Allen Centennial Garden

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Madison, WI
Allen Centennial Garden

Public Botanic Garden open daily dawn to dusk. Admission is free, and all are welcome. Volunteerism is encouraged and welcomed.

Allen Centennial Gardens is a public garden and botanic garden that serves as an outdoor classroom for the Horticuture Department of the University of Wisconsin in Madison. The 2.5 acre garden demonstrates thousands of ornamental plants including annual flowers, perennials, tropicals and temperannuals, deciduous trees and shrubs and conifers. Landscape architecture and landscape design styles are

featured and highlighted. Allen Centennial Gardens is open from dawn to dusk at no charge to visitors 365 days a year. Allen Centennial Gardens' operational budget is 100% self-funded, including salaries. Donations are appreciated; the beauty and education we provide is based on the generosity of others. Weddings and other events may be held at the Gardens and photography permits for professional photographers are available.

08/07/2026

Join us for an awesome weekend of events.

On Saturday, we will have some of our best flowers of the season--Sunflowers on deck--from 9:00 to 11:00 am for build your own bouquet ($10). Our Makers' circle is meeting from 10:00 am to 12:00 pm with free supplies for anyone interested in mending or joining up with their own art project. A few spots are available for walkups at our dried flower wreath making ($50).

On Sunday, we have build your own bouquet again from 3:30 to 5:00 pm ($10), our for the public tour ($5) at 4:00 pm, and our free summer Jazz Concert starting at 5:00 pm.

08/06/2026

Join us for a dried flower wreath workshop this Saturday from 10:00 am to 12:00 pm!

Some of our favorite flowers from our weekly build your own bouquet will be back after a long dry out in our shed. This workshop includes our main technique for making wreaths from small boutonnière sized arrangements, and also, includes additional supplies to go off script and try something unique. Plenty of flowers, fun, and hot glue.

To register visit our Eventbrite: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/dried-flowers-are-forever-tickets-1986359503747?aff=oddtdtcreator

07/31/2026

This weekend the floral fun continues on Saturday at 9:00 am until 11:00. Build an arrangement for as much as you can grip for $10.

Join our indigo session for indigo massage dyeing and indigo pot dyeing from 10:00 am to 12:00 pm. Drop ins welcome but indigo is available while supplies last. Starts at $10. You are welcome to bring your own item to dye. Choose 100% natural fibers!

07/25/2026

This weekends events are here. Join us for build your own bouquet from 9:00 am to 11:00 am ($10) or our Makers Circle from 10:00 am to 12:00 pm (Free).

Free Jazz on Sunday from 5:00 to 6:15 pm We are welcoming the Peter Mathistad Jazz Quintet. We're excited for their high energy set of mostly original music weaving tasteful melodies with complex harmonies, and an original voice in a post-bop lineage.

Come early for flower arranging with our build your own bouquet from 3:30 to 5:00 pm ($10).

07/21/2026

Come and dye with us! Come learn the joy and experimental process of working with natural plant based dyes by working together with other workshop participants to transform different dye plants into your own unique colors. We’ll have at least four different colors and an array of examples pre-made to serve as our guide. Learn how to harvest in our dye garden for all the necessary materials. Interested in growing these plants? They’re easy to grow or forage, we’ll show you! Sign up here: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/plant-based-dyes-intro-tickets-1986358890914

As we experience the process, we will discuss the importance and impact of plant based dyes throughout history, consider the differences and complexities of dyeing animal based fabric versus plant based fabric, and learn about the chemical process involved in making your plant based dye permanent. This is a great introductory course because it works with different techniques for dye extraction and fabric preparation.

Everyone will get to take home 4 fat quarters of cotton (22” x 18”). These may be used for future projects like quilting or hemmed into a napkin. You will have the knowledge to be able to grow your own dyeing materials! This 120-minute project was designed for those aged 18 and up.

07/17/2026

Tomorrows' events incoming!

We've got build your own bouquet $10 from 9:00 am to 11:00 am and a guided tour $5 from 11:30 to 12:30 pm.

If we need to cancel due to poor air quality, we will post again around 8:00 am and update the landing page of our website to indicate hthat the events of the day are cancelled.

07/10/2026

We're back after the 4th of July! Join us this weekend for an awesome selection of flowers to build your own bouquet on Saturday from 9:00 to 11:00 am or Sunday from 3:30 to 5:00 pm. Only $10 for up to as much as you can hold in one hand!

We are also running our plant based watercolors class (drop in for $30) and our Maker's circle (free) on Saturday from 10:00 to 12:00 pm.

On Sunday, our summer concert series continues from 5:00 to 6:15 pm with Betsy Ezell’s Canção Project. Expect music in the bossa nova tradition. Huge thanks to the Friend of Allen Centennial Garden.

06/26/2026

We have a huge weekend line up. Read on to learn more or just drop by. Odds are good something might be happening!

Starting today at 12:00 pm until 4:00 pm we'll be joining the for a paper making demonstration with Patricia Tinajero. ACG interns will also be demonstrating dyeing with plants! Some of our past interns projects will also be at the Textile Arts Center of Madison's new exhibit 'Home Grown.' The reception is tonight at 5:30 pm.

Later on, tonight at 7:45 pm will be the first of three performances of Insignificance performed by ! These will be Friday, Saturday, and Sunday at 7:45 pm. Pay what you can, enjoy a great show.

On Saturday, we will have our build your own bouquet from 9:00 to 11:00 am, an embroidery class from 10:00 to 12:00 pm and our makers circle, also from 10:00 to 12:00 pm.

We will also be visiting our friends at on Saturday for two back to back sessions of flower pounding at 1:00 pm and 3:30 pm.

Hope we see you this weekend!

06/24/2026

We've had a blast flower pounding the past few weeks! Our final sessions are this Saturday. We are offering this fun opportunity to create with plants at 1:00 pm and 3:30 pm. To sign up head over to working draft's calendar!

Or follow the link:
https://www.workingdraftbeer.com/calendar

Check out some of our all time favorite flower pounding creations, and the after image of one....

Shout out to the leaf work and the praying mantis creations and much love to all the dye plants we get to work with. Expect winners on Saturday. Coreopsis, Japanese indigo, fern, crabapple, and more incoming.

06/20/2026

Beautiful weather to drop by the Garden for some fantastic events today and Sunday.

Drop by for two build your own bouquet ($10) offerings with the first zinnia of the season! The first is now till 11 am and the second, tomorrow from 3:30 to 5:00 pm.

We are also offering our public drop-in tour ($5) tomorrow from 4:00 to 5:00 pm.

Join us on Sunday from 5:00 to 6:15 pm for with Mr. Chair Madison featuring Jason Kutz on piano, Ben Ferris on bass, and Mike Koszewski on drums. As always, free.

Address

620 Babcock Drive
Madison, WI
53706

Telephone

+16085762501

Website

http://www.allencentennialgarden.wisc.edu/

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