On October 23-24, the Garden of Etna hosted two free nights for Etna families to learn about the garden and celebrate the spooky season. Volunteers decorated the garden to the nines - with bats, spider webs, giant worms, and the scariest creature of all: the Spotted Lantern Fly! Neighbors came out in costume to navigate the winding garden maze where they had to climb through a web tunnel, avoid the spooky dude who lives in the raspberry bush, and dig in the dirt for worms. Kids visited the pumpkin patch and painted their pumpkins and created Halloween crafts, and candy was awarded for answering trivia questions about gardening. A fantastic and frightening time was had by all! It was great to meet new neighbors visiting the garden for the first time. Organizer Alice Gabriel stated,
"The Haunted Garden was such a fun event and we were really pleased with the turnout. It was a wonderful collaboration between members of the Garden of Etna and some new Etna residents. We look forward to continuing the event next year, hopefully adding a few more elements, and getting the word out even more. I love that it was an event specifically geared toward the kids of Etna. If anyone has old Halloween decorations they want to part with we would happily take them."