Country party (event)
Country party or garden festival is a term for outdoor events that are mostly carried out in the vicinity of castles or manors . They take place on certain weekends, often on longer weekends such as Ascension Day or Pentecost , mostly in the warm season (from early April to early October).
In rural areas, representative historical buildings such as mansions, castles, goods including their mostly park-like surroundings form the visual backdrop for the presentation and sale of plants, horticultural supplies, accessories for garden design and culinary delights. The stalls are usually in tents. Land parties also form the framework for fashion shows, classic car exhibitions and rallies as well as for cultural events of all kinds.
Not all garden festivals are country parties. Abroad, especially in the English- and French-speaking countries, “garden festival” is more a synonym for “garden show” in the style of federal or state garden shows . In such events, the element of a sales fair is by far not as pronounced as in land parties, and they are usually designed to last longer than this.
There is a trend towards land parties in those locations where they also take place in the warmer months of the year, in the Advent season , which combines the market form “land party” with that of a Christmas market . Both the country party-specific (whereby the proportion of plants is reduced) and Advent-specific offers are presented at such events, and wooden stalls typical of the Christmas market are often set up outdoors.
Herrenhausen Garden Festival in Hanover's Georgengarten , on the right the Leibniz Temple
Advent country party with Christmas market on the grounds of Gödens Castle
Country party at Schloss Hülshoff in November
Country tour “Spring in the Park” at Rheda Castle
