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John's Dream Peony - white peony bloom up close

Peony Festival

Home...Festivals and EventsCity EventsPeony Festival
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White peony with green foliage - proper name John's Dream

Peony Festival Logo

Thank you to our guests, sponsors, partners, vendors, staff and volunteers for another successful event at:

Oshawa Valley Botanical Gardens

Address: 155 Arena St., Oshawa

Save the dates: Saturday June 8, 2024 and Sunday June 9, 2024

Time: 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.

NOTE: The arena floor opens at 11 a.m. on Saturday, June 8, once judging has been completed.

This free City of Oshawa event is a favourite among flower and garden lovers alike! Join us for live entertainment, market vendors, a diverse food court to satisfy every foodie, a judged peony flower show, demonstrations, children's activities and 300 varieties of beautiful peonies in the garden.

Here's what you can expect at the festival!

Art and Photography Contest Information

a woman holding a painting of a peony
2023 Art Contest

First Place: Connie Maglioli (pictured above)

Second Place: Ting Chen

Honourable Mention: Clarrie Chu

 

 

 

photo of a pink peony
2023 Photography Contest

1st place: Nandhini Ravichandran

Photography Contest

Here are this year's contest submissions:

Photo Gallery: 2023 Peony Photo Contest will appear here on the public site.

 Terms and Conditions for Art and Photography Contests

Art Contest Terms and Conditions
  • The 2023 Oshawa Peony Festival Art Contest (the "Contest") voting will begin on June 10, 2023 at 11:00 a.m. and close on June 11, 2023 at 4:00 p.m. (Eastern Time).
  • The Contest is open to adults aged 18 years of age or older. No purchase is required to enter the Contest.
  • The first place prize for the Contest is a three-hundred and fifty dollar ($350.00) gift card for a local art supplier, which will be awarded to the artwork entry that receives the most number of eligible votes.
  • The second place prize for the Contest is a one-hundred and fifty dollar ($150.00) gift card for local art supplier, which will be awarded to the artwork entry that receives the second most number of eligible votes. 
  • Only two (2) prizes will be awarded for the Contest.
  • The two winning artworks will be selected by a public vote taking place between June 10 -11, 2023. Members of the public may only vote once, and may only vote for one (1) entry. The City reserves the right to reject any votes which they suspect to be multiple votes.

To enter the Contest, bring your artistic interpretation of a Peony, in any medium (painting, drawing, sculpture, etc.) to Children's Arena located at 155 Arena Street in Oshawa, on Friday June 9, 2023, between 10:00 a.m. and 4:00 p.m., with pick up to occur on June 11, 2023, between 4:00 p.m. and 5:00 p.m.

  • Only one (1) entry may be submitted per Contest entrant. 
  • The maximum size of an entry is 24" x 24" x 24".
  • Bring your own display props as none will be provided.
  • All artwork submitted must be the sole creation of the Contest entrant.  Accordingly, artworks shall not contain any content taken from the internet, copyrighted material and/or material which incorporate another person's work.
  • By participating in the Contest, the entrant acknowledges and agrees that City staff may screen all entries and the City in their sole discretion reserves the right to reject an entry for any reason, including but not limited to, vulgarity, obscenity or any form of criminal activity, violation of these terms and conditions, and shall not be required to give any notification or reason to the entrant.   
  • The City reserves the right to select which artwork(s) will appear on the City's Peony Festival Contest Page and/or the City's social media accounts on Facebook or Twitter #OurOshawa #OshEvents #OshawaPeonies.
  • Potential winners will be contacted by the City via email or phone. By submitting artwork for the Contest, the entrant consents to the City contacting the entrant by email or phone.
  • Prior to claiming a prize, potential winners must show proper photo identification and provide any other information required by City staff to confirm the winner's identity and eligibility for the Contest. 
  • Employees of the City are not eligible to win a prize in the Contest.
  • No person is eligible to receive more than one prize in the Contest.
  • The City reserves the right to cancel the Contest for any reason whatsoever without further notice or compensation.
  • By participating in the Contest, entrants hereby provide the City with an unlimited licence to use photograph(s) of their artwork submitted for the Contest, including but not limited to use in all City communications, City advertising, and publicity purposes, without any compensation whatsoever to the entrant.
  • By participating in the Contest, entrants hereby permit the City to use the entrant's name, city of residence, and photograph of the artwork for advertising or publicity purposes without any compensation whatsoever to the entrant.
  • By participating in the Contest, entrants hereby release and hold harmless the City from any and all actions, charges, claims, costs, damages, demands, liabilities, losses, suits, proceedings, costs and expenses pertaining to the entrant's participation in the Contest.
  • By participating in the Contest, entrants agree that all decisions of the City and its employees in relation to the Contest are final and binding.  Entrants also agree that the selection of the prize winners by the City in accordance with the public vote is final and not subject to any right of appeal or review.
  • By participating in the Contest, entrants represent and warrant that they have read and understood and agree to be bound by these Terms and Conditions.
Photography Contest Terms and Conditions

The Oshawa Peony Festival Photo Contest (the “Contest”) begins on June 12, 2023 at 12:00 p.m. and closes on July 14, 2023 at 11:59 p.m. (Eastern Time).

The Contest is open to those 18 years of age or older. No purchase is required to enter the Contest.

The Grand Prize awarded for the best photograph is a gift certificate from Henry’s for one hundred and fifty dollar ($150.00).

The Second Place Prize awarded for the second best photograph is a gift certificate from Henry’s for one-hundred dollar ($100.00).

The Third Place Prize awarded for the third best photograph is a gift certificate from Henry’s for fifty dollars ($50.00).

Only One (1) Grand Prize, One (1) Second Place Prize and One (1) Third Place prize will be awarded. Entrants may only win one (1) prize in the Contest, as no person is eligible to receive more than one (1) prize.

The three winning photographs will be selected for their artistic and technical merits as assessed by the Harmony Hill Retirement Community Garden Club.

To enter the Contest, please submit photographs of peonies taken in the City of Oshawa, Ontario during the 2023 Oshawa Peony Festival, using the City’s submission form available at the Peony Festival Contest Page, between June 12 to July 14, 2023.

No more than three (3) photographs may be submitted per Contest entrant. 

Photographs must be submitted in digital format not exceeding 5 MB in size.

Photographs must be submitted in JPEG format using the following file name template:  Photographer’s Name_Title.jpg (e.g.JohnDoe_PeonyGarden.jpg). Photographs which are submitted that do not comply with the above file name template is not eligible to win a prize.

Photographs must not contain close-ups of any individual(s) and/or contain any identifiable individual(s).

All photographs submitted must be the sole creation of the Contest entrant.  Accordingly, photographs shall not contain any content taken from the internet, stock photos, copyrighted material and/or which otherwise incorporate another person’s work.

All photographs submitted must have been taken during the 2023 peony season. If a photograph was not taken during this time period, it is not eligible to win a prize in the Contest.

By participating in the Contest, the entrant acknowledges and agrees that City staff may screen all photographs and the City reserves the sole right to reject a photograph from the Contest for any reason, including vulgarity, obscenity or any form of criminal activity, and/or non-compliance with these Terms and Conditions, without providing any notification or reasons to the entrant.  

The City reserves the right to select which photos will appear on the City’s online photo gallery contained on the Peony Festival Contest Page and/or the City's social media accounts on Facebook, Instagram, or Twitter #OurOshawa #OshEvents #OshPeony.

Potential winners of the prizes will be contacted by the City via email or telephone. By submitting a photo, the entrant consents to the City contacting the entrant by email and/or telephone.

Prior to claiming a prize, potential winners must show proper photo identification and any other information required by City staff to confirm the winner's identity and eligibility for the Contest. 

Employees of the City of Oshawa are not eligible to win the Contest.

The City reserves the right to cancel the Contest at any time for any reason whatsoever without further notice and without any compensation to any person(s).

By participating in the Contest, entrants hereby provide the City with an unlimited licence to use any photograph(s) submitted for the Contest in any and all City communications, including City advertising and publicity purposes, without any compensation whatsoever.

By participating in the Contest, entrants hereby permit the City to use the entrant's name, city of residence, photograph, video or other likeness for advertising or publicity purposes without any compensation whatsoever.

By participating in the Contest, entrants hereby release and hold harmless the City from any and all actions, charges, claims, costs, damages, demands, liabilities, losses, suits, proceedings, costs and expenses pertaining to the entrant’s participation in the Contest.

By participating in the Contest, entrants agree that all decisions of the City and its employees in relation to the Contest are final and binding.  Entrants also agree that the selection of the prize winning photographs by the Harmony Hill Retirement Community Garden Club is final and not subject to any right of appeal or review.

By participating in the Contest, entrants represent and warrant that they have read and understood and agree to be bound by these Terms and Conditions.

 

Peony advice and virtual tours

Peony Advice

Watch these how to videos on all types of peonies, planting, dividing and designing!

Tree Peonies

Herbaceous Peonies

Intersectional Peonies

Designing Peony Arrangements

Digging, Dividing and Planting in the Fall

 Virtual Tours 2020/2021

Check out these virtual tours from the comfort of your home.

 Oshawa Valley Botanical Gardens

June 1

June 8

June 15

June 22

Rain in the Garden

 Canadian Peony Society Garden Tours
Members of the Canadian Peony Society share a glimpse inside their private peony gardens.

New! Ken's Garden

New! Marvin's Garden

Judi's Garden

Ingrid's Garden

 Oshawa Garden Club Garden Tours

Oshawa Garden Club member are proud to showcase their talents, especially when it comes to landscaping with peonies.

Jill's Garden 2021

Toni's Garden

Jill's Garden

Greg's Garden

Photography at City of Oshawa events

The City of Oshawa hosts open, free public events. Photographers will be present taking photos and video footage at these events. These images may be used without further notification on City-owned and non-City-owned property, print media, digital media, the Internet, social media sites, media releases and broadcasts. By attending, you consent to such use.

Sponsors

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Canadian Peony Society
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Oshawa Public Library
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Teaching City - Oshawa

Awards

FEO award 2023
FEO Award Winner 2023

Winner of the Top 100 Festivals in Ontario by Festivals and Events Ontario! That's 10 years in a row! You don't want to miss this festival!

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Contact Us

© 2022 City of Oshawa

Service Oshawa
1st Floor, West Wing, City Hall
50 Centre St. S.
Oshawa, ON L1H 3Z7

Phone: 905-436-3311
Toll Free: 1-800-667-4292
Email: [email protected]

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