Roswell Introduces First Azalea Festival

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A festival designed to celebrate a plant native to Georgia will take place next month in Roswell.

The first ever Roswell Azalea Festival will run April 11-20. Events will take place throughout the city as organizers prepare to honor the plant, which is both heat and drought tolerant.

The festival began as an effort to increase awareness of The Cottage School and to create a scholarship endowment fund for that school. However, organizers quickly realized the festival should embrace all of Roswell and focus on the beauty of the Azaleas during their peak blooming season.

Scheduled events include the following:

• April 11: Plant Sale at the Chattahoochee Nature Center with a special focus on native azaleas and how to utilize them in your landscape.
• April 12 -19: Native azaleas in bloom along the woodland trails of the Chattahoochee Nature Center. For the last 30 years staff and volunteers have been planting native azaleas all over the gardens at the Nature center. These shrubs are now spectacular and put on a show every year from early spring to late summer. The best time to visit CNC to see masses of native Azaleas will be in April when the Piedmont Azaleas will be in bloom not only in the gardens but also along the woodland trails. Most of the time you will be made aware of them before you see them because they have a lovely fragrance which wafts through the air.
• April 18 -19: Artist Joan Hilliard will host an art signing at The Chandlery featuring a painting created for the Azalea Festival with a portion of proceeds benefitting The Cottage School.
• April 18 : Roswell Farmers and Artisans Market opens at City Hall with over 40 vendors, chef demo, music and children’s activities.
• April 19 – The Cottage School Gala at Ivy Hall, Roswell Mill with dinner, dancing, live auction and special guests.
• April 20 – The Cottage School Invitational Golf Tournament at Brookfield Country Club.

When The Cottage School was created in 1985, the founders envisioned a school that embraced a diverse cultural and socio-economic population. Realizing that private school tuition is out of the reach of many families with students who need what The Cottage School provides, the founders were committed to providing scholarship aid to those families unable to afford the payment of full tuition.

To ensure that the original vision of the founders continues, the scholarship endowment will be established during the Azalea Festival for future students preparing to successfully navigate the global workplace.

For additional information please visit www.roswellazaleafestival.com.

Photo: Azaleas outside Smith Plantation in Roswell. Credit: Roswell Convention and Visitors Bureau