Bazaar sponsored by Carolina Foothills Chamber Foundation will feature vendors selling garden and art items

The Tryon Fine Arts Center, in conjunction with the Green Blades Garden Club 2011 Tour of Homes, will hold the second annual Art & Garden Bazaar on McCown Street Saturday, April 30 from 9 a.m. – 5 p.m.

Shoppers and art and garden enthusiasts are welcome to stroll the Bazaar, which is free to the public and will feature vendors selling art, garden items and a variety of plants. Partnering with TFAC are the Polk County Extension Center and the Town of Tryon, with financial support from the Carolina Foothills Chamber Foundation.

Fifteen percent of all sales will benefit the ArtScapes project for the Carolina foothills area. ArtScapes celebrates cultural landscapes and creates public art throughout the communities of Tryon, Landrum and Columbus.

The first Artscape project is planned for the intersection of New Market Street and Trade Street, with groundbreaking to take place soon with funds from the first Art & Garden Bazaar. The project is a partnership with the Tryon Garden Club, the Green Blades Garden Club, the Daffy Jills, the Magnolia Garden Club and the Town of Tryon.

Vendors to date are Beginnings Nursery, Blue Ridge Nursery, Big Frog Nursery, Gilbert’s Carolina Plants, J.T. Cooper Studio, Carroll Woodcrafts, Rustic Remakes, Saluda Forge, Bravo and Thompson Landscaping, Rustic Birdhouses, Tryon Mountain Hardware, Deerwood Nursery and Farms, The Book Shelf, Motlow Creek, Plants and More and Haiku Bamboo Nursery. More vendors are expected each week as the bazaar draws closer.

“Shoppers will be able to talk with the growers and learn more about the plants they are purchasing,” said John Vining, one of the lead volunteers for the Bazaar. “Best of all, a percentage of everything sold will go towards ArtScapes to further beautify our area with garden parks and public art.”

The Foothills Humane Society will feature “Garden Buddies” pets ready for adoption and local arts organizations will have booths as well.

For more information on the Art & Garden Bazaar, call the Tryon Fine Arts Center at 828-859-8322 or visit the Green Blades Home Tour and Bazaar website at www.greenbladesgardenclub.org.