Amiallana Justus 
Over the weekend, the 24th annual Spring in the Garden festival was held in downtown Winter Garden to celebrate the renewal of springtime.
Plant Street was transformed into a delightful celebration of spring and gardening season where the community can go to buy different flowers or plants for their gardens.
As gardeners come together to showcase their plants and gardening skills, spring is the season of rebirth. With the chance to grow crops and food, gardeners can use their skills to create a sustainable environment for the people around them.
Creating A Garden of Life for the Community
Gardening teaches useful skills for adults and children to take advantage of as many opportunities as possible when it comes to growing plants. Gardening can be a key part of growing up and the development of knowing how to take care of something that is alive.
“Spring season feels like an awakening and renewal since the season we just came from with Mother Nature in the freeze,” said Stephanie Charlebois, owner of Plant Streets Essentials. “Rebirth and growth are two opportunities that are given through spring and Mother Nature is reviving everything and it’s just a freshness that is appreciated.”
Plants aren’t just used for decoration, but teaches responsibility and discipline through the importance of maintaining the health of a plant.
“A therapeutic energy is brought from being outside in the sun and it gives me peace in my life to do something I love,” said Charlesbois. “Gardening has given me peace in my life and when I started getting into this, my friends told me I had an addiction and am insane, and what I found was it lets me be more true to myself, more loving to others around me, and learning patience.”
Jacki McAnally, vendor at Spring Fever of the Garden, said Spring is the best time to start replanting trees, flowers, crops, and other weeds as this is the perfect weather and environment for plants to thrive.
“I love spring because this is the perfect time to start planting,” said McAnally. “When it’s not too hot and just warm enough, everything starts to bloom. Spring gives that feeling of everything waking back up, and especially this year with the frost we had, so many things that we thought were dead are actually alive and it’s such an amazing feeling to see.”
Gardening has been a great way to improve physical activity and promotes nutrition through home-grown produce and vitamin D. Whether gardening is a new skill or something that can be done with ease it is a great way to be productive and reduce stress.
“I love to take morning walks in the morning to see what’s coming in and what’s growing because I love to grow my own food,” said McAnally. “Especially right now where groceries are more expensive, my favorite part about gardening is being able to grow stuff that we need.”
Gardening is a great way to get a sense of pride about doing something for yourself instead of relying on others. Connecting through gardening can increase community engagement and reduce loneliness that is brought through growing up.
“Being outside first thing in the morning and doing a little tour of the garden to see what needs to be weeded or watered is really beneficial for my mental health,” said McAnally. “We got into gardening because we bought a house downtown and had a bigger yard where we had no HOA so we could grow anything we wanted. It started small and then became an obsession, being able to grow and try different things, so gardening is a good way to truly rewind and learn something new.”
This event unites the community together as different gardeners are brought together to sell gardening supplies, seeds, and plants used to uplift someone’s mood.
For more information on the 24th annual Spring Fever in the Garden festival, visit HERE.
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