The 31st annual Oak Park and River Forest Garden Walk is Sunday, June 22. The Garden Walk is a community tradition for avid gardeners and anyone who loves plants and flowers. Our 2024 Walk set an all-time sales record with 923 tickets sold! This spring we received an award from the Garden Clubs of Illinois for the quality and size of our Walk.
People often ask us how the gardens are chosen. Our selection process begins almost as soon as the current year’s Garden Walk ends. That’s when the Garden Walk Committee (volunteers from the Friends of the Oak Park Conservatory and the OPRF Garden Club) begins its search for potential sites for the following year. Finding potential gardens is not easy. The Committee depends on recommendations from many sources: community residents, Garden Walk attenders, FOPCON and Garden Club members, local landscapers and garden designers and just “word of mouth.” We sometimes consider gardens that have been on a previous Walk if they have been redeveloped since their first viewing.
The criteria for choosing gardens are very broad. Some gardens are privately planned and maintained, while others are created by designers and/or cared for by professional landscapers. Most importantly, the Committee looks for a variety of styles and plantings. Some attendees come for the simple pleasure of viewing a garden, but many are looking for new ideas for their own gardens. The gardens we consider need to be actively blooming in June, established for two years and safe to walk through. Most importantly, the garden owners need to commit to the time and effort to prepare for the Walk.
After the Committee has finished all garden visits, each member submits an evaluation for each garden they visited. The evaluations are discussed at our September meeting so we can contact owners and make changes if needed. Not all garden owners can commit for the coming year. Some may defer to the following year, so we consider that aspect in our final decisions.
If you have suggestions for gardens for 2026 or questions, please contact us as soon as possible. We welcome your suggestions.
Sue Boyer (suegboyer@gmail.com) and Gina Sennello (ginasennello@gmail.com)
Co-chairs Garden Walk 2025
Garden Walk Ticket Sales Details:
Advance tickets will be available for purchase on May 15. Tickets are $20 until Saturday June 21 at 5pm. After 5pm Saturday, and the day of the Walk, all tickets are $25 (cash, credit, debit or check).
Members of FOPCON and the Garden Club of Oak Park and River Forest will receive a code for discounted tickets.
More details here.
