Special October Events 

Free Garden Tours every Saturday at 10:00am. These free, docent-led tours feature the Gardens’ unique horticultural collections. The 30-minute tours are designed for the entire family.  Kids will love it!

October 8-9, Saturday-10am-5:pm; and Sunday-11am-4:30pm: Annual Bonsai Exhibition and Show. Demonstrations and workshops, with Japanese trained Bonsai Master Demonstration 1:00pm on Sunday. 

October 9, Sunday – 5:30-9:00pm:  Free Moon Viewing Festival, presented by the Oakland-Fukuoka Sister City Association. A Bonsai Garden Open House begins at 5:30. Entertainment begins at 6:30. At 7:30, the East Bay Astronomical Society will offer moon (and planet) viewing from several telescopes in the Gardens. In addition, delicious Bento dinner boxes will be available in the Bonsai Garden by reservation only. Call 482-5896 to order your Bento dinner. 

October 15, Saturday – 10am-4pm: Learn  “The Art of Pruning” with the Merritt College Aesthetic Pruning Club in the Japanese Garden. The Club has worked to restore and maintain this garden since 1985. Special emphasis will be on pruning pine trees.

October 22, Saturday – noon-1:00pm:  “Choosing and Planting Good Landscape Plants,” presented by Meredith Kaplan, Master Gardener, in the Alameda County Master Gardeners’ Trials Garden located in the Edible Garden.

October 26, Wednesday – 9:30-12:30pm: “Golden Gate Audubon Society Free Lake Merritt Bird Walks.” Meet at the spherical cage near the Nature Center at Perkins and Bellevue.

October 28, Friday – 7:30pm: Sydney B. Mitchell Iris Society, Auction and Sale in the Lakeside Park Garden Center.

October 29, Saturday – 8:30-3:30 pm: The Alameda County Master Gardeners will hold their 9th annual “Practical Gardening: Sustainability From the Ground Up” seminar  Saturday, October 29, from 8:30 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. at the Lakeside Park Garden Center and the Gardens at Lake Merritt. See details in “Master Gardener Fall/Winter Seminar” article on this website or go to www.acmg.ucdavis.edu. Don’t miss the great line-up of presentations. 

October 29, Saturday – 11:30 am: “Potions and Lotions: Herbal Remedy Workshop” in the Hope Garden (across from the Sensory Garden and adjacent to the Edible Garden).  Learn about teas and salves made from herbs commonly found in the home garden. Demonstrations and sampling.

Community Volunteer Work Party Events

October 1, Saturday- 9am-12pm: Mediterranean Garden

October 15, Saturday- 9am-12pm: Palmetum, Rhododendron, and Sensory Gardens

Bring your gloves, favorite garden tool, and a friend. When volunteering, receive a parking pass at the kiosk by telling the attendant you are with the Friends of the Gardens at Lake Merritt.