Foundation Retires FlorAbundance Plant Sale
It is with great sadness that we announce our decision to retire our annual spring plant sale, FlorAbundance. In recent years, net revenue from our beloved sale—and the funding it generates for the Arboretum—has been reduced by more than 50 percent, due to such factors as increased rental costs at the Magnuson Park venue, competition from other regional sales, and a shift in consumer preference away from ornamental plants to edibles. A beefed-up marketing campaign this past spring unfortunately did nothing to improve overall revenue.
New summer party: A key component of our mission is to raise money to support maintenance and kids education at the Arboretum. After much deliberation by our staff and board of directors, we have decided to bid a fond farewell to FlorAbundance and focus our efforts on developing a new summer fundraiser based in the Arboretum. We’re still working out the details of our first summer party, but we have already set a date: Thursday, July 14, 2016.
Thank you! We’d like to thank all of the vendors, volunteers, and shoppers who’ve contributed to our sale over the years and decades. You have given us tremendous support and many wonderful memories to treasure. Our vendors are the very best nurseries in the business, and we strongly encourage you to continue to support them.