Stop & smell the roses at these 5 Wisconsin flower festivals

From Festival of Spring to Bayfield in Bloom, these five flower festivals in Wisconsin are sure to brighten up your 2025. Check them out here.

There’s something about spring in Wisconsin that always makes us feel like Olaf in “Frozen,” minus the whole “potential to melt if the temperature gets too warm” thing. The sunshine! The flowers! Finally feeling motivated to get out of bed and back into the world! It’s truly a beautiful thing.

Adding to that sense of excitement? The fact that Wisconsin has five different flower festivals to attend between May and June this year. From the Festival of Spring in Paine on May 17, to the Cranberry Blossom Festival in Wisconsin Rapids on June 19-22, these botanical events offer something special for everyone.

Whether you want to embrace a newfound sense of community, pick up some plants for your apartment, or you just want to stop and smell the roses (literally), these festivals are sure to do the trick.

1. Festival of Spring, Paine (May 17)

Getting to spend a beautiful spring day outdoors is thrilling enough, but the experience is even better when you can attend a local flower festival for free. Paine’s annual Festival of Spring is every plant lover’s dream. It features thousands of plants for sale, crafts, garden supplies, art vendors, and much more. A range of food will be available, as well as live entertainment and kid-friendly activities. 

The event takes place from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. on May 17, but if you’re a member of the Paine Art Center and Gardens, you can opt to head in early at 8 a.m. instead. Members will also receive a 10% discount on plants.

Parking for the Festival of Spring can be found along the 1600 block of Congress Avenue, the Paine Art Center and Gardens parking lot located on Algoma Boulevard, and along surrounding streets. The nearby Algoma Boulevard United Methodist Church, and the Martin Luther Church, offer parking for festival attendees. They politely request a donation for using their lots.

If you need handicap-accessible parking, that will be available on the east side of Algoma Boulevard, in addition to the Paine’s parking lot.

For more details, please click here. No reservations are necessary to attend this event.

Fill up your wagon with herbs, flowers, and more at the Festival of Spring. (Ken Cravillion Photography)

2. Blaser’s Acres Tulip Festival, Suamico (around Mother’s Day, May 12)

Figuring out what to buy my mom for Mother’s Day was a challenge up until a few years ago when I realized that planning an experience for her is better than any physical gift I could buy. Taking her to a flower festival, for example, would be a great option because she loves to sow seeds, plant them in her garden, and see what blooms every year.

Would your mom enjoy a similar experience? If so, you’re in luck because Blaser’s Acres Tulip Festival is held around Mother’s Day, May 12, in Suamico. Roughly 20,000+ tulips will be on full display, making for a vibrant, scenic afternoon celebrating the mom figures in your life who helped raise you.

Event details are currently scarce, so we encourage you to keep track of what’s going on through the Blaser’s Acres website and Facebook page. In the meantime, swing by Blaser’s to check out its lush greenhouses and locally produced maple syrup.

A field of vibrant red tulips against a clear blue sky. (Esther Gorlee/Flickr).

3. Bayfield in Bloom, Bayfield (May 30-June 7) 

Is there anything better than May in Wisconsin? Flowers are blossoming (and yes, we’re taking our allergy medicine as soon as we wake up!), the sun is shining, and the weather is at the perfect temperature to open all the windows and enjoy the breeze without sweating too much.

The only thing that could improve these conditions is attending Bayfield in Bloom, held between May 30 and June 7. Over 50,000 daffodils will be in bloom, plus you can stroll through nearby apple blossom orchards and enjoy “a vibrant mosaic of roadside lupine” while you’re at it.

To fully embrace the Bayfield experience, take a garden tour from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. on June 7, attend the annual Blessing of the Fleet at 1 p.m. on June 1, or tune into the live broadcast of Garden Talk with Larry Meiller from 10:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. on May 30.

Information regarding the cost of attendance was not immediately available, but if you’d like more details about the festival’s events, you can find that here.

4. Wisconsin Arts & Peony Festival, Beaver Dam (June 13-15)

From June 13-15, nature is front-and-center at the 5th annual Wisconsin Arts & Peony Festival in Beaver Dam. Thousands of peonies, in nearly 100 different varieties, are viewable at Ovans Peony Farm, and the nearby Downtown area offers a wealth of exciting activities to enjoy once you’re done strolling through the peonies.

There’s an Art Market on June 14 where roughly 100 Wisconsin artists will be selling their items, plus there are going to be food trucks and live music, which sounds like the perfect way to spend a June afternoon.

As if that wasn’t enough, there will also be: 

• a Peony Art Exhibit
• a Ghost Storytelling Festival and Lawn Party
• the Great Wisconsin Quilt Show 
• art workshops
• the Taste of Wisconsin Beer, Wine, and Cheese Festival
• the American Peony Society National Convention

And much, much more! For a full rundown of events taking place during the Wisconsin Arts & Peony Festival, click here. 

Badger fans, we want to point out that there will be a return of the Mike Leckrone Concert Jacket Exhibit which will feature many of his famous concert jackets. And you’ll even have a chance to meet Mike Leckrone as he’s doing a special book signing and guest appearance at this year’s festival. 

5. Cranberry Blossom Festival, Wisconsin Rapids (June 19-22)

Last, but certainly not least, is Wisconsin Rapids’ Cranberry Blossom Festival. Held from June 19-22, this family-friendly celebration includes arts and crafts, a carnival, live music, a parade, and an array of cranberry treats. And since the Wisconsin Rapids area produces around 30% of the world’s (yes, world’s!) cranberries, you know these will be the best of the best.

The full schedule of events, including start times, admission fees, and additional helpful information, can be found here. We advise you to take a look at the schedule in advance so you can make the most of each day at the Cranberry Blossom Festival. 

Plus, there are raffles you can enter, aqua skier water shows to attend, and fishing demonstrations to check out while you’re there! 

Close-up photo of pink cranberry blossoms. (Denali National Park and Preserve/CC BY 2.0).

Other gardens and events to explore

While these might not be flower festivals in the traditional sense, we wanted to highlight these 14 Spots to Stop and Smell the Roses in Wisconsin, as well as the City in Bloom in Madison for even more floral fun.

This article first appeared on Good Info News Wire and is republished here under a Creative Commons license.