25th annual Mother's Day Plant Sale at Kruckeberg Gardens

2011 Mother's Day Plant Sale
Photo by Aden Heuser

Tradition, History and Plants Thrive at 25th Annual Spring Sale

• May 10, 3 p.m. to 7 p.m.: Pre-Sale Event for members of the Kruckeberg Botanic Garden Foundation only, new members welcome.
• May 11, 10 a.m.-5 p.m.: Plant sale open to the public.
• May 12 and 13, 10 a.m.-5 p.m.: Plant sale open to the public, with free family activities all day and garden tours at 1 p.m.
• Due to limited neighborhood parking, off-site parking and a shuttle to the Garden are provided May 11-13. Sale attendees are asked to use the off-site parking area and will receive a coupon to use at the Sale. See websote for details. The Nursery is located at 20312 15th Ave NW.

Local nurserywoman Mareen Kruckeberg first opened her private garden and nursery for a small plant sale on Mother’s Day weekend in 1987. Twenty-five years later, the annual Mother’s Day Plant Sale and Open House carries on as a historic, yet thriving community tradition at Shoreline’s Kruckeberg Botanic Garden.

Browsing at the 2011 Mother's Day Sale
Photo by Aden Heuser

The MsK Rare and Native Plant Nursery that Mareen founded continues the tradition with a family-friendly event on May 11-13 from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. In 2012, local plant sales on Mother’s Day weekend abound, but that was not true 25 years ago. Don’t miss the original! The plant sale will feature hundreds of species, many hard-to-find, of native plants and unusual exotics that are well suited for Northwest gardens. Free family activities and garden tours will also be offered. 

Mareen, who passed away in 2003, specialized in a wide selection of plants that were rarely available in nurseries at the time. She loved to make interesting plants available to Northwest gardeners. The annual Mother’s Day Sale quickly became a favorite community event, particularly for plant enthusiasts and connoisseurs.

In the years since it began, the Mother’s Day Sale has transitioned from a small open house at a private garden to a large fundraising event for a public botanic garden. The Nursery is located within the Kruckeberg Botanic Garden, which was purchased from the Kruckeberg family by the City of Shoreline in 2008. All sale proceeds now support the Kruckeberg Botanic Garden Foundation, a nonprofit organization that operates the Garden in cooperation with the City. The Mother’s Day Sale is the Foundation’s largest fundraising event. Members of the Foundation are invited to shop early at the member’s only pre-sale event on May 10 from 3 pm to 7 pm. New members are welcome.

As a mother herself, Mareen enjoyed children and often sent them home from the sale with a free violet. The tradition continues at the Sale’s popular Sprout Spot, where families with young children can get their hands dirty with free educational activities, chose a plant to take home, and make a gift for Mom. The Foundation will also offer free garden tours on May 12 and 13. These tours will introduce visitors to the Garden’s highlights and help them to spot the not-to-miss plant specimens.

For more information, contact Sarah Baker at 206-546-1281 ext.5. The Garden and Nursery are located at 20312 15th Ave NW, Shoreline, WA. Regular open hours are Friday-Sunday, 10 a.m.-5 p.m.