Peony Festival virtual again this year
The City of Oshawa’s 17th annual Peony Festival will be virtual again this year.
The festival will be presented online from June 1 to 27 on the city’s website.
Recognized by Ontario’s Top 100 Festivals and Events for nine consecutive years, the virtual festival will feature videos of peony gardens, expert advice, gardening tips and online activities for all ages.
Community members can display their artistic abilities by participating in the art competition, festival photo contest, Canadian Peony Society (C.P.S.) Virtual Peony Show photo contest, or the Instagram Fabulous Peonies Picture.
With the art competition, sponsored by Tim Hortons, participants can submit their interpretation of a peony flower in any medium. Entries will be displayed online and voting will be open for community participation.
Sponsored and judged by Harmony Hill Retirement Community, photographers can submit photos of peonies from their own backyard for the festival photo contest.
Participation is open to all amateur photographers for the C.P.S. Virtual Peony Show photo contest. Photo entries of the entrant’s favourite peony flower will be reviewed by C.P.S. judges to determine the winning flower submission.
Lastly, Pine Ridge Arts Council is looking for peony photos for their pic-of-the-month campaign, called Fabulous Peonies. Just use #PineRidgeArts when posting to Instagram.
Additionally, community members can share past photos and stories illustrating their previous memories at the Peony Festival by tagging @OshawaCulture on Twitter with the hashtag #OshPeonies. Select memories and images will be shared on the city’s social media platforms.
Regional and Ward 4 City Councillor Rick Kerr, Chair of the Community Services Committee, says the Oshawa Botanical Garden is big, but not that big, so those who feel the need to visit the site must remember social distancing must be maintained at all times.
“For anyone who would prefer to stay home, there will once again be a virtual tour, video presentations, and other colourful features on the website ought to provide the best alternative to enjoy the peonies during this unfortunate pandemic time,” says kerr.
“Stay home and enjoy the show!”
The Peony Festival will be presented online at www.oshawa.ca/peony.