Did you plan on Park Avenue in October this year and find nothing there? The Winter Park Autumn Art Festival held its 52nd edition on October 11 and 12, 2025, as Bungalower reported at the time. The 53rd edition is on November 14 and 15, 2026, in Central Park, according to the Winter Park Chamber of Commerce. That puts it on the same weekend as GROWvember, the plant sale at Mead Botanical Garden.
Both events are free and both open at 9 a.m. They close at different hours, and the art festival does its judging on just one of the two days. Those details decide how the weekend goes.
A month apart last year, the same weekend this year
Here is how the two dates moved.
| Event | 2025 dates | 2026 dates | 2026 hours |
|---|---|---|---|
| Winter Park Autumn Art Festival, Central Park | Sat.–Sun., Oct. 11–12 | Sat.–Sun., Nov. 14–15 | 9 a.m.–5 p.m. |
| GROWvember Fall Fest & Plant Sale, Mead Botanical Garden | Fri.–Sat., Nov. 7–8 | Sat.–Sun., Nov. 14–15 | 9 a.m.–3 p.m. |
GROWvember also changed days. Last year, Orlando Shine listed it as a Friday afternoon from 2 to 6 p.m. plus a full Saturday. This year it runs two full days, Saturday and Sunday, matching the art festival exactly. Mead's 2026 page says admission and parking are free and the sale happens rain or shine.
So this year, Park Avenue's juried art show and Mead's annual plant sale are on the same two days, at the same opening hour, at two different addresses. Mead Botanical Garden is at 1300 S. Denning Dr. Central Park runs along Park Avenue downtown.
Mead closes two hours before Park Avenue
GROWvember ends at 3 p.m. both days. The art festival runs until 5. If you want both on one day, the hours set the order: Mead in the morning and Park Avenue after lunch. The plant sale has the earlier deadline, and plant vendors with the most to choose from are best visited early.
There's also a parking reason. Mead offers free parking at the garden. Downtown, the Chamber says Park Avenue will be closed to traffic from Lyman Avenue to Canton Avenue on both festival days. The Chamber points visitors to street parking on surrounding blocks, accessible spaces in municipal lots, the Truist Parking Garage at 203 E. Lyman Ave. and the Canton Avenue Parking Garage at 150 E. Canton Ave. If your trunk is already full of bromeliads, a garage space is the more practical place to leave the car while you walk the booths.
A one-day version might look like this:
- 8 a.m. Coffee and pan de bono at Mecatos Bakery & Cafe, 610 W. Morse Blvd., which opens at 8 a.m. on weekends.
- 9 a.m. Mead Botanical Garden as GROWvember opens, with time for the tree pickup if you reserved one.
- Midday Lunch from the GROWvember food vendors, or save your appetite for the festival food on Morse Boulevard.
- Afternoon Central Park and Park Avenue. The festival's last music set starts at 3:30 p.m. both days and runs until the 5 p.m. close.
What to pick up at Mead
The free trees are the time-sensitive part. Mead's 2026 GROWvember page lists a tree giveaway by Winter Park's Urban Forestry department. A listing from the City of Winter Park, carried on GoToday, says the Urban Forestry Division is giving away crape myrtle trees in Tuscarora, Natchez and Muskogee varieties. The listing says the trees must be reserved online in advance and shows all-day pickup on both Saturday and Sunday. It also says details can change, so confirm through the City before you go.
Beyond the trees, Mead's vendor list is long and specific. A few names show the range:
- Specialty growers. Bello Tropicals Nursery, Blue Moon Tropicals, Just Plumerias, Central Florida Orchids & More, George Griepenburg's Plants by George and Tim's Tropical Treasures.
- Native and wildlife-minded booths. The Tarflower Chapter of the Florida Native Plant Society and Wild Birds Unlimited. Mead's page also lists native plants that attract hummingbirds and pollinators among what shoppers will find.
- Clubs and societies. The Bromeliad Society of Central Florida, plus informational booths from the Central Florida Fruit Society, the UCF Botanical Society, Mead Community Garden and the Winter Park Public Library.
- Pots and seating. Vina Planters, A Pot Ahead Nursery, Craft & Clay Studio and Sit a Spell Seating Company.
Food at Mead comes from Caldonia's Kitchen, Rosario's Kitchen, Yum Yum Pops, The Burrow Cafe and Play, and Hive 5 Handcrafted Honey Products. The beer garden lists Ravenous Brewing Co. and Bonfire Brewery at Winter Park Golf Course.
Saturday is judging day on Park Avenue
The festival's two days are not identical. According to the Chamber's artist information page, judging takes place Saturday, November 14, starting at 9 a.m. and running until it's finished. All awards are presented that night at the Saturday Night Artists' Party. On Saturday, then, the 186 Florida artists in the show are still waiting on the judges. Anyone walking the booths on Sunday is visiting after the awards have been handed out.
The prize money is more than $20,000 in total:
- Best of Show, $5,000
- Gerry Marino Award of Excellence, $2,500
- Morse Museum Award, $1,000
- Awards of Distinction, $700 each
- Awards of Merit, $500 each
- Awards of Honor, $350 each
- Judges Selection Awards, $300 each
- Patrons Arts Dollars, more than $6,500
The Chamber also notes that the show includes the previous year's Best of Show, Award of Excellence and Award of Distinction winners. It describes the event as the only juried fine arts festival that exclusively features Florida artists.
The stage lineup changes between the two days as well.
- Saturday, November 14. Orlando Children's Choir at 9 a.m. and the WPHS Jazz Ensemble at 10 a.m. Then Afterglow at 11, Oklahoma Stackhouse at 12:15 p.m. and Savannah Savino at 2 p.m. Sweet Fleet closes the day at 3:30 p.m.
- Sunday, November 15. Avalon Dance Academy at 9 a.m. and Winter Park Music Academy at 10 a.m. Then School of Rock at 11:15, The Crew at 12:30 p.m. and Luis Alfredo at 2:15 p.m. The Buzzcatz Band plays from 3:30 to 5 p.m.
Sunday morning is mostly local students and academies. Saturday afternoon has the longer band sets. The Beer Garden is in front of the entertainment stage. The VIP Lounge, presented by Artisan Kitchen & Bath Gallery, serves catered lunches and beer, wine and non-alcoholic drinks for festival patrons and VIPs. Its providers include Cuisiniers, The Grove Bar + Kitchen and Kineo Coffee. Crealde will run the children's art activities, and the Chamber says more details are coming.
Pets are not allowed in Central Park, so a dog that comes along to Mead in the morning should go home before the afternoon. Official festival posters and note cards are sold along Park Avenue during festival hours.
Morse Boulevard is where the festival eats
The Chamber places the festival's food vendors on Morse Boulevard, not on Park Avenue. The 2026 list includes Gran Arepa, Criollisimo, Paellas Madrileñas, Bricks and Bowls, Asia Kitchen, Mango Kings, Gelato Go, Jeremiah's and Olde Country Kettle.
The same street has the newest place to eat on this route. Mecatos Bakery & Cafe soft-opened October 6 at 610 W. Morse Blvd., on the corner of Morse Boulevard and Pennsylvania Avenue, Bungalower reported. The building had been empty for more than three years, since The Coop closed in July 2023. The Central Florida chain is known for empanadas, buñuelos, pan de bono and specialty coffee. Bungalower also reported that this location plans an on-site coffee roaster and coffee cocktails.
Weekend hours are 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. That means it opens an hour before either event and stays open an hour past the art festival's close.
Diane Sterling has spent years preparing homes for the market and knows how much a well-planted entry or a shaded lanai adds to how a house shows. If you're picking up a crape myrtle at Mead this month and wondering how your landscaping fits into a future sale, Diane Sterling is happy to walk the yard with you. Let's Connect.
