Another garden affair

It will again be a mix of the old and the new at the Orange County Fair.

It’s the “Year of the Garden” in this, the 114th annual fair, which once again plays off of Orange County’s agricultural past. Dozens of fair vendors and exhibitors will be celebrating the theme by incorporating flowers into their showcases.

New this year to the fair is the Fuel Cell Exhibit, which made its debut at the 2005 World Exposition in Aichi, Japan. The National Fuel Cell Research Center at UCI will present the exhibit to demonstrate environmentally friendly energy.

As always, the fair features dozens of rides; food vendors offering the kinds of eats only available once a year; contests; and a series of evening concerts at the Pacific Amphitheater with acts like Seal, Chris Isaac and Paul Simon. Tickets for those concerts are extra, but groups like Ozomotli and Jump 5 will hold free performances.

The fair runs July 7 to 30. It is closed Mondays.

The Orange County Fairgrounds is at 88 Fair Drive in Costa Mesa, just off the Costa Mesa (55) Freeway.

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