Our annual holiday sale, Gifts & Greens Galore, is less than a month away, on Saturday, December 1, from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Buy presents with a purpose this holiday season: All purchases support the Arboretum! You'll find a great selection of botanical decorations and nature-inspired gifts, including many local, seasonal specialty items.

Thinking about reducing the size of your lawn and putting in more plants? In the latest issue of the Arboretum Bulletin, Portland-based garden writer Barbara Ashmun describes how she created beautiful "island beds" in her backyard filled with eye-popping summer- and fall-booming perennials.

If you're still thinking of planting some new trees and shrubs this fall, the Pat Calvert Greenhouse has a fine selection to choose from. The sun house features plants of seasonal interest, including lots of young stewartias, crape myrtles, strawberry trees (pictured above), and dwarf conifers. The shade house offers a wide array of Japanese maple seedlings, camellias, hydrangeas, and much more. 

• Free Weekend Walk Tours: The November theme is "Ancient Tree Species." Learn about some of the longest-living species on Earth, and visit them in the Arboretum. Sundays, 1 to 2:30 pm. Meet at the Graham Visitors Center.
• Seattle Japanese Garden: The garden will close for winter maintenance starting December 1, 2018. It will reopen April 1, 2019.
• UW Botanic Gardens Free Seminar: "Designing Greenspace for Healthy Neighborhoods," by Paul Kraegel. Monday, November 5, 6:30 p.m. at the Center for Urban Horticulture. Click link to RSVP.
• Help the Garden Stewards: Just two more work sessions are organized for 2018: on Thursday, Nov 8 and Thursday, Nov 15, from 9 a.m. to noon.