Autumn in the Garden 2026: Growing the Garden from the Ground Up!

Closing our 20th anniversary celebration year, we honor 20 community members who helped grow a garden instead of a freeway ! To bookend our 20th Anniversary celebration year, we are hosting a very special edition of Autumn in the Garden! Learn about the garden's history and support Arlington's future by honoring 20 garden champions who have helped grow the garden from the ground up over the last two decades! Awardees represent an inspiring cross-section of our far-sighted community and include neighbors, volunteers, horticulturists, scientists, artists, and other partners! The family-friendly event will begin at 3 p.m and end as the sun sets at 6 p.m. There will be live music from Qur'an Shaheed and Friends, delicious bites and treats, drinks including wine, beer and mocktails, a silent auction, and more! This year we are adding more family and all-ages activities in the lower garden including a craft or two, so stay tuned for more announcements about that! AWARDEE LIST WILL BE ANNOUNCED SOON Let's toast the garden's past, present, and future on October 25th! • "Grow it Forward" Bundle ($250) includes admission for one person, light fare, and two drink tickets plus a "grow it forward" ticket granting event admission to a volunteer and an AG tote bag with garden goodies! • Family Bundle ($250) includes admission for two adults and up to three children under age 16, light fare, and one drink ticket per attendee. • General Admission ($100) includes admission for one person, live music, light fare, and one drink ticket. All attendees receive complimentary valet parking and non-alcoholic beverages (excluding mocktails). Additional wine , beer and mocktail tickets will be available for purchase at the event. Tickets will also be available for in-person purchase at the door. This Autumn in the Garden we reflect back on our history and the community of people who have grown the garden. This includes a preeminent group we are calling "The Originals" – our founders Betty and Charles "Kicker" McKenney, Councilmember Steve Madison, former City Manager Cynthia Kurtz, founding Arlington Garden board member George Brumder, and landscape designer Mayita Dinos, who moved the garden from a possibility into a reality in 2005. We will also look ahead to the next 20 years of the garden, and our committment to sustaining Arlington as a unique outdoor sanctuary for both wildife and people - an model for community and climate action in the region. If you are interested in becoming an event sponsor, please see this pdf of sponsorship opportunities here. If you would like to donate to Arlington Garden directly, you may so via this link. Images in header from Autumn in the Garden 2021 and 2022 and 2025 by Erin Shimazu Photography and Isabel Avila, additional images from artist Scott Oshima.