Monarch butterflies and family fun will take center stage at the Dade City Monarch Butterfly Festival on Saturday, October 12, 2019. The Festival will be held at Hibiscus Park (7^th Street & Bougainvillea Avenue) from 10 am to 3 pm and is being presented by the Dade City Garden Club and the Dade City Youth Council.

In 2018, the garden club became concerned about the diminishing number of Monarch butterflies and partnered with the City of Dade City to increase awareness on how to help this iconic insect. 

Created as a celebration of the City’s commitment to becoming a Monarch City USA, the festival will feature environmental educators, informational booths, presentations, native plant sales, vendors and hands-on activities for the kids!

Learn about Butterflies with Live Exhibits

Visitors will be able to view live displays of butterflies, caterpillars, and chrysalis while learning about the life cycle of the butterfly.

Mini-presentations and other informational exhibits will address the question of why butterfly conservation is important, how to choose the appropriate host and nectar plants for our area, why gardening without chemicals is vital to a healthy environment, and how to maximize small spaces to build a butterfly garden.

Shop for Butterfly Garden Supplies & More

Shoppers will have their desire satisfied.  A plant sale will feature a large assortment of milkweed and native plants as well as other perennials, annuals, shrubs and garden art and accessories.

Garden club members will spotlight their own “Growing Friends Garden Sale,” where they will be offering plants gathered from their own gardens.

A variety of other vendors will present a unique shopping opportunity with everything from home décor items to handcrafted products to jewelry, alpaca products, wine tasting and more!

There will also be a display of bird feeders with bird food samples.

Bring the Kids to meet Miles the Butterfly

Throughout the day the Kids’ Zone will offer arts and crafts, games, face tattoos, and more. Festival-goers can take a photo with Miles the Butterfly, who will have fluttered over to Hibiscus Park from his usual home at the Dade City Heritage and Cultural Museum.

Hugh Embry and New River Libraries are teaming up to provide fun activities and information about their library programs. Families can stop by their tent for Legos, puzzles, crafts, butterfly books, and an easy gardening activity.

Butterfly drawings by foster children will be on display at the Caterpillars to Butterflies Charitable Foundation exhibit.

Delicious food including mojo or BBQ pork sandwiches and Mexican food, along with beverages will be available for sale throughout the day.

Dade City Monarch Butterfly Festival is October 12, 2019

The Dade City Garden Club is offering opportunity drawings in conjunction with the celebration. Proceeds from this fundraiser will go towards underwriting the costs of the Dade City Monarch Butterfly Festival and the educational and environmental mission of the Dade City Garden Club’s Monarch Project.

The Grand Prize of a hand-crafted Potting Bench, as well as other unique prizes, will be drawn at the event and winners need not be present to win.

Together we can Make a Difference in Saving our Monarchs!

The ongoing theme highlighted throughout the Dade City Monarch Butterfly Festival is that everyone can make a difference!

Municipalities, community groups and even individuals can help save the Monarchs by taking a few simples steps. Through our collective efforts, our community can help all pollinators, improve our environment, and make Dade City a better place to live, play and work.

For more information, visit www.dadecitygardenclub.com.