The Mildred E. Mathias Botanical Garden welcomed the UCLA community to a day of fun and knowledge this weekend.

“Fall Fest” took place this Saturday from 12 p.m. to 4 p.m. at UCLA’s botanical garden. Sponsored by the College of Life Sciences, the free festival was open to the public and gave visitors the opportunity to learn more about the flora and fauna found on campus and across California. Guests were also able to enjoy food and live music while they participated in the multiple activities the festival had to offer.

People walking into the garden were greeted by staff explaining the different events the festival was presenting, as well as providing people with brochures of the activities and information about the garden. Upon arriving at 12 p.m., guests could learn about seed bombs – one of the two available activities at that time – where garden staff provided materials such as soil and seeds and taught people how to make their own. For those uninterested in crafting, staff already had some “California Wildflower seed bombs” bagged and ready for people to take in case they preferred not to wait for their own to dry. The already-bagged seed bombs included instructions and tips for people to grow their flowers at home. This activity lasted throughout the entirety of the event.

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Another activity also available from the moment the festival began until its conclusion was weaving, a technique used by the Tongva people to create baskets using dried deergrass, a long thin grass that is part of the garden’s fauna, staff members said. However, in order to make weaving a more accessible activity, staff provided yarn instead of deergrass, with a selection of colors for people to personalize their craft.

The Los Angeles Public Library presented a workshop at 12:30 p.m. about the app iNaturalist, where people can upload pictures of different animal or plant species they encounter in Los Angeles. The purpose of this, the public library speaker said, is to help track the success of preservation and conservation projects. In a similar tone, the festival also hosted informative panels along the garden from different environmental-focused organizations such as the Theodore Payne Foundation, the UCLA Botanical Club and refineLA. One of the attendees, Shivani Watson, a third-year environmental science major said the information shared in these panels felt accessible for anyone interested in learning more about the environment no matter their previous knowledge.

“There’s a lot of information, and people are trying to share it in a way that’s very palatable,” Watson said. “So if people don’t have a background, they can go and learn something.”

Around 12:30 p.mm, live music was brought into the festival with singer ilayali. Following that, the festival included three more performances by Melt to Stone, Bryce Fleming and Garden Party. With each set lasting around an hour, music was a constant at the festival until the end. In addition, attendees could enjoy food while watching the performances, as the festival brought two food vendors where visitors could purchase lunch from poke bowls to sushi burritos, or grab a sweet treat like Italian shaved ice. First-year theater student Sora Isogai, said the combination of activities in the festival made it a space to disconnect from outside stress.

“I think it’s a good way to connect with nature and have some time off,” Isogai said.

People interested in getting to know the garden also had an opportunity to get a tour with one of the garden’s guides. During the tours, which happened at 12:30 pm, 1:45 pm and 3 pm, guests got to walk around the garden while making certain stops, where the guide would share interesting facts about specific plants, from their origin to the reason for their names. The tour also began by paying honor to Mildred E. Mathias, former director of the garden, the first woman to earn tenure at UCLA and for whom the garden is named, said one of the tour guides.

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Third-year psychobiology major Amulya Aditham said the Mathias Botanical Garden Fall Festival helped cheer the community while enjoying music, food and crafts. With a wide range of activities, the festival was a space for visitors to spend their weekend along nature.

“It’s really cool that they [the festival] have a lot of information about sustainability to be able to uplift the community,” said Aditham. “While also experiencing joy in creativity and music.”