April 26: Gardening 101: Get Your Hands Dirty *(90 minute workshop: 12:00-1:30)

Join us at this hands-on workshop for beginning and limited-experience gardeners. You will plant seeds, transplant seedlings, work with compost and soil in preparation for planting in the ground or a container, and learn how to plan your garden space. There will be handouts on seed starting, composting, planting recommendations and more. There will be time for questions so you learn what you need to know to get off to a successful start.

Master Gardeners Sam Foushee and David Blood, co-coordinators of the Lake Merritt Trials Garden, will lead a team of experienced Master Gardeners to guide you through the basics.

May 10: Growing Great Summer Vegetables

May is a good time to get your summer vegetables into the ground. This talk will build upon what was learned in Gardening 101 last month but focusing more on what varieties work best in our climate and when and how to plant.  Big spaces or small, containers or in the ground, you will learn which vegetables should provide a bountiful yield this summer.

Master Gardener Ann Naffziger has created a “food forest” in her Alameda front and back yards. She grows everything from apples and asparagus to dried beans and zucchini. She’s got bees and chickens too!

June 14: Edible Landscaping: Making it Beautiful and Delicious

Edible Landscaping is about adding attractive food crops into the design of your existing or new landscape. We will discuss herbs, edible flowers, fruit and nut trees, and vegetables that can be grown among ornamental plantings in your yard or in containers. Whether your space is large or small, shaded or in full sun, cement, a staircase, window box or fertile ground, growing edibles can immediately become part of your landscaped environment.

Master Gardeners Jennifer Cardozo, Nancy Litton and Kitty Mindel were all trained in how to create a  successful edible landscape and will share what they have learned with you.

July 12: Managing Pests in your Garden Safely

Want to learn more about what is eating your vegetables? Or what virus killed your tomato plants? And where to find out more when you do have a pest problem in your yard? This is the talk for you. Dennis will help you learn how to identify your bugs and manage them in the least toxic manner. Bring leaf & bug samples!

Master Gardener Dennis Brown will help you see your way through aphids, ants, snails and slugs as you learn about common pests and diseases.

August 9: Planning and Planting a Great Winter Vegetable Garden

Why should you consider growing vegetables in the fall and winter? Learn about the benefits and the wide array of vegetables you can grow in the cooler months. Learn what you need to know to be successful.

Master Gardener Sam Foushee grows beautiful vegetables during all seasons in 2 local community gardens.

Sept. 13: Fall Gardening in the Garden: cover crops, mulching, planting and more

Tips for how to put your garden to bed for winter: cleanup, composting, feeding, planting, etc. Learn how to plant and integrate a cover crop. Both vegetable and perennial gardens benefit from these practices.

Master Gardener David Blood will share knowledge gained from years of careful winter preparation in his home garden in Oakland as well as in the community gardens he has tended.

The Friends of the Gardens at Lake Merritt will be exhibiting at the San Francisco Flower & Garden Show this Wednesday, March 19th through Sunday, March 23rd at the San Mateo Event Center. We will be in Booth #1309 in the Educational Booths section of the Fiesta Hall, and would love to connect with you at the show, so please pay us a visit!

In the meantime, check out the Hot Plant Picks for 2014, the Gardens list, and the show blog which contains a wealth of behind the scenes info.

Stan Clark’s Space Forest of Inflatable Sacred Space Asparagus Trees

Many congratulations to the artist award winners and honorable mentions at the Autumn Lights Festival. Here is a recap of the results as tallied by Lisa at Another Bullwinkel Show:

Mayor’s Choice Winner:
Stan Clark’s “Moon Ornaments”

Mayor’s Honorable Mentions:
Insect Sciences Museum of California’s “Living Insects Painting”
Ashwin Swamy & Eric Thorne’s “Flowing & Glowing Squid”
Kim Webster’s “Blown Glass Succulents”
Andrea Hurd’s “Seed Fountain for Bees”
The Mother & Toddler’s “Carved Gourds”
Sacred Seed’s “Mudlights”

People’s Choice Awards:
First Place:  Kim Webster’s “Blown Glass Succulents”
Second Place:  Stan Clark’s “Moon Ornaments”
Third Place:  Clive Brown’s “Venusian Love Blossom”

Below are some of our favorite images from the event…

Check out the amazing shots below by Greg Linhares then visit his website to see the rest of his Autumn Lights Festival album.

Image courtesy of: Greg Linhares www.omnisourceimages.com

Glass Artist: Kim Webster www.kwebsterglass.com
Image courtesy of: Greg Linhares www.omnisourceimages.com

Image courtesy of: Greg Linhares www.omnisourceimages.com

We are looking for interested, qualified people to join our Volunteer Leadership Team!

The Team will consist of a Volunteer Coordinator, Marketing & Social Media Coordinator, Volunteer Ambassador and Garden Docent Coordinator. This is a great opportunity to gain training and experience with a variety of skills including environmental management, cloud computing, volunteer management, project management, public speaking, marketing, social media and more. Be a part of your local community and protect the legacy of the gem at the heart of Oakland!

Click below to learn more about these exciting opportunities and to apply!

• Volunteer Ambassador
• Volunteer Coordinator
• Garden Docent Coordinator
• Marketing and Social Media Coordinator

This effort is part of a revamp of the volunteer program at the Gardens, aimed to allow Oaklanders and visitors continued enjoyment of the Gardens’ wonderous natural beauty while increasing stewardship of the Gardens by local community members. People from all communities are encouraged to apply!

The walk and talk will be led by Tora Rocha, Park Supervisor for the City of Oakland and founder of the Pollinator Posse, a volunteer group working  to create pollination corridors as well as hand-rear butterflies to increase survival rates (and because it’s fun).

She’ll teach you about what’s going on behind-the-scenes to increase pollinator activity in Oakland through initiatives like creating pollination corridors, managing and creating habitat through projects like the Bee Hotel, and more!

You can also learn how to get involved with the Gardens to help create more habitat and join the Pollinator Posse to raise and release your very own monarch, if you’re so inspired.

For more info, check out the invite on the Wild Oakland website.

We are happy to announce the Autumn Lights Festival fundraiser returns to the Gardens at Lake Merritt from 6pm – 10pm on Friday and Saturday, October 18 & 19, 2013!

Imagine several acres of garden illuminated with amazing and enchanting art installations created by local Bay Area artists. Electric fireflies flickering in the trees, glowing waterfalls, a flock of interactive books, a Polynesian Paradise with hand-crafted tiki lanterns and hula girls projected on palm trees. Fire art cars and live fire performers light the night while music and sound installations surprise at every turn on the garden paths lit with hundreds of luminarias. Attendees are invited to participate during the evening by coming dressed in their most interesting illuminated garden attire.

• Lighted art, fire, and sound installations by Local Bay Area Artists
• Food, Beer & Wine
• Artist’s Museum Store

Tickets

Click here to buy tickets
Tickets are $25 in advance at  or $35 at the gate
Children 3-12 years are half price, free under 3 years
VIP Tickets for 21+ are $50, and are available in advance only. VIP Ticket includes free wine and beer tastings and illumination toys in the VIP lounge.

Artists and Art Installations

Performers and Performance Schedule

Volunteers Needed

If you would like to contribute by volunteering at the Autumn Lights Festival, please fill out and submit this form.

Funds raised will be used for improvements to the Gardens at Lake Merritt for the enjoyment of the entire community.

The Autumn Lights Festival is hosted by the Friends of the Gardens at Lake Merritt and  produced by AnotherBullwinkelShow.

Thank you to our wonderful sponsors:

Get involved

Here are some other ways to join the fun:
Food Vendor Application
Tabling Opportunities & Sponsorship Opportunities
Sponsorship Booth Application

For more information read the press release.

See more photos of last year’s Autumn Lights Festival here on Facebook.

Love Our Lake Day is taking place on Sunday, June 9 from 11am to 4pm at Lake Merritt, Lakeside Park and in the surrounding Oakland neighborhoods. Oaklanders and visitors alike are invited to come play in the car-free streets & parks surrounding Lake Merritt and celebrate the area’s transformation through Measure DD!

On Love Our Lake Day, we will be expecting lots of visitors here at the Gardens at Lake Merritt, and we need 8 – 12 Volunteer Ambassadors to welcome our guests. If you would like to join the fun, please send us an email and include your contact information and the times you are available to volunteer with us.

Some additional event info:

The festive event will enrich three miles of car-free streets with recreation and cultural activities for the entire family. At 2pm Mayor Jean Quan will be at the south end of the lake for the Grand Opening of Lake Merritt Boulevard featuring a beautiful new amphitheater and four-acre park. There will be live entertainment by Oakland artists, children’s activities, Oakland food trucks, and information booths and photographs highlighting the many transformative projects brought about by Measure DD, the voter-approved bond for Clean Water & Safe Parks.

The event is presented by the City of Oakland, Walk Oakland Bike Oakland (WOBO) and the Measure DD Community Coalition. For more information about the event, visit LoveOurLakeDay.com or call (510) 444-CITY.

For more than 50 years, this special garden in the heart of Oakland has been a place that city residents and visitors alike just love to experience as well as contribute to through volunteerism. And it is through the dedicated service of our volunteer force that we are able to keep the Gardens at Lake Merritt parkland beautiful and always ready to accept visitors with the open arms of majestic trees, fragrant flowers, and edible plants.

The Friends of the Gardens at Lake Merritt (FGLM) are always working to improve the experience of volunteering at the Gardens and to increase the total number of volunteers spending time in Gardens each season. We are putting the call out for individuals who love people, plants, and public parklands to join a new committee of Volunteer Coordinators!

The Volunteer Coordinators will work together as a team to conceptualize and develop ways to improve the volunteer experience at the Gardens at Lake Merritt. Additional projects may include creating a volunteer recognition program, and planning events and initiatives to get the word out about the Gardens and attract more volunteers to join the gardening fun.

If you are interested in this opportunity, please take a moment to complete the pre-interview survey. We hope to form this committee of Volunteer Coordinators by April 22, 2013.

If you have questions, please send an e-mail to Victory V Lee, Project Manager and FGLM Board Member. We are looking forward to welcoming new members to the Gardens at Lake Merritt team!

Mediterranean Garden

Plants are growing like crazy, flowers are budding and blooming, and the busy pollinators are kicking it into overdrive. With all this action going on in the Gardens, it’s no wonder you are feeling the itch to get outside. So here is the perfect opportunity: Come join us in the Gardens this spring as a volunteer gardener! There’s no better way to explore the gardens than by digging in and getting your hands dirty, and no better way to celebrate the spring season than experiencing it the way the plants and pollinators do.

Some of our fantastic volunteers enjoying their day

The Gardens staff is super busy and stretched very thin across the many green areas of Oakland managed by the city. Without the dedicated efforts of volunteers from the Oakland community, the Gardens at Lake Merritt wouldn’t be the “hidden jewel in the heart of the city” that it is today. When you volunteer you will get to perform garden maintenance and make enhancements in the form of digging, weeding, pruning, planting, and more. You can volunteer for as few or as many hours as you like, and will work alongside other fun and friendly people in a beautiful and peaceful setting.

Sensory Garden

No experience? No tools? No problem. As long as you don’t mind getting up close and personal with soil and the plant and animal life that call it home, you will be warmly welcomed and tools and gloves will be provided for you. Nancy Erb, one of the Gardens’ volunteer all-stars, says she always provides snacks for volunteers and sometimes even distributes lunch coupons donated by area eateries. She can also give plenty of tips on how to make a real difference in the gardens as a volunteer.

Volunteer all-stars Ann Nichols, Kazumi Anderson, Nancy Erb, and Carole Levenson

When I asked Nancy what she likes best about volunteering at the Gardens, she responded, “I like working with other good-hearted, generous people who share my vision for the Gardens as a place of beauty, peace, and inspiration for Oakland residents. Oaklanders need beauty, joy, and peace in their lives.”

Here is our current monthly volunteer work day schedule:

First Saturday of each month, 9am-noon – Mediterranean Garden

First Saturday of each month, 9am – 1:30pm – Succulent Garden

Third Saturday of each month, 9am- noon – Sensory Gardens, Palmetum, and the Rhododendron Garden

Every Thursday 9am-noon – Pollinator Garden, Succulent Garden, and others as needed

Send us an email or sign-up online and let us know your availability!

Edible Garden: If you’re interested in gardening at an Edible Garden; the Victory Garden Foundation’s People’s Victory Garden will have mentored gardening days on the 1st and 3rd Saturdays. Please see the Event Calendar for the month of April at http://www.peoplesvictorygarden.org/apps/calendar/