What is Ladybug Day?

Ladybug Day is an annual community building event open to anyone in the Greater Rochester Area. Featuring  en plein air artists, crafts and gardening activities for children (of all ages!), an assortment of local artisans and food vendors, and live musical entertainment, it is a free day long family friendly celebration rooted in sharing, learning, and creating.  🌱🎨🎼

Celebrating Rochester area “flower power”, teaching our youth about environmentalism and the joys of art, gardening, and just growing our community, this mini festival is an organic celebration of women’s+ enterprise, environmental stewardship, and creativity. Culminating with a children’s parade and the release of 1,000 live ladybugs into the garden, guests will enjoy shopping, swapping gardening tips and tricks, creating a community mural and fairy gardens, learning about sustainability and much more. 🧚‍♀️🌼

There is street parking and ample parking in the Culver St. Armory parking lot (155 Culver Rd).

Want to march in our kids parade? We will march down Rosedale street into Wide Water Gardens to release a 1,000+ live ladybugs into the garden! 🐞🌱

No sign up required! Feel welcome to wear a costume or bring a sign!

⏰Parade Line-up: 10:45am at the corner of Monroe Ave and Rosedale Street.
(1006 Monroe Ave, Rochester, NY 14620)

⏰Parade kick-off: 11am down Rosedale Street into Wide Water Gardens

Vendor Guidelines

• Please keep products kid friendly
• Product, material, or content created, in whole or in substantial part, using generative artificial intelligence tools or algorithms (“AI-Generated”) or incorporating AI-Generated elements, including but not limited to visual artwork, images, or graphics, animations and/or materials, are prohibited from being made available for purchase
• Wide Water Gardens requires that all food related utensils, cups, bowls, containers, and plates be compostable.

Vendor Information

* Please provide your own 10′ x 10′ canopy (if desired), tables, chairs, signage, decorations, etc… All equipment and items must be within your 10′ x 10′ area.Tents must be secured/weighed down with weights or sandbags. Stakes will not work as we are on paved cement.

• Electrical access is not provided.

Vendor Check-in, Set-Up & Break Down

• Vendors may begin setting up at 9:00am and must be done by 11am for the kids’ parade starting at 11am. Be ready to cheer them on as they enter the garden to kick off Ladybug Day! You may arrive any time between 9am-10:45am, but your booth set-up MUST be complete by 11am. Tear down may begin at 3pm.
• Your slot will be marked with chalk and/or paper sign at the rear of the Culver Rd. Armory parking lot. (You will receive a map via email.)
• If you may need more time to set up or require a particular location, please let us know. We will try to accommodate you the best we can!

Parking & Drop-Off

• There is plentiful parking available in the armory parking lot in front of Howe & Rusling. You will also be receiving a map as the event draws closer.

Promotional

• Vendors will be promoted on our Facebook, Instagram and in our monthly newsletter.
• You are welcome to and encouraged to share the event info in your choice of methods or online platforms.
• You will receive a google form link via email for you to fill out with your social media information and be able to upload photo(s) of your choosing you’d like us to you when promoting you on our socials.

Who we are:

About SEAC: We are a small grassroots nonprofit that advocates anti-poverty initiatives, for children (health, safety, and education), equality and equity, for our neighborhoods and communities, and supports locally owned businesses in the southeast area of Rochester. Our Tool Shed program, which is about to celebrate 4 years, gets tools into the hands of residents, community organizations, and businesses in the Greater Rochester Area, allowing them to make the changes they want to make.

About Wide Water Gardens:
In the heart of Rochester’s Upper Monroe neighborhood lies Wide Water Gardens, the City’s largest community garden. Take a stroll though this beautiful urban oasis and you will see why locals call it “Rochester’s backyard”.

The centerpiece of the gardens is its 60 rentable plots that are open to anyone interested in growing their own produce or flowers in an engaging community environment. Plots are available in several sizes (4’x4’ 4‘x12’ and 12‘x12’) and can be rented at low cost for an entire season.
Complimenting the community plots are a variety of amenities, such as beautiful native perennial gardens, fruit trees, berry bushes, grape arbors and much more.

About Upper Monroe Neighborhood Association (UMNA): The Upper Monroe neighborhood is comprised of nearly 800 parcels (approximately 1/2 single family homes; 1/2 multi-family properties with a small number of commercial & mixed use properties) housing approximately 3,300 people within it’s boundaries.

Businesses and non-profits in Upper Monroe are concentrated in two areas: along the Monroe Avenue Corridor and in The Armory on Culver Road.

Its boundaries are marked at the north by Route 490, south at the city line with the Town of Brighton, east on Culver Road, west to Field Street and include Cobbs Hill Park (in cooperation with the Cobbs Hill neighborhood).