LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla. -- Goofy catches a topiary wave while Mickey Mouse and gal pal Minnie chill at the "beach" for the 15th annual Epcot International Flower & Garden Festival March 19-June 1 at Walt Disney World Resort. Last year's popular 60-day event has sprouted runners and expands to 75 days, with a first-ever March launch offering oceans of floral fantasy and gardening fun for spring break visitors to the Vacation Kingdom.

As guests enter the park near Spaceship Earth, they'll spot a 14-foot Goofy topiary riding a 6-foot wave of flowers and plants. Sandcastles and palm trees surround Mickey and Minnie topiaries posed on a floral beach towel spread upon a sandy "beach." At World Showcase Plaza, Disney topiary specialists have crafted a volleyball beach scene starring Donald Duck and Daisy. Nearby, a topiary Pluto frolics while colorful Stitch from "Lilo and Stitch" keeps watch from a lifeguard stand.

New festival fun includes:

Peter Pan's Never Land Garden, a children's area along the Imagination Walkway from Future World to World Showcase. The pirate-ship-themed garden will feature whimsical topiaries of Peter Pan, Captain Hook, Tinker Bell and Tic Toc Croc, as well as a shaded play structure.

Sweeping Future World flower beds, planted on the shores of East and West Lakes, in the shape of nautical flags representing letters (Alpha, Bravo Charlie, etc.) that spell a message to be decoded by guests.

The zany Three Caballeros -- Donald Duck, parrot Jose Carioca and Panchito, the Mexican charro rooster --as topiaries celebrating their new Epcot show, "Gran Fiesta Tour starring the Three Caballeros" in the Mexico pavilion.

Other beloved Disney characters such as Lady and the Tramp and Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs make topiary appearances for perfect photo ops in the park.

In all, up to 70 topiaries -- plus 30 million blooms, artfully designed floral beds, expertly crafted bonsai trees and lush rose gardens -- grace the 305 acres of Future World and World Showcase. According to Disney horticultural manager Eric Darden, Disney's horticultural team plants two crop rotations during the fest to allow for a more brilliant floral display for the festival's duration.

Beyond the dazzling displays of blooms, the Epcot International Flower & Garden Festival is known by gardening aficionados for its celebrity guest speakers, hands-on seminars and innovative planting demonstrations and exhibits such as a new Florida-style Key to Outdoor Living garden display. Roger Swain of PBS's "The Victory Garden" and "green" gardening expert Joe Lamp'l (a.k.a. joe gardener) lead the lineup of nationally known gardening gurus slated to meet and share tips with guests.

Each evening, Flower Power concerts rock the park with live entertainment from top acts of the 1960s and '70s. Acts include The Guess Who, Davy Jones, Jose Feliciano, Petula Clark, Paul Revere and the Raiders and other crowd pleasers.

More festival highlights include:

• The new Garden Town festival center in Future World East next to Universe of Energy, where guests can find festival merchandise, attend speaker presentations and demonstrations and ask gardening questions of the experts. The Garden Town Kid Fun Fair features interactive activities for children.

• Themed weekend events such as I Dig Bugs, Art in the Garden (including The Florida Highwaymen), Coming Up Roses (featuring Mother's Day Brunch) and Garden Party (featuring a Doll and Teddy Bear event) weekends.

• The popular Great American Gardeners series featuring gardening celebrities and authors from across the country.

• The family-oriented Growing Future Gardeners area, complete with colorful (and tasty) planting ideas for kids and parents.

• A Lift and Sniff Fragrance Garden at the France pavilion showcasing flowers and plants used to create a lineup of popular Guerlain perfumes.

• Disney Gardening at Home presentations during which Disney horticulturists share gardening tips and lead guests in a hands-on activity for taking home.

• Minnie's Magnificent Butterfly Garden, with hundreds of butterflies in a walk-through screened enclosure that includes a live exhibit showing how caterpillars form a chrysalis and emerge as butterflies.

• Kids' activities (in addition to the new Peter Pan's Never Land Garden) including Pluto's Play Zone with climber, Disney character meet-and-greets and daily ladybug releases.

22 Hit Makers of 1960s and ‘70s Bring Groovy Vibes to Epcot March 19-June 1 during 2008 Flower Power Concerts

The Searchers, The Ventures and The Cowsills join other new and returning hit makers to strike nostalgic notes during the Flower Power concert series March 19-June 1 at the Epcot International Flower & Garden Festival in Walt Disney World Resort.

The spring shower of hit songs from the 1960s and '70s begins with opening-weekend performances by The Guess Who, known for pop singles like "American Woman" and "These Eyes." Other beloved chart-toppers featured by some of the festival's 22 musical acts include "Downtown," "Daydream Believer," "Light My Fire" and "Henry the 8th." B.J. Thomas, Herman's Hermits starring Peter Noone, Petula Clark and Jose Feliciano are among returning acts to appear during the 75-day Flower Power concert series. Davy Jones will perform again this year during the Coming Up Roses themed weekend featuring the popular Mother's Day Brunch.

Flower Power concerts strike a lively, nostalgic chord daily at America Gardens Theatre at 5:45, 7 and 8:15 p.m. and are included with regular Epcot admission. Here's the lineup (subject to change without notice):

• March 19-22 -- The Guess Who "American Woman"

• March 23-24 -- Petula Clark "Downtown"

• March 25-29 -- Paul Revere and the Raiders "Good Thing"

• March 30-31 -- The 5th Dimension "Up, Up and Away"

• April 1-3 -- Ricky Nelson Remembered featuring The Nelsons "(Can't Live Without Your) Love and Affection"

• April 4-5 -- Jay Black (NEW) "This Magic Moment"

• April 6-9 -- Herman's Hermits starring Peter Noone "Henry the 8th"

• April 10-13 -- The Grass Roots featuring Rob Grill "Midnight Confessions"

• April 14-16 -- The Happenings (NEW) "See You in September"

• April 17-18 -- Peter & Gordon "A World without Love"

• April 19-23 -- Starship starring Mickey Thomas "We Built This City"

• April 24-26 -- The Ventures (NEW) "Hawaii Five-O"

• April 27-30 -- B.J. Thomas "Raindrops Keep Fallin' on My Head"

• May 1-3 -- Arlo Guthrie "Alice's Restaurant"

• May 4-5 -- The Searchers (NEW) "Bumble Bee"

• May 6-10 -- The Tokens "The Lion Sleeps Tonight"

• May 11-15 -- Davy Jones "Daydream Believer"

• May 16-17 -- Jose Feliciano "Light My Fire"

• May 18-20 -- Felix Cavaliere's Rascals "Good Lovin'"

• May 21-24 -- Gary Puckett "Over You"

• May 25-27 -- The Cowsills (NEW)"The Rain, the Park, and Other Things"

• May 28-June 1 -- Tony Orlando "Tie a Yellow Ribbon"

Fun Facts Flourish Across Landscape of 15th Annual Epcot International Flower & Garden Festival

 Floral fun is "beachy keen" with topiary surf, sand and popular Disney characters during the 15th annual Epcot International Flower & Garden Festival March 19-June 1 at Walt Disney World Resort. Among this year's fun festival facts:

• 30 million blooms dress the park throughout the festival, which runs 75 colorful days.

• As part of this year's Fun in the Sun theme, Goofy rides a perfect floral wave while Mickey Mouse and gal pal Minnie soak up sun and sand -- all as intricately designed topiaries. Other topiary whimsy includes: a volleyball beach scene with Donald Duck and Daisy, a frolicking green Pluto and a colorful "lifeguard" Stitch from "Lilo and Stitch."

• More than 70 topiaries will include beloved Disney characters like Lady and the Tramp and Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs. The Three Caballeros -- Donald Duck, parrot Jose Carioca and Panchito, the Mexican charro rooster -- also come to life as topiaries to celebrate their Epcot show, "Gran Fiesta Tour starring the Three Caballeros" in the Mexico pavilion.

• The largest character topiary at this year's festival is Goofy, which towers 14 feet above guests on a six-foot wave.

• More than 500 native butterflies representing up to 10 species reside in Minnie's Magnificent Butterfly Garden, a gazebo-type enclosure filled with lush plants and measuring more than 40 feet in diameter. Guests can stroll through the screened habitat to view the colorful butterflies. Among the garden's two dozen nectar plants are Cape Royal plumbago, passion flower, coral honeysuckle, blazing star, butterfly bush, scarlet milkweed and canna lily.

• 300,000 bedding plants are installed for the festival.

• Three butterfly topiaries are on display. Also, Doc, Grumpy and the rest of the seven dwarfs appear at the Germany showcase with intricate topiary detail that includes beards of palm fiber. Perfume bottle topiaries represent Guerlain perfumes in the Fragrance Garden at the France pavilion.

• At least 25 different plants, grasses and mosses of various colors, including pink and red begonias, dusty miller, palm fiber, palm seeds, ficus and lichen, are used to create and define features of the festival topiaries. More color has been added to the topiaries than in any previous topiary presentation.

• More than 15 floral, herbal and spice ingredients of 10 popular perfumes are revealed in the Fragrance Garden presented by Guerlain at the France pavilion. Guests can sniff the enduring fragrance Shalimar to discover botanical notes that include lemon, Arabian jasmine and vanilla. Some components of nine other Guerlain fragrances include mimosa, magnolia, rose, nutmeg and vetivergrass.

• Nearly 40 varieties of trees, plants and flowers are featured in this year's Key to Outdoor Living garden, an upscale outdoor living area presented by Dupont Garden Systems with the laid-back ambiance of Key West near the Morocco pavilion, including an innovative kids play zone. Forty-five "flower towers" of impatiens line Innoventions Plaza. 100 floating mini-gardens of multi-hued impatiens, each three feet in diameter, provide splashes of color on two ponds that border the walkway between Future World and World Showcase.

• 750 container gardens of flowers, herbs, plants and vegetables in clay pots, barrels and urns enhance the landscape throughout Epcot.

• 300 Walt Disney World horticulturists are needed to install the festival landscape, topiaries and many exhibits; 100 Epcot horticulturists maintain topiaries and other festival displays.

• It takes one full year to prepare for the annual festival.

• The festival's Flower Power is bolstered by thrice-daily appearances of musical hit makers of the 1960s and '70s including The Guess Who, Davy Jones, Paul Revere and the Raiders, Herman's Hermits starring Peter Noone, and Petula Clark -- a total of 22 acts this year.

Guest information is available at disneyworld.com/flower. Or call 407/824-4321.