Breakfast with the Birds
Join our plant curator and an experienced Audubon birding guide on an easy walk through our grounds.
Afterward, enjoy a drink and pastry from the on-site Banyan Café while you chat with fellow birders and the guides. This tour is outdoors and subject to cancellation due to weather. Registration is limited. Tour includes a beverage and sweet treat afterward from the Banyan Café. Does not include admission to the museum, laboratory or homes. It is recommended that participants bring binoculars and drinking water, and wear closed-toe shoes. Park and meet in the parking area directly across from 2153 Larchmont Avenue (Estates overflow parking).
Cost: Edison Ford members: $15; non-members: $20
Registration is required– click here to register.
Gardening Class: Palm Reading
November 12 (Tuesday, 1:30 PM – 3:30 PM) or February 22 (Saturday, 10:00 AM to Noon):
Get the tools to guide your selection of appropriate palm species for your garden or yard; the physiology of palms, their unique care, and what you need to know to maintain them at their beautiful best! In addition to classroom time, our discussion will continue with a tour of Edison’s extensive palm collection. Participants will each receive a copy of the teaching materials covered in class, as well as a 20% discount coupon good toward plants in our Garden Shoppe.
Advance registration is required. This class always sells out quickly, so be sure to register early because class size is limited. Class will be held at the Fort Myers-Lee County Garden Council building on Larchmont Avenue (across from the Estates’ overflow parking lots).
Cost: Edison Ford members: $45; non-members: $60
Click here for registration (will be available soon).
Grow Fort Myers: Plant Sale & Workshops
Save the date for this event!
Workshops and participating vendors will be announced at a later date.
Gardening Class: Plant a White Garden
White gardens were all the rage with the arrival of the Arts & Crafts movement that redesigned homes and gardens, and Vita-Sackville West’s white garden at Sissinghurst in England set the standard. Since we can’t use the same plants, we can appropriate the concept, and this class will cover plant choices and design ideas to create a sub-tropical white sensation on your lanai, balcony or in your garden. Each participant will receive a 20% discount coupon for plant purchases in our Garden Shoppe.
Advance Registration is required, as class size is limited. Class will be held at the Garden Council building, located across the street from the Edison and Ford (Larchmont Street) parking lot.
Cost: EFWE members: $45; non-members: $60
Click here to register.
Upcoming Garden Talks
Edison Ford horticultural staff, and occasionally experienced guest speakers, instruct participants on a variety of topics relating to gardening in Southwest Florida:
January 11, 2025: Amazing Cycads
Take a walk on the wild side with world renowned cycad expert Chip Jones. A collector, author and grower of the plants that survived the dinosaurs, Chip will be our featured speaker at our January 11th, 2025 Garden Talk. The program will be held in the Cycad Garden at Edison Ford Winter Estates. Even if you have never grown one or are familiar with Cycads, this is sure to be a fabulous exchange or introduction to these endangered plants. Learn why including a cycad in your garden may be the perfect upgrade or focal point. Meet at Welcome Booth at 9:45 am. Members: $20, Non-Members – $30.
March 8, 2025: Sanseverias
Did you know that the Estates has a Sanseveria garden? We’ll look beyond the invasive “Mother-in-Law’s tongue” plant to dozens of other species and learn what makes these easy-care plants so collectible. We’ll also discuss dracaenas. Members: $15; non-members: $20
- Garden Talk participants will receive a coupon for 20% off plant purchases in the Garden Shoppe. Guests should wear comfortable shoes, sunscreen and a hat, and bring drinking water.
- Purchase tickets for each talk at the ticket counter.
Gardening Class: Tropical Rose Gardening
Once upon a rose garden, the Empress Josephine, wife of Napoleon, was known for having the largest rose collection in the world at her home outside of Paris. However, this royal gardener hailed from the Caribbean where growing roses can be a challenge. We’ll explore Josephine’s favorite plants and how she would have mastered a sub-tropical rose garden. Our class will also include a tour of the Estates’ rose gardens. Registration is required.
Cost: EFWE members: $45, non-members: $60
Click here to register.
Gardening Class: ABC’s of Tropical Fruits
Now is the perfect time to plant fruit trees! Learn about avocados, bananas, and citrus. This class will cover recommended varieties to grow in our challenging soils; how to plant, how to prune, and develop the healthiest and most productive trees. Gardening in SW Florida also means one must be prepared to recognize common diseases and pests and be armed with the skills to address such problems in a timely manner. Since citrus greening is an on-going challenge, it is important to understand what it is, how to recognize it and how to choose and grow citrus. Our discussion will continue in the fruit groves following the classroom presentation.
Cost: EFWE members: $45; non-members: $60
Registration will be available soon.
Annual Bromeliad Sale
In partnership with the Caloosahatchee Bromeliad Society, there will be hundreds of different specimens of Bromeliads for sale, including rare species. Experts from the society will be on hand to answer questions about Bromeliads. Parking and admission to the event is free (does not include tours or admission to the museum and laboratory). A limited number of garden carts will be available; guests are encouraged to bring their own.
The Garden Shoppe will be open and stocked with tropical and native plants and trees, including edibles and butterfly host plants.
Autumn Garden Festival
Our annual Autumn Garden Festival will feature garden vendors from around the state with tropical and native plants and trees for sale, in addition to food trucks and live music.
Vendors will have many types of plants and trees, including air plants, bromeliads, butterfly plants, cacti, fruit trees, herbs, hibiscus, orchids, palms, succulents, and many hard-to-find species. Vendors will also offer garden supplies, such as fertilizer and worm castings. The Garden Shoppe will be open and have unusual tropical and Florida native plants that thrive in Southwest Florida. Ceramic flowerpots, vegetable and flower seeds, garden art, and gardening gift items will also be available for purchase.
A limited number of garden carts will be available, so guests are encouraged to bring a cart or wagon for transporting plants. A designated plant holding tent and loading spot will be offered for anyone needing assistance.
Parking and admission to the festival is free (tours of the Edison and Ford homes, museum and lab are not included).
*Note: vendor space is SOLD OUT for this event. Please contact dhughes@edisonford.org to be placed on the email list for future events.
