Apopka's roots, literally and figuratively, are in agriculture. However, this booming city of 35,000, located in the northwest corner of Orange County, now encompasses some of the region's most exclusive addresses. Since 1990, Apopka has more than doubled its area by annexing some 11,000 acres, much of it previously rural land. This land grab has often put the city at odds with Orange County, especially when it comes to protecting the fragile Wekiva River basin.

Apopka was settled in the 1840s and named after the Timucuan Indian word meaning "big potato" or "potato-eating place." Ironically, the farms that still surround the city grow just about everything but potatoes. Noted as "The Indoor Foliage Capital of the World," Apopka's foliage industry is a multimillion-dollar business. Consequently, downtown boasts a stainless steel sculpture of a Boston fern instead of the expected war hero or early pioneer. Cut flowers, blooming plants, roses and bulbs are also grown in abundance.

But agriculture is rapidly vanishing as dozens of muck farms, created when Lake Apopka was diked during World War II, are purchased by the state and shut down in an effort to restore the polluted body of water to a pristine state.

Just west of Apopka is the agricultural town of Zellwood, home of the annual Zellwood Corn Festival. The event, held each May for more than 30 years, draws thousands to hear country music and nosh on what is widely regarded as the sweetest sweet corn grown anywhere.

Source: "Orlando Homebuyer"