Fall is for Planting: A Native Plant Garden Tour

Fall is for Planting: A Native Plant Garden Tour happens at the Archives, History, & State Library Building on Saturday, October 17, from 10 AM to 11 AM. It's a guided walk through the native plantings of downtown Raleigh, led by staff from the Library of North Carolina's Government and Heritage Library and the NC Museum of Natural Sciences.

The whole point of the tour is in the title: the guides will be explaining why autumn is the ideal time to get native species into the ground here in North Carolina. If you've ever wondered why people talk about fall planting instead of spring, this is where you'll get the answer. Along the way, you'll see the native plantings of the NC Department of Natural and Cultural Resources' Native Plant Meadow and the NC Museum of Natural Science's Native Plant Garden.

It's a half-mile round-trip outdoors on paved sidewalks, so it's an easy walk that stays on the pavement. You'll be moving through the gardens with the guides, seeing the plants up close while they talk through the timing and the species. It's a good way to spend a Saturday morning if you're into gardening or just want to know more about what grows naturally around here.

The walk is free, but you do need to register in advance. It runs from 10 AM to 11 AM on Saturday, October 17, at the Archives, History, & State Library Building, 109 E Jones St. in downtown Raleigh.