August is the time of celebration in the Colombian city of Medellin. For six decades, a festival of flowers has brought together people from around the world to catch a glimpse of impressive arrangements and to cheer on the farmers who cultivate them.

Perhaps nowhere else in the world do you see so much detail and pride go into the placement of a flower. But this isn't any old flower arrangement these are the silleteros of the Medellin Flower Parade. For some 60 years, every August this Colombian city is the setting for a week-long flower festival, that culminates with the flower parade. The event is not only a celebration of the region's flowers but also the farmers who cultivate them. They are known as the silleteros a nickname from the Spanish word chair, as the mountain peasants carried their produce on their backs. Thirty-eight-year-old Livardo Vasquez's majestic flower arrangement -which weighs 110 kilos -is comprised of hundreds of different flower species.

LIVARDO VASQUEZ "In our region, we exchange the flowers, we are all friends, so we share the different species we cultivate so that the arrangements aren't too expensive."

MICHELLE BEGUE MEDELLIN "Of the 600 thousand spectators that come to enjoy the parade, only 35 thousand watch from the bleachers with assigned seats. The rest and majority, come hours to get a good viewing spot from the streets and cheer from the sidelines."

More than 500 silleteros participate, and each of them say they spend two to four months preparing the design. The flowers are put in just days before the parade.

MARTIC ATEHORTUA GRISALES "We want to show this tradition not only to the people of Medellin but all the cities across the world. Flowers are one of the most beautiful things from our country."

The arrangements are judged for their creative designs in each of the different categories. The winners can take home up to two-thousand dollars in awards. But most say they do this simply for the opportunity to parade in front of a cheering crowd. For 77-year-old Oscar Atehortua, that's been his motivation for more than half a century.

OSCAR ATEHORTUA RIOS "We are prepared for this we come from rural areas where we carry everything and walk all day. We don't get tired and here we have the audiences that give us strength."

His seven children are now working in other professions, but his grandchild is continuing the floral tradition. This year, he proudly walks the two-kilometer parade to Medellin city center with a new generation hoping to export pride across the world. Michelle Begue, CGTN, Medellin.