Westerflora Needs Your Garden and Garden Ideas
WesterFlora organizers are not looking for picture-perfect yards that look ready for the cover of a gardening magazine. They are not looking for flawless gardens where every flower is perfect, and rabbits sit still as you walk by. They are looking for Westerville gardeners willing to inspire their neighbors, share gardening stories, and offer a few practical tips from their own backyards.
As the annual garden tour prepares for its Sunday, July 19, 2026, event, organizers are seeking homeowners willing to share the outdoor spaces they have cared for throughout the year. The deadline to enter is June 13, 2026.
For more than three decades, WesterFlora has been one of Westerville’s favorite summer traditions. The tour began in 1992, the same year Columbus hosted the AmeriFlora International Flower Show, and has continued as a local celebration of creativity, care, and community pride.
This year’s theme is “All American Gardens.” The tour will be held from noon to 6 p.m. and will feature local yards and gardens throughout the Westerville area.
Organizers want residents to know that a garden does not need to be large, formal, professionally designed, or flawless to be part of WesterFlora. Big yards, small yards, native plantings, vegetable gardens, pollinator spaces, shade gardens, cottage gardens, patio gardens, family gardens, historic home gardens, and works in progress all help tell the story of how Westerville grows.
Over the years, WesterFlora has moved away from being a judged competition and toward a welcoming, non-competitive community garden tour. That distinction matters. Hosting a garden is not about being inspected or ranked. It is about sharing ideas, swapping tips, encouraging other gardeners, and celebrating the personal outdoor spaces that make Westerville beautiful.
Still, many gardeners hesitate. They may wonder whether their garden is “good enough.” They may worry about crowds, parking, pets, bathrooms, or strangers walking through the yard. Some may assume only showcase gardens qualify.
WesterFlora’s message is simple: real gardens are welcome.
A garden with personality, problem-solving, and a few weeds can be just as meaningful as a polished landscape. Visitors often come looking for ideas they can use at home: a clever container planting, a shady corner that works, a pollinator-friendly bed, a backyard vegetable plot, or a quiet patio retreat.
The tour usually features about 10 to 12 local gardens, is free to the public, and draws visitors from Westerville and beyond. Each garden adds something different to the day.
Residents can also help by nominating a neighbor’s garden. Many gardeners are modest about their own work and may not think to volunteer, even when others admire what they have created.
WesterFlora depends on a personal kind of generosity. Garden hosts are not simply participating in an event. They are opening a space they have planted, watered, weeded, shaped, and enjoyed.
That generosity keeps a Westerville tradition growing.
For event details, entry forms, and registration information.
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