9:00AM-1:00PM: Open Gardens (private gardens all over Swissvale) - See how a wide range of local gardeners grow food (and more) and meet the gardeners! Stop by the Info Table at the Swissvale Farmers Market (9AM-1PM, 7301 Schoyer Ave) to pick up event guides, ask questions, and fill your reusable water bottle. The event guide and map will also be available online. Visit as many or as few garden as you’d like, in any order.

This year’s tour features 25 gardens all over the borough - no one is expected to rush around all morning and see them all! Most people set a leisurely pace and see as many gardens as they can comfortably wander around to in four hours, chatting to gardeners and other tour-goers along the way. We do recommend starting on the early side, especially if it’s a hot day.

1:30PM-3:30PM: Community Picnic at the Swissvale Farmers Market (Dickson Preparatory Steam Academy, 7301 Schoyer Ave, Pittsburgh, PA 15218) - It’s our summer garden party! Join us for food, activities for all ages, and entertainment.

The tour will include gardens throughout the borough, including the spaces of newer, experienced, and more experimental gardeners. Visitors can expect to see a diverse array of edible garden features such as kitchen gardens, fruit trees, and pollinators.

We hope this event inspires you to consider growing your own food (on your own or with neighbors) and/or support local farmers at the market. Creating local food systems helps form a more interconnected, resilient community.

Through this free, community-wide event, we also hope to showcase Swissvale as a great place to garden, visit, and live. We promote the real and tangible benefits of gardening; gardening beautifies and connects communities, promotes physical and mental well-being, and has far-reaching ecological benefits. We hope to build confidence in newer gardeners and inspire young people to get their hands dirty and get growing. And even if you’re not a gardener, it’s a great way to meet passionate people and connect with your neighbors!