for immediate release

Chicago Botanic Garden Hosts Weekend Family Classes

Winter/Spring 2010

Media Only:
Julie McCaffrey
(847) 835-8213, direct
jmccaffrey@chicagobotanic.org

GLENCOE, Ill. (Aug. 21, 2009)—The Chicago Botanic Garden offers many options for parents who want to encourage a love of learning and nature in their children. Year-round, a free seasonal Garden Bingo game is available in the Visitor Center and Regenstein Center, highlighting animals, plants, and sculptures to find on your visit. Winter is an especially good time for families to explore the tropical and arid plants in the Greenhouses.

The Garden also offers Weekend Family Classes on Saturdays from November 7 through April 10, to educate children (ages 4-10) about plants in relation to science, art, history, and culture. Classes are from 9:30 to 11 a.m. or from 1 to 2:30 p.m. in the Regenstein Fruit & Vegetable Garden Classroom and include an activity that allows children to bring the garden home.

Themes include:
* November 7 and 14 – NEW! Tremendous Trees: Explore the diversity of trees by learning some basic tree identification, find out about the birds and animals that live in Illinois’ wooded areas, and take home a woodland plant.

* November 21 and December 5 – Papermaking with Plants: Plants help make products we use everyday—like paper. Learn the process of turning plants and old paper scraps into paper. Make sheets of textured, scented, and colored handmade paper.

* December 12 and 19 – Joyful Gingerbread: Explore all the different plants and plant parts needed to make gingerbread people and houses. Take home a future ginger plant, decorate cookies, and mix up a batch of gingerbread to bake at home.

* January 9 and 16 – Worm Worlds: Explore different types of worms, their habitats and how they make compost! Create a worm compost bin to take home and learn how to make work compost tea for your plants. An additional $5 materials fee is required.

* January 23 and 30 – Pizza Gardens: The garden can grow a lot of the ingredients for pizza- wheat, herbs, and vegetables. Find out about plants used in pizza, learn to mix and knead pizza dough, and plant a special Italian herb garden to make tasty pizza treats at home.

* February 6 and 13 – HOT Chocolate: Uncover the story of chilies and chocolates-products that come from South American plants! Mix up historic chocolate drinks and take home chocolate mint and chocolate pepper plants to concoct your own creations.

* February 20 and 27 – NEW! Plant Part Art: Use different parts of plant to create some amazing pieces of art! Learn plant parts by sketching in the Greenhouses and creating “stained glass” using real flowers. Explore how seeds work and design a seed collage.

* March 6 and 13 – Gumballs & Superballs: Find out how people use parts of rainforest trees to make chewing gum and rubber, and create your own bouncing ball and flavorful gum.

* March 20 and 27 – Homemade Ice Cream: Did you know that chocolate comes from a tree and vanilla comes from an orchid? Examine these plants and make a family-sized batch of vanilla ice cream to take home and pot a mint plant you can use to add flavor to all kinds of ice cream.

* April 3 and 10 – Insect Investigations: Explore tiny critters like bees, crickets, and butterflies. Find out about the ways bugs help the plants in a garden. Create a scientific tool to help you study insects at home, experience how bugs see the world, and plant some flowers that butterflies love.

Fees per class are $20 for children; Garden members pay $17 for children; accompanying adults are free and required; parking fee is waived for program participants. Limit of three children per adult. Registration is required at least one week in advance and is available online or via mail. For more information, visit www.chicagobotanic.org/familyprograms.

###

Editors, please note: The Chicago Botanic Garden's newsroom is online at www.chicagobotanic.org/pr. For digital images, contact Julie McCaffrey at (847) 835-8213 or at jmccaffrey@chicagobotanic.org.

The Chicago Botanic Garden, one of the green treasures of the Forest Preserve District of Cook County, is a 385-acre living plant museum featuring 23 distinct display gardens surrounded by lakes, as well as a prairie and woodlands. With events, programs and activities for all ages, the Garden is open every day of the year. Admission is free; select event fees apply. Parking is $20 per car; free for Garden members. The Garden is located at 1000 Lake Cook Road in Glencoe, Ill. Visit www.chicagobotanic.org, or call (847) 835-5440 for seasonal hours, images of the Garden and commuter transportation information.

The Chicago Botanic Garden is managed by the Chicago Horticultural Society. It opened to the public in 1972 and is home to the Joseph Regenstein, Jr. School of the Chicago Botanic Garden, offering a broad array of adult classes in plant science, landscape design and gardening arts. Through the Division of Plant Science and Conservation, Garden scientists work on plant conservation, research and environmental initiatives that have global impact. The Center for Teaching and Learning brings the wonder of nature and plants to children, teens and teachers. The Garden's Horticultural Therapy and Community Gardening programs provide nationally recognized community outreach and service programs. A program of the Chicago Botanic Garden, Windy City Harvest is an organic vegetable and plant production enterprise that provides instruction in sustainable horticulture and urban agriculture to residents of Chicago’s North Lawndale and West Side neighborhoods.

The Chicago Botanic Garden is accredited by the American Association of Museums and is a member of the American Public Gardens Association (APGA). The Chicago Botanic Garden is also host to Botanic Gardens Conservation International-U.S., and a member of the Center for Plant Conservation. In 2006, the Chicago Botanic Garden received the Award for Garden Excellence, given yearly by the APGA and Horticulture magazine to a public garden that exemplifies the highest standards of horticultural practices and has shown a commitment to supporting and demonstrating best gardening practices.