Visit the Arboretum, the best place in town for fall color. The color change is at about 15 to 20 percent this week. Color changes of yellow and golds are visible in the tree and shrub collections, prairie flowers and grasses. Check out the eye-popping colors in the flower gardens and vegetable gardens. Peak color is predicted for Oct. 10-20. 

Carver County Day Sept. 25

Carver County residents are invited to visit the Arboretum this Friday for free. At 10 a.m., visitors can enjoy free “bagels with the board” and visit with their county commissioners in the Great Hall of the Oswald Visitor Center.

Get your free red pine seedling at the Membership Counter.  At 11 a.m. visit COUNTRY Financial's booth on the Dahlberg Terrace and pick up a free canvas bag (while supplies last).  Kids can try their hand at the beanbag toss and win fun prizes. Adults can enter a drawing to win prizes, including a Garden Wagon of Goodies (awarded at the event) and a $500 nursery gift certificate (to be awarded later).  Thanks to COUNTRY Financial, presenting sponsor for Autumn Unplugged.  The booth also will be open Oct. 3, 4, 24, 25 and 31.

Arboretum Auxiliary Harvest Sale and Quilt Raffle:

Saturday & Sunday, Sept. 26 & 27
9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturday and 11 a.m.-3 p.m. Sunday
Snyder Building Auditorium

The long-anticipated drawing for the handstitched “Loon Song” quilt will take place at 2 p.m., Saturday, Sept. 26, in the Oswald Visitor Center. Don't miss this popular sale of dried floral arrangements, potpourri, wreaths and other handicrafts lovingly created by talented members of the Minnesota Landscape Arboretum Auxiliary.  All proceeds benefit the Arboretum and its programs.

MN Herb Society Sale
Saturday and Sunday, Sept. 26-27, 8 a.m.-3 p.m.
Oswald Visitor Center, Great Hall
Shop for handcrafted herbal items created by Minnesota Herb Society members.  Proceeds benefit the Arboretum herb gardens.

Apple-Tasting
1 – 3 p.m., Saturday, Sept. 26, and Sunday, Sept. 27, Oswald Visitor Center Great Hall
Assist our apple researchers by tasting test varieties and completing a brief survey.

Ornamental Grasses for Minnesota (Gardening School)

10 a.m. - 12:30 p.m., $20 member/$30 non-member, Snyder Classroom

Find out which perennial and annual ornamental grasses are easy to grow in your garden.    

Used Book Sale

10 a.m. – 4 p.m., Oct. 2, 3, 4

Friends of the Library Used Book Sale. Shop for gently used, hard-to-find books. Funds raised will benefit the Andersen Horticultural Library.

Apple Tastings Continue

1 – 3 p.m., Oct. 3 & 4. Oswald Visitor Center.

Taste and rate test apples developed by University of Minnesota Horticultural Researcher Center. Talk with Master Gardeners.

Weekend Family Fun:

Noon – 4 p.m., Saturdays & Sundays, Oct. 3 – 31

Minnesota Healthful Harvest with apples, pumpkins, and gourds, oh my! See which Minnesota-grown foods are being harvested this fall. Which apples are best for your health?  Why is it important to eat a “rainbow” of colorful foods?  Find out all about the healthful reasons to eat fresh local foods and taste a variety of foods with healing qualities.

Painting the Full Moon Light in Watercolor
4 – 8 p.m., Thursday, Oct. 1, $80 member/$95 non-member, includes light supper and materials, for all levels, especially beginners,   Classroom 2, Snyder Building

Watercolor has a reputation for being a difficult medium, but it is ideally suited for sunset and moonrise paintings. In that light, only simple shapes are apparent and complicated landscape details are softened. Thus painters can focus on creating strong compositions based on dark, medium, and light values and more freely explore the playful possibilities of watercolor. Anyone from the experienced artist to the art avoider would benefit from and enjoy this class. Artist Georgia Kandiko is a member of the Minnesota Watercolor Society and teaches watercolor at the Edina Art Center. Participation in a fine art workshop includes an invitation to participate in the December student exhibit/sale.

Growing Grapes (Gardening School)

10 a.m. - 12:30 p.m., Oct. 3, $30 member/$40 non-member, HRC 600 Building

There are grapes for eating and grapes for making wine. Learn which cultivars to grow, how to grow, pruning techniques, what to expect, diseases and pests, breeding projects and more.

Japanese Moon Viewing

6 – 8 p.m., Oct. 3, meet in Ornamental Grasses Collection

Enjoy an evening of music and poetry around the campfire as we celebrate the autumnal equinox.

Youth Voices Conference Coming Soon!

Friday & Saturday, Oct. 2 & 3, Designing Garden-Based Programs for Children and Youth

The Youth Voices Conference is the first youth-planned and hosted national conference put on by the University of Minnesota Landscape Arboretum. The highlight of the conference will be creative presentations given by teams of youth from different garden-based programs around the nation. Listen as they present lessons learned, memories, and the impacts of garden programs on their lives. Youth are rarely given the opportunity to influence the direction of program planning, design and implementation. Join us for a truly extraordinary experience, where youth are given the opportunity to share their take on things. With an emphasis on youth employment, leadership, and empowerment through garden-based programs, this is sure to be a one-of-a-kind experience. Youth Voices is brought to you by presenting sponsor Best Buy @15 program.      

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Don't Miss This Puerto Rican Adventure!

Travelers are invited to join Peter Olin in Puerto Rico, Dec. 3-9, for a grand Caribbean get-away. Highlights include tropical rainforests, beautiful gardens, great food, history from 1492 (Columbus discovery), and fun people. Old San Juan, and El Morro Castle and San Cristobal Castle, which guarded San Juan for hundreds of years, are prime stops. The tour will also pass through the University's Botanical Garden and the Caguas Cultural Garden. This fabulous adventure is not to be missed! Learn more about the complete itinerary by clicking below. Or contact Robin Fox at Macy's Travel, 612-375-3639 or rfox@macystravel.com. Cost of this trip is $2,250 per person for Arboretum members.