It’s that time of year, the sun is shining brightly, the weather is warmer, and the day light is longer. Spring is officially here! Each one of us celebrates the arrival of this season in our own way – planting flower bulbs, filling bird feeders, and cleaning the grill are just some of the ways we prepare for the warm weather. Walt Disney World welcomes the Spring with the annual Flower and Garden Festival located at Epcot. Just like it’s name suggests, this celebration continues to “grow” with each year, adding new activities, topiearies, and most recently refreshment options. But, you don’t have to exclusively visit the World during the Flower and Garden Festival to enjoy the beautiful landscape designs, exotic foliage, and bright flowers. And while the festival has just concluded, Walt Disney World is always in bloom whether in person or through photographs. The natural essence of Walt Disney World is artfully captured in the book Gardens of Walt Disney World Resort: A Photographic Tour of the Theme Gardens of Magic Kingdom, Epcot Center, and Other Resort Areas.
Copyrighted in 1988, this book is an oldie but a goodie and definitely worth searching for. Gardens is an absolutely beautiful book with luscious color photographs capturing the many unique landscapes surrounding Walt Disney World during the 1980’s. Gardens is 211 pages in length and features 10 chapters; flower gardens for all seasons, gardens in the rough, gardens of yesteryear, old world gardens, gardens found within gardens, gardens of the exotic, interior gardens, gardens with a purpose, gardens of tomorrow, and gardens of fantasy. (I included the chapter’s names since I felt they truly describe the book!) The book consists primarily of well composed photographs opposed to lengthy text, however, the vivid pictures speak for themselves. Some current landscapes have remained similar to the ones represented in Gardens of Walt Disney World, but for myself I feel the true success of this book can be found in the gardens that no longer exist. As a Disney history buff, it’s amazing to see how vastly the greenery and floral choices have progressed over the 20 plus years since Gardens of Walt Disney World‘s publication.
As the title of the chapters suggest, Gardens of Walt Disney World features landscaping both in the parks and around the property. Through the photographs, the reader can travel around the World visiting the many gardens found in Epcot’s World Showcase such as those in peaceful Japan, exotic Mexico, and lush Norway. For a more leisurely stroll, readers can enjoy the many examples of resort greenery such as topiares at The Grand Floridian or the tropical waterfall gardens found at The Polynesian Resort. The photos of these various areas are extremely interesting. Of course there are long range shots taking in the entire atmosphere, but there are also close ups flowers, leaves, and shrubs. Despite not being a garden enthusiast, I still found the close up pictures enjoyable.
If you are able to find this book (for a reasonable price) it is worth purchasing. Remember, just because something is out of print does not mean you should spend a fortune! Be careful when shopping for out of print books as some sellers may overly inflate the price. Not everyone does this, There are many great and honest sellers. Despite some of the natural pitfalls, locating and purchasing out of print material is a worthwhile endeavor as these books lend themselves to research as well as being wonderful examples of bygone Disney eras. There are many places to purchase older editions. The internet is a very accessible option for locating bibliophile treasures with sites such as eBay, amazon, and better world books. If you are willing to do a little leg work, there are other places where you can uncover excellent, older tomes. I have had wonderful success at library book sales, often finding out of print Walt Disney World material at a nominal fee (less than $5.00 a book)!
No matter how you choose to purchase your Disney books – happy hunting!