Portland Home & Garden Show
This spring, attend the largest home and garden show in the state. For five days, exhibitors are set up, seminars are given, and a marketplace is open for business to all show attendees. Anyone and everyone in the horticulture and home business, as well as do-it-yourselfers will find something of interest and education at this show.
Field experts will be in attendance to show off the latest and greatest products and services, on top of giving tips on projects attendees may be working on or want to start. Visitors of the show can also get hands-on help for existing projects they do need to finish or projects they are looking to start up. These projects can range anywhere from building a piece of furniture to designing an array of garden flowers in Portland.
A map of the exhibition is available for download on their website, and a list of seminars and exhibitors will be available soon.
Date: February 22-26th
Location: Portland Expo Center, Portland
Contact: (253) 756-2121
Site: www.otshows.com
Ticket Fee: General Admission $10
Daffodil Drive Festival
Welcome spring into your life with an abundance of yellow daffodils. For 2 days in March, Junction City welcomes thousands of visitors from all over Oregon to admire miles of this gorgeously growing flower. And since this festival has become so popular over the past 10 years, it has flourished into so much more than simply viewing these particular flowers of Junction City. Visitors stop by for free, handmade cinnamon buns and coffee, the ever-popular classic car show, covered wagon rides, free entertainment and arts and crafts. There are also several handmade quilts on display and goers can enter a raffle to win one of these quilts.
Children are also happy to attend this show, as there is plenty for them to see and do. Besides having fun riding in one of the wagons, kids can also take a hayride or visit and pet animals like llamas, alpacas, bunnies, and sheep.
Date: March 12-13
Location: Swan Island Dahlias, Junction City
Site: www.daffodilfestivals.com
Ticket Fee: Free!
Keizer Iris Festival
Celebrate flowers like never before at the Keizer Iris Festival. For the entire month of May, this festival is in bloom with an abundance of things for patrons to do. For the length of the event, visitors can enjoy the iris art show and walk through the iris garden displays where hundreds of these flowers in Keizer have been planted for visual enjoyment. Throughout the month different events and activities keep people entertained and coming back for more.
The first half of May holds activities like breakfasts, an art show reception, a gardener’s night out, and a public works fire district open house. The second half of May is wrapped up with even more activities for visitors of all ages to take pleasure in. The library book sale is always a big hit, as is the live music entertainment, golf tournament, wizard’s party, brewers and vintners village, pet parade, and festival parade.
Those who are interested in participating in the event can do any one of the Iris fun runs, which includes a half marathon, 10K run, 5K run, and a Kids 3K run. They can also enter or simply admire the classic car show, participate in the hungry hero contest, dance at the ZUMBA in the tent party, ride in the biker’s poker run, or stroll along in the family bike ride and corral.
Date: Month of May
Location: Fun Center, Keizer
Contact: (503) 393-9111
Site: www.irisfestival.com
Annual Tulip Festival
Springtime blooms in abundance when bushels of tulips are around. Over 40 acres of blooming tulips and daffodils have inspired a family friendly festival in the quaint town of Woodburn. For 6 weeks, goers can relish in everything this festival has to offer. Daily activities not only include being able to walk around the fields and gardens, but also eating at the tulip café, shopping the tulip market and gift shop and checking out farm equipment on display. Weekends are even more fun with additional activities of pony rides for children, wine tasting for adults, live entertainment, wooden shoe making and more.
Throughout the 6 weeks, other events (both on site and off site) are scheduled for visitors to enjoy. The Easter holiday brings with it an egg hunt for all children, aged 0-11. An Easter service is also scheduled to take place in the tulip fields. Towards the end of the festival, a craft fair and wine down event are held, as well as a Moonstone/Oregon Gardens Brewfest for beer lovers.
Visitors of these Woodburn flowers can plan on purchasing cut flowers and ordering bulbs for fall planting if they desire. Season passes are also offered for those who plan on coming back more than once.
Date: May 25 – May 8th
Location: Wooden Shoe Tulip Farm, Woodburn
Contact: (800) 711-2006
Site: www.woodenshoe.com
Ticket Fee: Weekdays - $5 per carload, Weekends - $10 per carload
Portland Rose Festival
Everything’s coming up roses at this beautiful festival. For over 100 years now, roses have been celebrated in the utmost fashion, proving that Portland is the place to be in the summer. The festival kicks off with an open house of the Rose Building that features memorabilia from past fairs. Following this event, the city fair opens to the public where they can indulge in carnival rides, musical acts, delicious food and other special attractions.
Throughout the following weeks parades are held, concerts are given, an auction is ran, and events like the dragon boat race, golf tournament, and fun run take place. One of the major attractions of this Downtown Portland flower show is their long standing tradition of crowning a Rose Festival Queen. The coronation takes place in a coliseum where hundreds of spectators can purchase tickets to watch the crowning happen.
Hundreds of volunteers are needed every year to run this flower festival. If you’re interested in participating, check out the website for a list of jobs that are needed to be fulfilled. They can’t do it without you!
Date: May 29 – June 8
Location: Rose Building, Washington Park, Downtown Portland
Contact: (503) 227-2681
Site: www.rosefestival.org
Ticket Fee: Vary
Oregon’s Lavender Daze Festival
Live music, children’s activities, and lavender gelato are only a few things that make up this fragrantly delicious west coast festival. As visitors walk the fields of lavender, they can shop vendor booths for jewelry, art, and clothing, taste a variety of wine, eat delicious BBQ food, or even take a crafting class. One of the more popular crafting classes is the hands-on wreath class, so individuals who are interested need to register early. Children can participate in the ladybug release party and families are encouraged to bring their blankets and beach chairs to hang out among the fields and soak in the sights and smells. And for anyone who would like to take some lavender home, they can participate in the U-Pick event of these fresh flowers of Hood River.
Date: July 16-17th
Location: Swan Island Dahlias, Hood River
Contact: (888) LAV-FARM
Site: www.lavenderfarms.net
Ticket Fee: Free!
Annual Dahlia Festival
To see the largest display of dahlias and other floral arrangements in Canby, visit the Annual Dahlia Festival. This festival is all about flowers, boasting over 400 floral arrangements for show visitors to view. It also offers goers the chance to watch demonstrations on how to make their own floral displays, as well as learning how to divide dahlia tubers in a live demonstration. For those who want to walk around and soak in the beauty of this unique flower, the festival showcases 40 acres of dahlias of all sizes and colors in full bloom. Dogs are welcomed to attend this event, as long as they are kept on a leash. Visitors can also purchase a variety of cut dahlias, as well as food from vendor booths.
Date: August 27-29 & September 3-5
Location: Swan Island Dahlias, Canby
Contact: (503) 266-7711
Site: www.dahlias.com
Ticket Fee: Free!
Portland Fall Home & Garden Show
The Home Builders Association (HBA) presents the Fall home and garden show; a version of the Spring show in Portland that has been in production for over 20 years. Over a course of four days, visitors of the show will have the opportunity to fulfill all of their home and gardening needs, whether it be learning new techniques and tips, purchasing the latest products, or hiring services from a field expert.
Professionals in any field of home and garden are encouraged to come as well for networking opportunities, new merchandise demonstrations, and simply to get ideas and inspiration. Do-it-yourselfers who come will be inspired by all the same reasons. Attendees should also plan on visiting seminars given by experts and the marketplace for shopping opportunities. And if there is a project that requires help from a specialist, it should be brought along. Experts are available this year to help finish or start any project.
Check back to their website for a map of the exhibition that is available for download. Soon, a list of seminars and exhibitors will also be available.
Date: September 29th - Oct 2nd
Location: Portland Expo Center, Portland
Contact: (253) 756-2121
Site: www.otshows.com
Ticket Fee: General Admission $10