­it­ies and browse through the arts and crafts and food stalls.

For more inform­a­tion you can con­tact Lynn Johnston on +27 (0)45 962‑1192.

The Clanwilliam Wild Flower Show in the Western Cape takes place from Friday 28 August to Wednesday 2 September 2009. This stand­ing tra­di­tion since 1972 with all flower fan­at­ics is a must as it show­cases the beauty and vari­ety of the flora rich Clanwilliam dis­trict and Ramskop Nature Reserve. Throughout the show there are fun filled fam­ily activ­it­ies as well as vari­ous musical per­form­ances. The show is open daily from 08h00 to 19h00, for more inform­a­tion you can con­tact Clanwilliam Tourism on +27 (0)27 482‑2024.

Are you inter­ested in see­ing more than 200 spe­cies of Fynbos from the ren­osterveld, sandveld, rietveld and wet­land areas of the Hopefield dis­trict? If so then make your way to the Hopefield Fynbos Show from Thursday 27 to Sunday 30 August 2009. Telephone +27 (0)22 783‑0856 for more information.

These events should get you into the mood for Spring and brighten those cold and dark Winter days. Can’t you feel it get­ting warmer already?

Useful Links:
If you are plan­ning a visit to any of South Africa's provinces in the near future you might want to check what annual events and fest­ivals will be on dur­ing your visit. To see what's on visit South Africa Events & Festivals (includes an Event Search and Events by Province).

Trip Planning:
Other links to assist with your travel plans to South Africa:
• South Africa Travel
• South Africa Hotels
• South Africa Accommodation
• Things to Do in South Africa