Arlington Garden celebration in Pasadena April 30

Pasadena City Councilman Steve Madison and Charles and Betty McKenney invite the community to celebrate the sixth anniversary of Arlington Garden on Saturday, April 30, from 9:30 a.m. to 2 p.m.

The event will include guided tours, exhibitions by local artists, discussions, expert advice on plant care and garden design, a demonstration of a new smartphone app that enables visitors to take audio tours and scan 23 identification signs, and a lecture about labyrinths throughout the world, including the seven-circuit labyrinth at Arlington Garden.

For several years the three-acre lot owned by Caltrans at the northwest corner of Pasadena Avenue and Arlington Drive sat empty. Madison initiated the project and asked the McKenneys to lead a steering committee to determine the best use of the site.

In the last six years the city of Pasadena has leased the lot, which has been transformed through a public/private partnership to a drought-tolerant demonstration garden with hundreds of trees and thousands of plants. It also features walls, paths, sculpture, furniture, a solar-powered fountain, stained glass artwork, an amphitheater and a vernal pool.

The garden’s colors and cover attract butterflies and birds. A series of berms and a swale running the length of the Arlington Drive parkway catch and retain thousands of gallons of rainwater after every shower.

The McKenneys, also known as the Constant Gardeners, coordinate every aspect of Arlington Garden’s progress. The garden is maintained by local volunteers, the Pasadena Beautiful Foundation, The Mediterranean Garden Society, Pasadena Water and Power and the Pasadena Public Works Department.

In addition to residents and visitors, Arlington Garden is frequented by public and private school students as well as university landscape architecture and horticulture students.

“This is Pasadena’s only dedicated public garden,” said Madison. “I encourage everyone to come to the anniversary event on April 30 and celebrate this perfect example of urban open space.”

The garden is open from sunrise to sunset seven days a week. For more information visit www.arlingtongardeninpasadena.org or call (626) 441-4478.