Members of the UW–Madison, Madison and broader community are invited to celebrate Allen Centennial Garden’s third annual Harvest Festival on Saturday, September 28. The event, which runs from 12:00 – 8:00 p.m., will have live music, dancing and storytelling, alongside opportunities to learn about different harvest traditions from cultures around the world. The festival is free and open to the public. This year, the garden is excited to partner with the Center for the Study of Upper Midwestern Cultures to host their fall Bowery Dance from 6:00 – 8:00 p.m., so bring your dancing shoes and get on the dance floor with Beth Hoven Rotto and the Scandinavian-American Old-time Dance Music Ensemble.

The Harvest Festival centers around the Wyman Kitchen Garden, which highlights the crops and cuisines of African American, Latine and Native American cultures. Crops were selected, planted and harvested in consultation with partners from the Native American Center for Health Professions, Trade Roots and the UW–Madison Department of Plant and Agroecosystem Sciences. This year, the Wyman Kitchen Garden features crops from South America, Choctaw plants, a new cranberry bog and more.

The Harvest Festival kicks off with a seed exchange at 12:00 p.m., featuring free seeds shared by Allen Centennial Garden, Seed Savers Exchange, Driftless Seed Supply and community members. Individuals with seeds they’d like to contribute to the exchange are asked to arrive at noon, and seeds will be ready to pick up starting at 12:30 p.m.

Attendees will be treated to a variety of entertainment, including performances and presentations by:

• Limanya Drum and Dance Group
• Misty Cook, Stockbridge-Munsee Herbalist 
• Lion Dancers from the Zhong Yi Kung Fu Association
• UW School of Bhangra
• Cumbia Cachaca (Colombian music)

UW–Madison student groups will be on hand during the event to share information about food and garden traditions from numerous cultures, including Italian and Scandinavian. There will be a showcase of student research focusing on the importance of harvest festivals to communities across the globe.

This year’s Harvest Festival will also feature many hands-on ways to create with plants including making flower crowns and a collaborative quilt made from fabric dyed with plants.

Expert Mary Johnson will offer a demonstration of how to make traditional straw mobiles called Himmeli, and visitors will have a chance to create their own. Wisconsin Linen Revival will be demonstrating ways to process flax into linen cord.

Food will be available for purchase starting at 5:00 p.m. from UW’s Electric Eats food truck, featuring meal options from African, Asian, Latine and Native American cuisines. Cash payment is preferred, but credit cards will also be accepted.

Allen Centennial Garden is located at 620 Babcock Drive. Free parking is available in Lot 34 at 1480 Tripp Circle; in Lot 36 just west of Steenbock Library; and in Lot 40 behind Babcock Hall.

Allen Centennial Garden will make a reasonable effort to provide accommodations for participants with disabilities when notified in advance. Request a disability accommodation by September 18 by contacting Ryan Dostal at AllenCentennialGarden@wisc.edu. Efforts will be made to meet same day requests to the extent possible.

The kitchen garden project and Harvest Festival were funded in part by a Wisconsin Arts Board grant, with funds from the State of Wisconsin and the National Endowment for the Arts. Additional support provided by the UW Madison Anonymous Fund and other campus departments.

INFORMATION FOR MEDIA
Contact: Reba Luiken, rluiken@wisc.edu