Sara Rue Says Her Childhood Garden Inspired Her New Hallmark Movie True Love Blooms

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As part of the Spring Fever event, Hallmark Channel will premiere True Love Blooms starring Sara Rue and Jordan Bridges on Saturday, April 6 at 8 p.m. ET.

When the community garden Vikki (Rue) runs is threatened with closure  after a developer buys the land, the two butt heads over what is truly best for the community. Chace (Bridges) wants to build condos on the land but Vikki is determined to stop him. Despite seeing the other's viewpoint, they remain at an impasse. Chace is clearly enthralled with Vikki, but can he find a solution that will make them both happy?

Rue, who served as an executive producer on the film, spoke to Parade.com about the project.

How did you get involved in True Love Blooms?

The idea for the movie came from my childhood. I grew up in New York City and my parents were members of a community garden on the Upper West Side of Manhattan. I had so many happy memories in that garden as a child... until a developer bought the land, tore out the garden and built a building in its place. So that's where the idea came from. I brought it to my friend Elias and we developed the story together and pitched the idea to Hallmark.

Is there any significance to the film being set in St. Petersburg, Florida?

Originally, the movie was supposed to be set in Seattle, but since we were scheduled to shoot in February we needed somewhere that would be warm and lush where flowers would be blooming. St Pete’s turned out to be the perfect place to shoot. We reworked the script a tiny bit and I think it became a better movie for it. Also, our crew was really divine and made up mostly of Floridians... I'm so glad we ended up shooting there!

Have you ever gone toe-to-toe with an individual or a company over a cause you were passionate about like Vikki does in the film?

Not recently... I have a toddler. I save all my toe-to-toe confrontations for her.

Do you like to garden? If so, do you prefer to plant flowers or vegetables?

I do like to garden. I don't get to play in the dirt as much as I would like. I have been trying to be eco-conscious these past few years. Living in L.A. with our drought situation being what it was, I redid my garden and replaced all my flowers that needed a lot of water with drought tolerant plants.... It's not as colorful as it once was but it does my heart good to know that we are conserving water!

Tell me something I probably don't know about your co-star, Jordan Bridges?

I adored working with him. Strange Jordan fact, he eats a LOT of oatmeal.

April showers or May flowers?

Both! April Showers for a month and then the joy watching the flowers bloom because of them! It's why spring is magical!

Do you have a favorite flower?

Hydrangeas, preferably blue ones.

What's your favorite fruit/vegetable?

Blueberries! (I guess I like blue stuff?)

What was the last show you binge watched?

I was recently on location and had a lot of time on my hands on my days off so I binged both seasons of The Crown! Oh, and I'm about to finish binging Pen15 tonight! (It's delightful if you haven't seen it yet!)

Do you have a favorite flavor of ice cream?

I can't really do dairy anymore but if I could... COFFEE.. or Cookies and Cream... I can't decide!

Who was your first celebrity crush?

Kirk Cameron.

Who is your current celebrity crush?

Chris Pine. Or maybe I like Chris Evans? I don't know which is which, but I think one of them is really awesome. 

What's the best thing you've ever eaten?

That's easy! My dad's fried chicken with his homemade spaghetti and marinara on the side.

What's the worst thing you've ever eaten?

Fried worms. It wasn't even a dare. I did it willingly.

What's your go-to song to sing in the shower?

Well, recently my 2-year-old has been obsessed with "Baby Shark" so that's on a constant loop in my mind... unfortunately, I do find myself singing it the shower sometimes.

What was the last book you read or are currently reading?

I am about to start Michele Obama's book, Becoming!

What do you geek out over?

Animals in nature. I completely lose it. I was recently on location shooting a pilot for NBC. (I'm really excited about it BTW, it was so good!) Anyway, they put us up on this cool lavender farm that has peacocks and alpacas that just roam around... Every time I saw an alpaca I lost it... I spent a lot of time following them around trying to pet them.

True Love Blooms premieres Saturday, April 6 at 8 p.m. ET on Hallmark Channel.