Chicago Botanic Garden

for immediate release

Harvest Festival Features Fresh Produce,
Fall Foliage, and Fun!

Chicago Botanic Garden, October 3 – 4

 

Media Only:
Julie McCaffrey
(847) 835-8213, direct
jmccaffrey@chicagobotanic.org

GLENCOE, Ill. (Aug. 12, 2009)—The Regenstein Fruit & Vegetable Garden will be bustling with activity during the Harvest Festival from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Oct. 3 and 4. Visitors will find a marketplace selling a variety of items including fresh baked goods, roasted nuts, cut flowers, handmade soaps and fresh vegetables. The Green Youth Farm, with local produce grown by area high school students, will be among the vendors on both days. Families will enjoy activities like "guess the weight of the pumpkin," a straw bale maze, and making leaf rubbings. Volunteers will be giving away sage plants and will teach visitors how plant them in their home gardens.

Chef demonstrations, as part of the Garden Chef Series, occur at 1:30 p.m. and 2:30 p.m. in the kitchen amphitheatre. Chefs featured include George Djurovic of August Grocery Store in Chicago on Saturday, and David DiGregorio of Osteria Via Stato on Sunday.

The Farmers’ Market will be held from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Sunday, Oct. 4, just north of the Visitor Center. Market vendors will sell fruits and vegetables, free-range meats, freshly baked goods, vegetable and flower starts, large potted plants, and stoneware pottery. Visitors can purchase a special reusable market bag to carry their purchases from the market.

That same weekend, visitors can stop by the Regenstein Center and shop at the Bulb Bazaar for spring blooming bulbs that are planted in the fall. The sale features more than 200 varieties of daffodils, tulips, alliums and other specialty bulbs, and a large selection of bulbs for indoor forcing. Garden horticulturists and staff offer practical tips and demonstrations on bulb selection and planting. Public hours are from 1 to 5 p.m. on Friday, Oct. 2, and from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Oct. 3 and 4. A special members-only preview sale is from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Oct. 2. A catalog with detailed information on bulbs is available at the sale and can be obtained online in September at www.chicagobotanic.org/bulb.

The Harvest Festival is sponsored by Bartlett Tree Experts, and the Garden Chef Series is sponsored by Barilla.

Admission to the Chicago Botanic Garden is free. Select event fees apply. Parking is $20 per car; free for Garden members. For information about Garden programs and events, call (847) 835-5440, or visit www.chicagobotanic.org.

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Editors, please note: The Chicago Botanic Garden's newsroom is online at www.chicagobotanic.org/pr. For digital images, contact Julie McCaffrey at (847) 835-8213 or at jmccaffrey@chicagobotanic.org.

The Chicago Botanic Garden, one of the green treasures of the Forest Preserve District of Cook County, is a 385-acre living plant museum featuring 23 distinct display gardens surrounded by lakes, as well as a prairie and woodlands. With events, programs and activities for all ages, the Garden is open every day of the year. Admission is free; select event fees apply. Parking is $20 per car; free for Garden members. The Garden is located at 1000 Lake Cook Road in Glencoe, Ill. Visit www.chicagobotanic.org, or call (847) 835-5440 for seasonal hours, images of the Garden and commuter transportation information.

The Chicago Botanic Garden is managed by the Chicago Horticultural Society. It opened to the public in 1972 and is home to the Joseph Regenstein, Jr. School of the Chicago Botanic Garden, offering a broad array of adult classes in plant science, landscape design and gardening arts. Through the Division of Plant Science and Conservation, Garden scientists work on plant conservation, research and environmental initiatives that have global impact. The Center for Teaching and Learning brings the wonder of nature and plants to children, teens and teachers. The Garden's Horticultural Therapy and Community Gardening programs provide nationally recognized community outreach and service programs. A program of the Chicago Botanic Garden, Windy City Harvest is an organic vegetable and plant production enterprise that provides instruction in sustainable horticulture and urban agriculture to residents of Chicago’s North Lawndale and West Side neighborhoods.

The Chicago Botanic Garden is accredited by the American Association of Museums and is a member of the American Public Gardens Association (APGA). The Chicago Botanic Garden is also host to Botanic Gardens Conservation International-U.S., and a member of the Center for Plant Conservation. In 2006, the Chicago Botanic Garden received the Award for Garden Excellence, given yearly by the APGA and Horticulture magazine to a public garden that exemplifies the highest standards of horticultural practices and has shown a commitment to supporting and demonstrating best gardening practices.