Education & Classes

Aug 5th, 2021

Healing Art & Zen

A year ago, Liz Hambrick was reeling. It was July 2020, 4 months since the shutdown, and COVID-19 was raging across the country. “I was bored to tears and I […]

Jul 16th, 2021

Metamorphosis into a Social Butterfly

Butterfly nets, bug boxes and jars filled with lightning bugs. To a child who spends his days exploring the seemingly magical outdoor world, these tools are essential. Sometimes, as we […]

Jul 16th, 2021

Is the Monarch Butterfly Disappearing? Are Butterflies Less Common Now?

Recently, many visitors have been asking if we’ve noticed a dramatic decline in monarch butterfly sightings and butterfly sightings in general. “I have a pollinator garden and have seen no […]

Mar 8th, 2021

Virtual Field Trip Packages

While your “field trip” to your backyard or local park may have been exciting at the beginning of the “stay at home” era, you might be ready for a change […]

Jan 29th, 2021

Diverse Books for Children: Why it Matters

Diverse Books Did you have a favorite book as a child? Take a moment to think about that book and how you felt connected to it. For me, it was […]

Oct 24th, 2020

Green Tea & More! A 5,000 Year Tradition

The 3,000+ varieties Camellia sinensis plant produce the second most consumed beverage on earth — tea, second only to water. More specifically, tea is the number one most consumed hot […]

Sep 24th, 2020

Online Cooking Class: Fall Flavors

It’s a new normal. During these unusual times, 75 people can no longer gather for an in-person cooking demonstration followed by a delicious buffet dinner. Instead, culinary classes have moved […]

Sep 15th, 2020

It’s no secret gardening has skyrocketed in popularity since COVID-19. In the spring, some seed companies had to temporarily stop taking orders after an overwhelming surge in demand. Although that […]

Aug 12th, 2020

Wetland Ecosystems

Even though we can’t see the smiling faces of school children and teachers on field trips at this time, we want to find ways to continue to connect. To help […]

Jul 14th, 2020

Watershed Wonders

Seeing big, yellow school busses, full of excited students and teachers, roll into the Garden is a sight that we have missed. Typically, hundreds of classes a year visit us […]

Apr 27th, 2020

The Value of Trees

Are trees just pretty or do they do something more? Does one tree matter? If one tree can make a difference in our environment, what can many trees do? Most […]

Sep 23rd, 2019

Native Plants of the James River: Native Art

Experience native wildflowers and plants in a new way by visiting the Lora M. Robins Library at Lewis Ginter Botanical Garden during the month of October for a special show: […]

May 23rd, 2019

Raising Eastern Black Swallowtails

If you’ve ever dabbled in herb gardening, chances are you’ve seen little green worms munching away on your parsley, dill, or fennel. If that’s the case, then you’ve been visited […]

May 20th, 2019

The Power of the Garden: Therapeutic Horticulture

“Connor, come sit down with me!” A simple sentence perhaps, but for Jennifer Simmons, the words seemed miraculous. Three-year-old Parker had speech delays. He rarely spoke in complete sentences, and […]

Feb 6th, 2019

The Joy of Journaling

As winter lingers, boredom builds. Journaling offers a creative outlet. It invites you to pause and ponder about your world. Through reflection, journaling also enlightens you about your life journey […]

Dec 2nd, 2018

What’s New in the Lora Robins Library

Miniatures & Dollhouses The dollhouses have arrived! Now’s the time to visit the Lora Robins Library at Lewis Ginter Botanical Garden during Dominion Energy GardenFest of Lights. Currently on display are 45 […]

Aug 20th, 2018

Mosquitoes vs. Man

A hungry mosquito lurks nearby, evidenced by a high-pitched whining sound. If a female, her target is protein from blood, after which she develops eggs numbering up to 250,000 per […]

Aug 10th, 2018

A Hands-on Learning Day in the Garden

The wonder and beauty of Lewis Ginter Botanical Garden never cease to amaze me each time I visit. But sometimes, I need to remind myself to slow down and take […]

Jul 31st, 2018

Tips for Wanna’ Be Nature Photographers

Capturing nature in the camera lens takes practice plus knowledge. 5 Photography Tips: Become well acquainted with your camera. Read the manual thoroughly with the camera in hand, and practice […]

Jul 15th, 2018

Ginter Herbarium Steps Out

Lewis Ginter Botanical Garden’s collection of 4,000 herbarium specimens is now registered in the Index Herbariorum, a major international registry of herbarium plant collections. This means that our collection is […]

Jul 3rd, 2018

Culinary Demo: Lightened Up Favorites

Recently I met with Executive Chef Anne Maury Haapala who shared her vision for the upcoming cooking demonstration Lightened Up Favorites with Chef Anne which will take place on July […]

Jun 15th, 2018

Backyard Birds

Backyard birds often wander widely around our neighborhoods during summer, so it can seem that birdlife has diminished. Consider these tips to increase avian traffic in your backyard. Water: Backyard […]

May 23rd, 2018

Herb-infused Cocktails: From Garden to Glass

Tired of bland and boring cocktails? Harvest some herbs for herb-infused cocktails! “Fresh herbs take mixology to a whole new level,” said Ashley Greene, catering manager with Meriwether Godsey, the […]

Mar 22nd, 2018

Connecting People Through Plants

Although they’ve only known each other for two days, 16-year-olds Honoka Sato and Olivia Appelrouth have become fast friends. Sato, a Japanese exchange student from Municipal Urawa High School (Saitama, […]

Feb 21st, 2018

Winter Symposium: Gardening With Purpose & Passion

During this year’s Winter Symposium and CVNLA short course, we dug deeper into what it means to garden with purpose and passion through perennial gardens. Perennials offer a different gardening […]