The Garden Club organizes field trips in October, November, January, February, March and April. In the past few years club members have visited Leu Gardens in Orlando, Discovery Gardens in Lake County and Hollis Gardens in Lakeland. Four trips are currently scheduled for 2024.
Lunch & Learn. Each field trip is followed by a group lunch for everyone who wishes to partake.
Three more trips are planned for the remainder of the season.
Click the links for additional information and to sign up for the trips.
March – Lukas Nursery & Butterfly Encounter, Oviedo
April – Southern Hills Blueberry Picking, Clermont
Note: there will not be a Field Trip in February.
All Field Trips leave from the Heritage Hall parking lot at 9:00 a.m. unless otherwise noted. Members will carpool whenever possible so that no one has to drive alone – and carpooling helps the environment.
Visit the Photos Page for photos from all our Field Trips.
2024 – 2025 Field Trips
Friday October 18, 2024 – Oakland Nature Preserve
The Garden Club of Celebration visited the Oakland Nature Preserve for a guided
walking trail tour. Although we saw damage from the recent hurricanes, we learned hurricanes
are Mother Nature’s way to remove the diseased, weak, and dying plants and trees. The
Oakland Nature Preserve is home to Gopher Tortoises, with over 180 burrows found on the
property. We visited on National Opossum Day, and met Pepper, one of the preserve’s Animal
Ambassadors. We concluded our afternoon with lunch at the Moon Cricket Grill
Saturday November 16, 2024 – Festival of Trees Orlando
Members of the Garden Club visited the Festival of the Trees at the Orland Art Museum, where we saw beautifully designed Christmas Trees, wreaths and table scapes spread throughout the museum. Our club was even able to get a photo with Santa! After our time at the museum we enjoyed lunch at the White Wolf Cafe.
Friday December 20, 2024 – Audubon Center for Birds of Prey
Members of the Garden Club of Celebration were teated to a guided tour at the Audubon Center for Birds of Prey. The tour began with a brief history of the Center, and and explanation of the centers mission to rescue injured birds and release them to the wild or to zoos. The focus animals that will not survive without human intervention. We encountered many magnificent birds of prey, and learned about their importance in the ecosystem. We concluded our field trip with lunch at the Cheesecake Factory.
Friday, January 3, 2025 – Bok Tower
The Garden Club of Celebration visited to the Bok Tower Gardens for our January Field Trip. There we given a guided tour of the grounds and learned about the the vision of Edward Bok his vision to share the gardens as a way to “unplug” and appreciate nature. We also learned about the gardens work to bring plants from near extinction to becoming viable and germinate again and reintroduce rare pants back into the areas where they will thrive. Our trip concluded with lunch on site at the Blue Palmetto Cafe.
Friday, March 21, 2025 – Lukas Nursery and Butterfly Encounter
Lukas Nursery a large selection of landscape, patio, and indoor plants, and also one of the largest native butterfly conservatories in the state of Florida. The butterfly and bird conservatory offers a one-of-a-kind experience, where one can mingle among the most beautiful “flying flowers,” cheerfully chirping exotic finches, and Chinese button quail. It is even possible to feed butterflies from your finger tips!! The entrance fee for the Butterfly Encounter is $8.95, which you can pay at the door. For more information about Lukas Nursery visit their website.
A group lunch will follow the tour at Mission BBQ, located at 968 W. Mitchell Hammock Road, Oviedo.
Saturday, April 5, 2025 – Southern Hills Farms – Blueberry Picking
A long-time favorite Garden Club Field Trip is to the Southern Hills Farms in Clermont for blueberry picking. A group lunch is not scheduled, but there are several food trucks on site for lunch. Visit the Southern Hills Farms website for more information.