Earth Day Events

The Green Thumb Festival in St. Petersburg is one of my family's favorite places to go. Held on the last weekend in April, the festival boasts area vendors, kids activities, informational speakers, and more. The Green Thumb Festival celebrates Arbor Day and Earth Day.

On my first visit, my best friend and I took our young boys. Held at a local city park, Walter Fuller Park, we thought it'd be a fun way to look at some plants and maybe buy some plants to start a butterfly garden.

The festival sold plants of all kinds ... I fell in love with a gorgeous, pink rose bush, in various stages of bloom. Oh, the sweet scent. And the blooms were as big as my palm. We admired flowering vines, grasses, and fruit trees, like a Black Sapote tree, with fruit that tastes like chocolate pudding. My yard wouldn't have enough room for it to grow properly. I asked.

Vendors also included eco-friendly products and art. My friend loves sea glass, and we found an artist with beautiful jewelery made from sea glass. She bought a purple-hued circular stone, with a hemp chain. The artist lives locally, and we only found her because of the festival. Another artist took toss aluminum and made yard spinners. Gorgeous prints of local flowers and animals lined one stall; the photographer framed close-up views of a butterfly, marigolds, a ladybug, and more. Her backyard was her studio, and she took all her photos on blooming plants at her house.

The kids loved their activities too. They watched a live science show on gravity, colored reminder sticks on local watering schedule, and planted their own cup of grass. Since the festival was held in the local park, the playground was accessible when the kids needed running around time. They stopped at a butterfly display, which showed their transformations from caterpillars to butterflies. Butterfly terrariums were made of mesh, and popped up from flat storage to a temporary home for your butterfly. Similar terrariums were made for ladybugs. The temporary housing allowed people to care for the butterfly and ladybug until the time of their release into nature.

We had a blast. The Green Thumb Festival is an annual event, held the last weekend in April. It's amazing to think how big the festival has grown, just in the last few years we started attending with the kids.

We also learned a few things that made it easier on the next trips:

Travel Light
Bring a small wallet, or a purse with straps for your waist or shoulder, and carry only the necessities, like ID, money, keys, any medicine.

Skin Protection
Before you head to the festival, spray the family with sunscreen. If you'll be out for a long time, you may need to pack a small bottle for reapplying.

Bring a Stroller or Buggy
For your purchases. Sure, the kids may need a ride at the end of the day too. Move the rose bush to the back, and let the kids hop in.

Dress Up
In comfortable clothes. It's usually a lot of walking and standing, so choose clothes that are comfortable for you and the kids.

Time Is On Your Side
Don't get hung up on time. Try to arrive early, browse what excites you, and make time to stop for fresh lemonade, bathroom breaks, sitting in the shade, and admiring the gifts of outdoor festivals.

What makes a good Earth Day Event?

Let's think about the reason driving the event. What is the purpose of Earth Day? To celebrate nature's wonders and to spread awareness about our planet's needs. Keep that idea at the forefront of planning. You can't drive your truck into the city park, chop down some trees, and call it an Earth Day event. Think of ways to honor Mother Nature's gifts.

What do you want to show at your event? Earth Day events can feature vendors that sell eco-friendly products or services. Find realtors who specialize in green-friendly homes, organizations that work on building rainforests, artists who use earth-friendly paints to depict nature, and the like. Talk to friends, post on boards, find a site that hosts Earth Day events.

Where will your event be held? Is it only a virtual event, or one held outside or in a local building? How much space do your vendors and participants need? City parks, local buildings, recreation halls, college campuses, and even someone's house can be the perfect place for an event.

Who are your event participants? Will they come from local neighborhoods or travel from out of area, like a different state or country? What do you want them to receive at your event? Are you providing information about Earth Day? Will you show highlight new innovations in energy-efficient products? Can participants bring their families? Will you combine free activities with paid admission?

How will participants find your event? Small, local events can advertise in the local paper or by word of mouth. Larger events can plan to have a website, so worldwide visitors can find your event, attend, or order online. Find a site that caters to eco-friendly events or connects environmentally conscious people to global events.

If you're looking for a site to connect your event with interested visitors, check out our Earth Day Birthday event. You'll have access to a state-of-the-art marketing platform, and a team that's already connected to an audience interested in Earth Day.

I've recently joined my friends and a group that is hosting Earth Day Birthday, a global party for Earth Day events and participants. Earth Day Birthday will unite Earth Day organizers and participants. But even better than that (and that's pretty big): We want it to be the biggest birthday party ever for Mother Earth!

What do you bring to a typical party? A present. That's what we're going to do also. We're planning on giving Mother Earth a present ... from all of us. Our Earth Day project was for each of us to save $10 to donate towards an Earth Day organization. Can you imagine if we all donated $10? That'd be a huge birthday present for Mother Earth.... maybe even enough to buy a rainforest!

There are many ways to get involved. Are you an event organizer or participant? Would you like join us for Earth Day Birthday?

Find out how to get involved in Earth Day Birthday - the biggest birthday party ever for Mother Earth!