Washington Gardener Magazine will hold its 12th annual DC Plant Swap on Sunday afternoon at the U.S. National Arboretum. (Photo courtesy of Washington Gardener Magazine)

The DC Lineup for this weekend: Fiestas, flora and signs of fall

By Jennifer Anne Mitchell On Sep 20, 2019 Last updated Oct 14, 2019

This weekend, the District is gearing up for autumn with some summer season finales and an Oktoberfest. A range of music and film events are also on our list, along with community gatherings centered around a 5K race, a health and wellness fair, a bike sale and a plant swap. The large-scale H Street Festival and Fiesta DC are highlights, too, along with the return of Georgetown’s Concerts in the Park.

The upcoming weekend also marks the final days of WalkingTown DC, organized annually by CulturalTourism DC. For details, check our recent article on the nine-day event’s free guided walking tours throughout the city. Registration is required; a donation of $10 for each tour is encouraged.

The weather should be sunny throughout this last weekend of summer, Sept. 20 to 22. Temperatures will range from 59 to 91 degrees, according to the forecast.

Saturday’s H Street Festival will celebrate the Ward 6 neighborhood and the arts with music, dance, poetry, youth-focused performances and more. (Photo courtesy of the H Street Festival)

1. Ward 6 Neighborhoods: The 13th annual H Street Festival takes place this Saturday from noon to 7 p.m. along H Street NE between 4th and 14th streets. Encompassing 11 blocks and 15 stages, the family-friendly event includes food, music, contests and games. Over 250 local organizations participate each year, with upward of 150,000 visitors attending. The DC Department of Small and Local Business Development is an organizational partner. Additional sponsors include the H Street Community Development Corp., DC Department of Parks and Recreation, Washington City Paper, DC Streetcar and 202Creates. … This weekend is the last chance to attend the 2019 edition of Truckeroo, a monthly spring and summer festival featuring area food trucks. The all-ages fest kicks off in April and runs once a month through September at The Bullpen, 1201 Half St. SE. Participating food trucks include Due South, Reggae Vibes, District Jerk and DC Empanadas. Live music and games are also part of the festivities. This weekend’s season finale takes place on Friday from 4 to 11 p.m. Admission is free.

2. Music: DC meets New Orleans at the friendly culinary and musical competition Battle of the Bands and BBQ. For the music portion, DC go-go bands Proper Utensils featuring Jas. Funk and Black Alley will face off against New Orleans’ Big Six Brass Band. During the cook-off, DC’s Catering by John will compete against Trés Creole Catering owner and chef Eric Tyson, a Louisiana native. The event also unites #DontMuteDC and #DontMuteNola, social uprisings aimed at fighting music censorship in their respective cities — home to two of the country’s oldest free black communities. With both DC and New Orleans experiencing gentrification, the festival “celebrates black resilience in the face of displacement and cultural erasure,” according to the event description. The gathering takes place from 7 to 11:30 p.m. on Friday at Gateway Pavilion on the St. Elizabeth East campus at 2700 Martin Luther King Jr. Ave. SE. It is open to the public with a free ticket.

3. Music: This summer, Georgetown’s Concerts in the Park series took a break as its team of organizers at the Citizens Association of Georgetown turned over. Just prior to the start of fall next week, the series is back in action with a late summer concert. Sunday’s Welcome Back Concert features a free yoga class at 4 p.m. followed by live music by The Other Side at 5 p.m. in Rose Park, located at 26th and O streets NW. The seasonal concert series is set to return next summer. … The DC-based musical ensemble The Lovejoy Group serves up a mix of “energetic jazz, funky blues and smooth Latin rhythms,” according to its website. On Saturday, the group presents a jazz concert and video project at the Church of the Holy City, 1611 16th St. NW. Tickets cost $15, with a two-for-one deal that includes wine as well as a ticket for a separate musicians’ recording event. The concert starts at 7:30 p.m.

4. Nature: Washington Gardener Magazine presents its 12th annual DC Plant Swap at the U.S. National Arboretum this Sunday. Participants are welcome to bring plants to exchange with others. Plants identified as concerns by the Maryland Invasive Species Council are not permitted. Attendees should label their plants with detailed information and arrive by 2 p.m. to organize the plants by category (i.e., shade perennial, ground cover or herb) for the swap at 2:30. The gathering will continue with mingling and refreshments until 3 p.m. The event is held in the arboretum’s M Street parking lot, located near the garden’s south entrance off of M Street NE. It is free and open to the public.

This year’s Heurich Oktoberfest will celebrate the re-creation of Senate Beer. (Photo courtesy of Heurich House Museum)

5. Food & Drink: Heurich Oktoberfest: Senate Beer Style celebrates Senate Beer, a re-creation of a historic brew from the 1890s that survived prohibition and was produced until 1956. The biergarten festival will also include ales from Washington area breweries Sankofa Beer Co., Red Bear Brewing Co., ANXO Cidery, Silver Branch Brewing Co., Supreme Core Cider, Crooked Run Brewing and Streetcar 82 Brewing Co. The festival takes place from 1 to 4 p.m. on Saturday at the Heurich House Museum, 1307 New Hampshire Ave. NW. Tickets range from $65 to $85 and include unlimited tastings and full pours of beer, a grilled bratwurst on a roll and a pretzel.

6. Culture: Fiesta DC features live music, youth activities, contests and over 50 businesses, food vendors and community organizations. Additionally, more than 25 countries showcase their traditions during a Parade of Nations. The 48th installment of the Latino celebration takes place this weekend, starting off with the parade on Saturday from 1 to 5:30 p.m. along Constitution Avenue NW from 7th to 12th streets and then along Pennsylvania Avenue NW from 12th to 14th streets. On Sunday from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. the festival runs along Pennsylvania Avenue NW from 3rd to 7th streets. The Fiesta DC events are free to attend.

7. Recreation: President Lincoln’s Cottage hosts a Freedom 5K race alongside a family day of fun during its Homecoming event, a homage to the Civil War era when the Lincoln family called this cottage their home for much of his presidency. Now a historic site and museum, President Lincoln’s Cottage, 140 Rock Creek Church Road NW, welcomes the community “home” this Saturday from 7:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. Morning activities accompanying the 5K race include yoga by Lighthouse Yoga and a free, 100-foot Tot Dash. The family day kicks off at 10 a.m. with pony rides, arts and crafts, a picnic, a story hour, opportunities to visit a Civil War encampment, and ticketed tours of the cottage. Registration for the family day is free. On-site 5K registration costs $40.

8. Film: The March on Washington Film Festival debuted in 2013 in honor of the 50th anniversary of the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom. Now in its seventh year, the annual fest aims to encourage activism by telling stories from the civil rights era. The schedule includes a mix of free and ticketed programs that include film screenings; an awards ceremony; a gala; art exhibits; and comedy, musical and spoken-word performances. Sunday’s opening screening and panel discussion from 2 to 4 p.m. at the Washington National Cathedral, at Massachusetts and Wisconsin avenues NW, features the 2018 film Amazing Grace, which documents Aretha Franklin’s live gospel concert in 1972 at a Baptist church in Los Angeles. The festival continues through Sept. 29 at venues around the District, including the National Museum of Women in the Arts, George Washington University’s Jack Morton Auditorium, Eaton DC, the National Archives and the National Portrait Gallery.

Big Bear Cafe will host a bike sale on Saturday. (Photo by Jennifer Anne)

9. Ward 5 Neighborhoods: Big Bear Cafe’s occasional bike sale features refurbished bicycles priced from $250 to $350 as well as new bike gear. Phoenix Bikes, Gearin’ Up Bicycles and Bikes for the World produce the event with the cafe, located at 1700 1st St. NW. The sale, which is held three or four times a year, takes place this Saturday from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.

10. Health & Safety: The Francis A. Gregory Neighborhood Library hosts a Health and Wellness Day with free activities for all ages. Whether it is a yoga class, storytime, a chess workshop or a healthy cooking class, there is an activity for every member of the family to enjoy. Medical programs on the schedule include blood pressure checks and screenings for diabetes and pre-diabetes. The East of the River Steel Band will also perform. The event runs from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Saturday at the Francis A. Gregory Neighborhood Library, 3660 Alabama Ave. SE. It is free and open to the public. … The DC Department of Motor Vehicles is concluding Child Passenger Safety Week with a child car safety seat check and install. Free booster seats will be provided while supplies last to District residents with children who are at least 4 years old; the child must be present to receive the gift. Representatives from the District Department of Transportation and Metropolitan Police Department will be on site to demonstrate how to properly install the seats. The event is from 2 to 7 p.m. on Saturday at the DMV Inspection Station, 1001 Half St. SW.