Enjoy 'Autumn Unplugged' at the Arboretum

'Autumn Unplugged' celebrates the serene beauty of fall with its golden sunlight, brisk air and crackling leaves. 

With the metro area's most diverse collection of Minnesota trees, there's no better place in town than the Arboretum for fall color!  Peak color usually occurs in early to mid-October, but you don't have to wait!  September and October offer brilliant fall panoramas in several Arboretum locales.  The following collections are especially colorful:  maples, oaks, birch, poplar, sumac, shrub walk, ornamental grasses and prairie areas. 

Beyond fall color, the centerpiece of 'Autumn Unplugged' is "Pumpkin Palooza," an eye-popping indoor display of fall's favorite plant in all its glorious variety that will run from Oct. 3 through Nov. 1 in the Great Hall of the Oswald Visitor Center.   Visitors will also enjoy plentiful pumpkins scattered around the grounds, plus our always-popular Scarecrows on Parade.  For a sneak preview and to vote on a favorite pumpkin or scarecrow, click here. 

Here's a roundup of  'Autumn Unplugged' activities:

Weekend Apple Tastings: Saturdays and Sundays, Sept. 19&20, 26&27 and Oct. 3&4 & 10&11;  from 1 to 3 p.m. Taste and rate test apples developed by University of Minnesota Horticultural Research Center. Talk with Master Gardeners. Oswald Visitor Center Great Hall.

Weekend Family Fun:  Every Saturday and Sunday, noon- 4 p.m.  Enjoy fun fall crafts while learning the value of plants in our lives.  Marion Andrus Learning Center.

Happy Hour Thursdays @ the Arboretum- Now Extended!  Thursdays, Sept 24 and Oct. 1, 8 ,15, 22 & 29; 4:30-6 p.m. Sample Trinity Oak wine flights, specially priced appetizers. Other wine and beer also available. Stroll the gardens or relax with friends. Restaurant & Newton Terrace.

University of Minnesota Staff Days:  All current University of Minnesota staff members are admitted free on Oct. 15 and 31, upon presenting a current, valid staff ID card at the gatehouse.

Pumpkin Palooza:  Oct. 3-Nov. 1, Great Hall, Oswald Visitor Center.  An eye-popping display of hundreds of pumpkins in all their amazing variety.  For a glimpse, click here.  Special thanks to Horticultural Research Center pumpkin growers!

Wow Spots: Tuesdays & Thursdays from 1 to 3 p.m..; free guided tours of pumpkins or horticultural hot spots at peak beauty.

Pumpkin Palooza Weekend: Saturday and Sunday, Oct. 24 & 25; Feast your eyes on this spectacular pumpkin display, and enjoy a screening of 'Bill's Big Pumpkins' documentary at 1 and 2:30 p.m.  Watch master pumpkin-carvers and visit with U of M pumpkin growers. All this takes place in the Oswald Visitor Center. Or head down to the Marion Andrus Learning Center to make a mini-pumpkin head with your kids from noon to 4 p.m. both days ($1 per mini-pumpkin).  (Thanks to presenting sponsor COUNTRY Financial.)

Ar-BOO-retum Halloween: Saturday, Oct. 31; Celebrate Halloween with Gift Store specials, apples for "trick or treaters," ghosts & goblins on parade and storytimes in the Library, free cookie in restaurant and other fun events! Free admission for everyone arriving in costume. Catch a screening of "Bill's Big Pumpkins" at 1 or 2:30 p.m. in MacMillan Auditorium.  Sponsored by COUNTRY Financial. 

Visit COUNTRY Financial's booth at many of the festivities including Carver County Day on September 25, Apple-Tastings Weekend on October 3 & 4, Pumpkin Palooza Weekend on October 25 & 26, and ArBOOOOretum on October 31. Kids can try their beanbag tossing skills and win fun prizes! Adults can enter a drawing for a chance to win prizes: one Garden Wagon of Goodies ($125 value each) will be awarded daily and a grand prize $500 gift certificate to a local nursery will be awarded at the end of Autumn Unplugged.

Fall Walks for Every Interest

Meditation Walk:  Friday, Sept. 25; 9-10 a.m.; $10-$12. Learn active walking meditation techniques from instructor Jan Dunlap. To register, click here.

Fitness Walking:  Tuesdays & Thursdays, now through Oct. 29, 9-10 a.m.  Activate!  Learn the benefits of interval walking from instructor Holly Busse while enjoying dazzling fall color.  Meet in Ordway Parking Lot.  To register, click here.

'Fall Foray' Nature Walks:  Wednesdays, Sept. 23 and Oct. 7 & 14; 8:30-10:30 a.m. Explore the secrets of the fall landscape with a staff naturalist.  Meet in Ordway lot. Fee of $12 member & $15 non-member.  To register, click here.

Fall Vineyards & Winery Walking Tour:  Tuesday, Oct. 13, 3:30-5 p.m. Walk the Horticultural Research Center vineyards with Peter Hemstad, U of M viticulturist.  Learn all about the harvest and ongoing grape research and then stop by the winery where the 2009 harvest is already bubbling.  Meet at the AppleHouse.  $12 member/$15 non-member. Limit 25. To register, click here.

Walk with Arboretum Gardeners:  Thursday, Oct. 15, 10-11:30 a.m. Your chance to see the Arboretum gardens through the eyes of those who care for them.  Hear their fall tips and how they prepare plants for the approaching winter.  Meet at the Oswald Visitor Center.  $12 members/$15 non-members.  To register, click here.

'Autumn Unplugged' is presented by COUNTRY Financial.

The Arboretum grounds are open every day (except Thanksgiving & Christmas) from 8 a.m. to sunset.  Admission is $9 adults; free for members and ages 15 and younger.