Get your gardening gloves out because it’s almost time for the Sudbury Gardening Festival, an annual event hosted by the Sudbury Horticultural Society to welcome the growing season.

This year’s Sudbury Gardening Festival will be taking place on Saturday, May 25th from 9:30 am to 3 pm. It is going to be held at the YMCA & Parkside Centre in downtown Sudbury. Admission is completely free for the entire day, so don’t hesitate to pop in for an hour or two (or longer!).

Whether you’re a gardening enthusiast with talented green thumbs or a novice just looking for some tips and tricks to start up a small vegetable garden, the festival has something for everyone. The Sudbury Horticultural Society puts on a fantastic show every year, bringing in a variety of gardening-related exhibitors showcasing products, services, and educational resources.

One of the biggest draws of the Sudbury Gardening Festival is the fantastic vendors that set up shop in the YMCA & Parkside Centre. There will be vendors selling all sorts of plants, produce, gardening supplies and services, and even garden art. In addition to garden-related booths, you’ll find vendors carrying health and wellness products such as soaps and essential oils. Environmental organizations will also be presenting educational displays about conservation and sustainability.

Another popular part of the festival every year is the Spring Plant Sale. The sale is hosted jointly by the Sudbury Horticultural Society and the Sudbury Master Gardeners, whose members donate hardy perennial plants from their own gardens to sell to the public at bargain prices. The sale begins at 9 am and it is recommended that you arrive early, as the plants tend to sell out quickly.

The festival also features a speaker’s corner where you can listen to free educational presentations about gardening over the course of the day from a lineup of entertaining and knowledgeable speakers. This year, you can visit the speaker’s corner to learn all about garden design, gardening with air plants, and vermicomposting (composting with the help of worms).

Not only is entry to the Sudbury Gardening Festival free, but there are always plenty of freebies and giveaways available once you get inside. The Greater Sudbury’s Regreening Advisory Panel will be giving away hundreds of native shrub seedlings and Vale and SINO Glencore will be giving away tree seedlings as well. Free compost samples to try in your garden will also be available from Greater Sudbury Environmental Services.

Don’t forget that every single visitor to the Sudbury Gardening Festival can enter the door prize draw. When you arrive at the festival, a greeter will provide you with a door prize ticket. A plethora of fantastic prizes has been donated to the festival by local organizations and businesses, including a full year subscription to The Gardener Magazine, a $100 gift card, and a gift basket full of maple and honey products.

As always, the Sudbury Gardening Festival promises to be a packed day of gardening-themed events and activities. You’ll likely end up leaving with some handy new gardening products and with the knowledge you can use to improve your garden and make the most of the growing season.