School’s out for summer! Now what? It doesn’t take too long for the euphoria to fade to “I’m sooo bored,” especially with tweens. People may be familiar with some of Lewis Ginter Botanical Garden‘s attractions for the younger set, such as the WaterPlay splash pad and the Sand Play sandbox, but that won’t cut it […]
Read MoreWhen I look back at how Lewis Ginter Botanical Garden has changed over the years, I think about some of the physical changes: the new Lotus Bridge, the floating docks and the new gardens we have created thanks to generous donors (the Morton Native Plant Garden, and the Cherry Tree Walk, among others) I think about […]
Read MoreChef Anne Maury Haapala on work, motherhood and her upcoming honey cooking demo This week I met with Executive Chef, Anne Maury Haapala who has recently returned to her roll with Meriwether Godsey after the birth of her son Jacks. We discussed her little one, being a working mom and her upcoming cooking demo, the Lunchtime Lecture: […]
Read MoreWhere does the time go? Nine years ago, I started bringing my family to Lewis Ginter Botanical Garden on Mother’s Day, several years before beginning work in Ginter’s education department. My best friend and I were new moms and we wanted to spend our first Mother’s Day in the Garden enjoying the concert with Glennroy […]
Read MoreMessage from the Executive Director Crape myrtles, Lagerstroemia indica, are native to the other side of the planet, with a genus named after an 18th-century Swedish merchant. Yet crape myrtles are so common in Richmond, occasionally they are thought to be native here. Botanical gardens are good at displaying and explaining global plant diversity, but […]
Read MoreI never thought I liked beer… Then again, the only beer I had ever tasted was a “light” version out of a can. But my feelings about beer changed when I vacationed with my husband in Austria and he suggested that I try something called a radler. I was a little leery, but when […]
Read MorePicture a blazing sunset, moody dark gray clouds juxtaposed against bright green trees, or a tiny wildflower peeking out from between the cracks in a sidewalk – wouldn’t you agree that wild art is all around us? This season we are celebrating art in the natural world, in all of its forms, and we’re inviting […]
Read MoreWe celebrate Earth Day on April 22 each year, but there are many things you can do to make every day Earth Day. 1. Be water-wise Earth Day and every day Water early in the morning or later in the evening when less evaporation is likely to occur. It’s also best to allow water to […]
Read MoreMessage from the Executive Director Spring comes softly in Virginia. Not the weather necessarily, which can be gentle or harsh, with snows and gales not being uncommon. For our plants, though, winter can seem like the overture of a Broadway musical: the composer introduces all the major themes the audience will hear throughout the evening, […]
Read MoreI still remember my first flower show. It was in 1997, and my husband pointed out that the newly opened Robins Visitor Center at Lewis Ginter Botanical Garden was featuring a daffodil show. He wanted to see the new building, and I was curious, so off we went. The show was a revelation! Rows and rows […]
Read MoreDrawings by Virginia-based artist, Erica Lohan are now on view in Ginter Gallery II. When I saw Lohan’s artist submission to Ginter Gallery II at Lewis Ginter Botanical Garden, I was enamored by her investigation of decaying leaves with depictions of lace-like holes from insect bites, and vascular tissue that seems almost like stained glass. The textile-like details […]
Read MoreAnnouncing the Winning GardenFest Photos! Congratulations to this year’s GardenFest Instagram contest finalists! We loved pouring through the hundreds (….and hundreds) of entries you submitted and truly enjoyed reliving Dominion GardenFest of Lights through your photos. GardenFest visitors really know how to make some memories — just look at those smiling faces! It looks like quite a few lovebirds got engaged at GardenFest […]
Read MoreRyan Syrell Artist Bio Ryan Syrell is a painter whose work focuses on the interrelationship between haptics, perception, and the recollection of sensory information. He received his BFA from SUNY Purchase College in 2006, and has exhibited and performed internationally. Ryan’s work has recently been included in Baltimore Contemporary Cross-Section (Silvermine Arts Center, Connecticut) and […]
Read MoreMaking Spirits Bright with Light Toys from the Bling Shop As Dominion GardenFest of Lights casts its spell over the Garden each year, you may discover that even you are bedazzled by its magic. If that happens, and you find that you are longing for a little sparkle of your own, we’ve got just the […]
Read MoreSpinning Wheel Demonstration Spinning is an ancient craft dating back thousands of years that can be quite delightful to watch. If you want to add an unconventional — yet no less fun and mesmerizing — activity to your holiday schedule, join us for a spinning demonstration in the Lora Robins Library as part of the Natural Plant Dyes […]
Read MoreMonarch Butterfly Adoptions For about three years now, Lewis Ginter Botanical Garden’s volunteer-led spring and fall plant sales have actively encouraged home gardeners to grow plants that support native butterflies and local pollinator populations. Each year, we feature butterfly habitat kits, each containing host plants (plants that caterpillars need for food) and nectar plants (plants that butterflies need […]
Read MoreUpdated 12/14/16 Ask Justin Brown when he and his team began work on this year’s light show and he replies, “We never stopped.” Brown is Operations Manager and External Team Leader for Dominion Energy GardenFest of Lights, responsible for setting out the lights that help turn Lewis Ginter Botanical Garden into a wonderland of Living Color for this year’s show. The […]
Read MoreDollhouses Return Just in Time for Dominion Energy GardenFest of Lights! There’s great joy across the land at the return of our biennial dollhouse exhibit in the Lora Robins Library at Lewis Ginter Botanical Garden. People are crazy about miniatures. Tiny chairs, tiny sinks, tiny dogs and cats and cars. What is so appealing about […]
Read MoreLiving Color at Dominion GardenFest of Lights This year, Dominion Energy GardenFest of Lights is an exploration of color: how color speaks to us, impacts nature, influences culture and even brings us joy. We can’t wait for you to explore all that we have planned: look through a teleidoscope that turns the real world into an exquisite picture […]
Read MoreMessage from the Executive Director Right after lunch on the first Tuesday in August, the largest meeting space in the Robins Visitors Center was standing room only. Garden volunteers and staff had gathered to review the design and implementation of this year’s holiday light show, and those who arrived late were forced to pull chairs […]
Read MoreHere’s to holiday shopping! We’re making spirits bright in the Garden Shop with a festive salute to the season. Introducing Cheers to Shopping, a special evening of creative ideas for entertaining, decorating and gift giving to help jump start your holiday shopping. Join us on November 10th from 5 – 8 p.m. for Cheers to Shopping at […]
Read MoreAs fall begins, I am reminded of the systems in nature that transform place. The new art exhibit in Ginter Gallery II features Richmond artist Erling Sjovold’s paintings from Old River, New Shore. Old River, New Shore meditates on the transformative power of the James River and shifting environments. Sjovold’s depictions of the beloved James River […]
Read MoreInstagram Contest Winners Nature Connects®: Art with LEGO® Bricks was a very special exhibit and called for a very special Instagram contest. We wanted to encourage fans to get outside, to learn, to feel playful, to be inspired and to have fun. So, for this year’s Instagram Contest we asked our visitors to celebrate all things LEGO by sharing their favorite photos inspired […]
Read MorePlant fans in Richmond have been looking forward to Lewis Ginter Botanical Garden’s plant sale since 1987, the year of our first plant sale. This year they are just as excited as ever, 29 years later we are still one of the most popular plant sales in Central Virginia. Our plant sale is still volunteer-run with […]
Read MoreReflections on Mother’s Day 2016: A Family Affair This year was our eighth Mother’s Day celebration at Lewis Ginter Botanical Garden and I really cannot imagine spending my Mother’s Day anywhere else. My daughter is now 8-year’s old, so you can do the math, we’ve spent every Mother’s Day at the Garden since she was born. What […]
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