---

---

Family Friendly

Events

Easter Weekend l Saturday, April 7 and Sunday, April 8, 1-4 p.m.

Peter Rabbit greets visitors and poses for photographs (both days). Concert by the Richmond Concert Band on the lawn at Bloemendaal House (Saturday.);

Easter Brunch in the Tea House by reservation (Sunday).

Heritage Weekend l Saturday, April 21; 12 – 3 p.m. and Sunday, April 22; 12 – 4 p.m.
Celebrate tulips at their peak and historic highlights from the Garden’s past. Enjoy tours of Bloemendaal House and imagine its early days as the original Lakeside Wheel Club.

Mothers' Day l Sunday, May 13, 1-4 p.m.

Treat Mom to a special day! Enjoy a free concert in the Garden (included in admission). Brunch is available in the Robins Tea House by reservation; food also available for purchase in the Garden Café or a la carte in the Garden.

Fathers' Day l Sunday, June 17, 1-4 p.m.

Celebrate Father's Day in the Garden with entertainment and garden-related activities. Enjoy a free concert (included in Garden admission) and see classic cars and motorcycles.

All-American Celebration! Wednesday, July 4, 1 – 4 p.m.

Guests are invited to wear red, white and blue and bring wagons and strollers to decorate for a “parade” in Children’s Garden. Enjoy music, WaterPlay and fun activities.  

Free with Garden admission

October Oddities 

Included with regular Garden admission
During October, refresh your family's "garden spirit" through displays, activities and special events that explore the weird, wacky and wonders of nature! Details TBD.

October, Saturdays ... 10a.m.-2p.m.
Children's Garden

Goblins and Gourds | Sunday, October 28, 1 - 4 p.m.

Celebrate the harvest season with wacky music by the Richmond Indigenous Gourd Orchestra, pick a pumpkin from our patch for decorating, and enjoy good green fun under the tent. Food will be available for purchase at the Garden Café.

GardenFest of Lightsl Friday, November 23, 2012- Monday, January 7, 2013

Join us for one of Richmond’s most popular family holiday events. Winter evenings in the Garden offer a brilliant landscape of glowing natural forms as well as intricate botanical decorations from the end of November through the second week of January. Activities for families and children include Merry Mondays every Monday evening from 5 p.m. - 8 p.m. throughout GardenFest, featuring story time with the Garden Keeper, s’mores at the warming fire, and Santa sightings in the Conservatory.

New Year’s Eve Family Frolicl Monday, December 31, 2 - 5 p.m
Fun for all ages! All of the activities are inside the warm and cozy Education and Library Complex.
Family activities include:

•Live concert by the "Ululating Mummies"
•Third Annual "Rolling in the New Year's", roll down the hill to the Rose Garden (weather permitting)
•Photo opportunities with a themed backdrop -- bring your cameras!
•Fun crafts: make a noise-maker and a party hat to take home
•Write your wish for 2013 and add it to our "wishing chain"
•Trains in classroom II in the Education Library Complex & in the Conservatory
Those who attend the New Year's Eve Family Frolic are already in the Garden and can attend GardenFest of Lights (5 - 10 p.m.)

Family Friendly

Exhibits

Henrico County Public School Art Exhibit Children’s Art is presented in Ginter Gallery I in the Robins Visitors Center in collaboration with Henrico County Public Schools.  Throughout the year, art departments at all grade levels are represented.  The artists  use a wide variety of media to illustrate their personal interpretations of the botanical world.  Visitors are invited to share in the pleasure of seeing the world through their eyes.

Pinwheels for Prevention April 1 – 30,  Daily 9 a.m. – 5 p.m

In recognition of Child Abuse Prevention Month, more than 3,000 pinwheels will be “planted” in the Children’s Garden along the edge of Sydnor Lake. Each pinwheel represents a child in Virginia who has been served during the past year by Prevent Child Abuse Virginia’s Healthy Families program.

Free with Garden admission

Hope Tree Project   April 30, 4 – 8 p.m.

Richmond author Meg Medina, whose newest young adult book The Girl Who Could Silence the Wind will be released by Candlewick Press in March 2012, is working with area schools and Lewis Ginter Botanical Garden to create an art installation in our Children’s Garden.  The Hope Tree Project—five crape myrtle trees—will be decorated with foil symbols that express students’ hopes and dreams or aspirations for their future or for their community.  The Hope Tree installation will open with a reception for students and their families on Monday, April 30, and will remain on view through June.

 

Click here to return to the Children's Garden & Education homepage