Convener Jayne O’Neill said she had had a great time organising the festival, and Sunday was no exception.
"We’ve had about 1500 to 2000 people through, maybe more than that. It’s a great day to get out and announce the start of spring.
"Some of the displays are remarkable," she said.
The festival was well known and Mrs O’Neill said the Gore population always showed its support.
"This is the eighth festival I’ve arranged. Around Gore, there’s just a sense of goodwill. Everyone knows this, when it happens.
"They show up, support it, it gets people here."
Mrs O’Neill said the stallholders always had a positive experience.
"They love it. Never have I ever heard of a stall that didn’t have a good financial day; the money is in it for them," she said.
"It’s the nature of the gardens — they’re not large, but it’s well sheltered. The gardens lend themselves to this type of activity," she said.
Southland Rhododendron Group president Wendy Goodwin said this year’s festival was popular.
"It’s our 30th anniversary today. We have about 65 stalls, a big variety of stallholders.
"It’s been a marvellous day and had a fantastic turnout," she said.
The week has been full of celebrations for the group, with a surprise for one special member in particular.
During the cutting of the cake celebrating 30 years of the festival on Wednesday, Denis Hughes was made a patron of the Southland Rhododendron Group.
Mrs Goodwin applauded his work with the group and horticulture at large, especially his expertise with rhododendrons and azaleas.
"Dennis Hughes has been involved in Blue Mountain nurseries, he is a key person in our club, answers all of our questions.
"He’s renowned... for his horticulture work and his propagation work. He has lot of credentials," she said.
Mrs Goodwin said he had been the backbone of the club since its inception, and she was honoured to recognise his contributions.
