Among the most popular events in California are its flower festivals. They span the entire state north to south and include some of the most fragrant, colorful blossoms this side of paradise. While rain is notorious for cancelling festivals and events,

California's changing landscape has seen many flower losses and a variety of ways to cope. Here are a few examples:

1. Lompoc Flower Fields virtually gone - but Lompoc Flower Festival & Parade lives on! When the U.S. government changed the rules for trade with other countries, the flower industry took a hit in California. Santa Maria Valley's flower fields were one casualty, no longer able to compete with South American prices for flower seeds. People used to drive around the fields as part of the festival's highlights. Now, it's just a flower-themed event and city has begun promoting itself with art and other attractions.

2.  Encinitas Poinsettias Frazee  Ranunculus - Old-timers lament about the days when they could drive between Los Angeles and San Diego  seeing miles of red poinsettias and later on, orange, yellow and pink ranunculus. Flower producers Edwin  Frazee  and Paul  Ecke, Jr. knew how much the public loved their flowers. The Flower Fields in Carlsbad were the brain child of these men, created as a tourist attraction for the public to enjoy flowers seasonally.