Mount Dora Plant Festival

It was the perfect weekend for the Mount Dora Plant Festival. A breezy day in the 80's made it even more enjoyable. There was a good variety of vendors, and lots of customers loading up their carts or carrying bags of plants.

There were your usual stands of orchids, bromeliads, tropicals, and some really unusual plants like this hanging pitcher plant.

And, there was plenty of color around. Perennials and butterfly plants could be found in abundance.

My first intention was that I really didn't need anything, but I would go "just in case" their might be something out of the ordinary. Does that sound familiar to anyone? Then I remembered the tillandsia guy and the begonia vendor from last year, and I got a little excited thinking about picking up one of each.

Well, I did end up finding two tillandsias and 3 begonias. I must admit that when I'm confronted with numerous choices (especially plants), it's very hard to select just one. Plus the begonias were 3 for $5. Who could pass that up?

And, of course there were a few other plants I just couldn't pass up either.

Like this dazzling leopard lily with leaves that feel like a succulent and whose blooms are a pretty violet color. They had this plant potted in a hanging wire basket and the plant had surrounded the entire basket. It was stunning!

Oh, and this very unusual variegated fern. I've never seen one like this before, so "I just had to have it." You know the feeling, right?

Oh yeah, and this really cute crinkly-leaved fern and this beautiful red-colored bromeliad. I did, however, display some self-control. There were about 3 other ferns I wanted but I was determined I wasn't going to spend every penny I came with. So now, I'm looking forward to next year's festival. :-)