Hyde Park Garden Fair Historic Community Plant Sale
- Hyde Park Garden Fair opens in Chicago on May 16 at Kimbark Plaza, launching the neighborhood plant sale billed by organizers as the city’s oldest. - Since 1959, organizers say members have sourced plants from Wisconsin to Indiana, with thousands of annuals, perennials, herbs, vegetables, trees and shrubs. - The fair continues Sunday, May 17, from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. at Kimbark Plaza, according to organizers.
The Hyde Park Garden Fair opens Saturday, May 16, at Kimbark Plaza on 53rd Street and South Kimbark in Chicago, according to the fair’s website. Organizers describe it as Chicago’s oldest community garden sale and say the event will run through Sunday, May 17. The sale offers thousands of plants selected for urban gardens, including annuals, perennials, herbs, vegetables, trees and shrubs, according to the fair and tourism listings. Proceeds support community and neighborhood parks, and local parks and schools on the South Side, according to the organizers and Choose Chicago. ### Where is the sale taking place this year? Kimbark Plaza, listed at 53rd Street and South Kimbark in Hyde Park, is the 2026 site for the fair, according to the organizers. Downtown Hyde Park Chicago lists the venue as 1228 E. 53rd St. The Hyde Park Garden Fair website says the event will be held at Kimbark Plaza Shopping Center. Welcome to Hyde Park, a neighborhood events listing, also places the fair in Kimbark Plaza for the weekend of May 16-17, 2026. (hydeparkgardenfair.org) ### What are the hours on Saturday and Sunday? Saturday, May 16, runs from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m., according to the fair website and local event listings. (hydeparkgardenfair.org) Sunday, May 17, runs from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m., the organizers say. The 2026 schedule marks a change in timing for the event. The fair website says that after more than 60 years, organizers shifted the spring sale to a Saturday-Sunday format rather than the Friday-Saturday pattern they had used before. (hydeparkgardenfair.org) ### What kinds of plants are organizers selling? Thousands of annuals, perennials, hanging baskets, geraniums, vines, trees, shrubs, wildflowers, herbs and vegetables are listed on the fair website. (hydeparkgardenfair.org) Choose Chicago says the fair also features native plants selected for urban gardens. Since 1959, Choose Chicago says Garden Fair members have visited nurseries from Wisconsin to Indiana to select varieties based on their own gardening experience and suitability for city growing conditions. (hydeparkgardenfair.org) The fair website says those selections are aimed at people looking to build or expand home and neighborhood gardens. ### What makes this sale different from a typical plant market? (hydeparkgardenfair.org) The Hyde Park Garden Fair website says the event is run as a community sale with proceeds supporting neighborhood parks. Its about page says the fair also supports the Hyde Park-Kenwood Community Conference and funds beautification efforts, including grants for public plantings and donations of plants and bulbs to churches, synagogues, schools, hospitals and other nonprofit groups. (choosechicago.com) The organizers say committee members share gardening advice at the spring fair and direct visitors to volunteers with experience on specific plant or site problems. The website says the group has also maintained neighborhood projects in Nichols Park and other parts of the South Side. ### How long has the fair been around? Choose Chicago says the fair dates to 1959. (hydeparkgardenfair.org) The organizers describe it as Chicago’s oldest community garden sale. The fair website says it has operated for more than 60 years and holds two annual sales, one in spring and another in the fall. The fall event, according to the site, focuses on chrysanthemums, bulbs, asters and bearded iris. (hydeparkgardenfair.org) ### What happens next for visitors this weekend? Sunday, May 17, is the second and final day of the spring fair, with hours from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. at Kimbark Plaza, according to the organizers and Downtown Hyde Park Chicago. (choosechicago.com) The fair website lists gardenfair@hydeparkgardenfair.org for questions, and its organizers say they also recruit volunteers for future sales. (hydeparkgardenfair.org)
