Garfield Park Conservatory

Something's always growing and there's always something new to discover at the Conservatory!

Garfield Park Conservatory is a fantastic place to bring family members of all ages. Something’s always growing, and there’s always something new to discover! To make your “growing” experience here even more enjoyable, we offer a number of special educational opportunities FREE for kids and families! Come visit the Elizabeth Morse Genius Children’s Garden, which is open during normal Conservatory hours, or visit us during one of our scheduled activity times.

Are you bringing a birthday party or community group to the Conservatory? Please refer to our “Children's Birthday Parties & Community Group Visits” section below for more details about participating in our weekend programs with your group.

Weekend Family Fun:
Discover the Power of Plants!
Saturdays & Sundays
Date: Year Round*
Time: Drop in anytime between 11 am - 4 pm
Location: Elizabeth Morse Genius Children’s Garden
Cost: Free

Plant an imaginary garden, build a tropical habitat, help water our plants, or read a book under our tropical canopy - there is always something at the Conservatory to keep minds active and curiosity growing. Drop in each weekend and join the fun!

*Please note that due to holidays and special programming, there will be no programs the following dates: Saturday September 18th (County Fair), Saturday October 30th (Creatures of the Night).

Family Make-&-Take Activity
Saturdays & Sundays
Date: Year Round*

Time: Drop in anytime between 1 pm and 3 pm
(Drop-in activities usually take 15-20 minutes and no registration is required.
Location: Elizabeth Morse Genius’ Children’s Garden (Activity will be stationed near the giant seed in the Children’s Garden)
Cost: Free, Donations welcome

Make something unique to take home while learning about plants. This season’s projects include plant pounding bookmarks, seed starting, bee goggles and more. Projects take 15-20 minutes to complete. Drop in any time before 2:45 pm.

*Please note that due to holidays and special programming, there will be no programs the following dates: Saturday September 18th (County Fair), Saturday October 30th (Creatures of the Night).

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Little Green Thumbs

Wednesdays, May 5 - October 27

Hours: 3 pm to 6 pm (drop in anytime!)

Where: Outside in the City Backyard Garden*

Cost: Free! Just drop by!

Each week kids can plant pretend vegetables in our soil box, cook up mud pies in our soil kitchen, use play wheelbarrows, and more. Special garden-related projects, including seed starting, will be provided as well. Come out and join the green thumb fun! This is a great activity time for toddlers as well as older school-age children.

* Look for signs and orange flags to direct you to the activity! During inclement weather, Little Green Thumbs will take place in the Elizabeth Morse Genius Children's Garden.

Wild Wednesdays

Last Wednesday of every month
(May-October, note this program will not be held in July)

Hours: 3 pm to 6 pm (drop in anytime!)

Where: Sugar from the Sun Room

Cost: Free! Just drop by!

Throughout the season, we are celebrating “wild things” with live animal presenter Scott Heinrichs. Come out and ask Mr. Heinrichs questions about each animal and get a close-up look at some fascinating critters. Additional fun - such as a discovery dig and animal-related activities - will also be available.

Featured Animals

September 29– Civet and Hedgehog

October 27– Bats

*Please note: Animals are subject to change.

Portable Play Dates

Thursdays, August 5th, 12th, & 19th

Hours: 2 pm - 4:30 pm

Where: The South Play Area of the City Backyard Garden

Cost: Free!

Meet us outside in our nature-play area and let your kids get their play in gear and their creativity in motion. Current research supports the idea that when children are given access to moveable, loose, and malleable outdoor objects, they engage in deeper and more meaningful play. On these three Thursdays in August, we will be bringing out fun and found objects, such as cardboard boxes, fabric, sticks, and more for kids of all ages to explore.

Pre-registration is not required.

Children's Birthday Parties & Community Group Visits
Location: Conservatory
Cost: Call

Have you visited the Conservatory and thought it would be a great place for your child’s birthday party or to bring your community group? Great idea! We welcome birthday parties and community groups here at the Conservatory, however there are a few details you need to know to make your trip more successful for everyone.

•	At this time, we unfortunately do not provide any private birthday parties or events led by Conservatory staff. However, there is an outside animal presenter that is approved to make on-site visits at the Conservatory. If you are interested in having a live animal come to your birthday party at the Conservatory, you can contact Scott Hienrich from Walk on the Wildside at 773-823-1466 or www.flyingfoxconservationfund.com. (Please note: a room must be rented if you are going to hire Walk on the Wildside for your party).
•	You can rent one of our rooms here to hold your birthday party by contacting Joan Colon at 312-746-5250 or joan.colon@chicagoparkdistrict.com.
•	Your party is welcome to participate in the public ongoing weekend activities (See Kid & Family Fun for details). You can also pickup scavenger hunts for your group at the front desk free of charge.
•	Your group can play in the dig pit in the Children’s Garden (11am - 4pm) and participate in the Make-and-take activity (1pm -3pm). Children’s Garden programs are drop-in activity sessions. No pre-registration is required. We suggest a donation of $1 per child to cover the cost of materials.
•	All visitors are served on a first come, first served basis. Due to limited resources, we cannot guarantee birthday parties and large groups participation (20 or more) in the make-and-take program. If you decide to participate in these programs, please split your party up into groups of 6 or less.
•	Birthday Parties and community groups that wish to participate in the weekend programs must call ahead to inform the Family Programs Coordinator of when their group will be coming to the Conservatory. 773-638-1766x23.
•	Children must be accompanied by their adults at all times inside the Conservatory.
•	During your party, please be considerate to other visitors so that everybody can enjoy the Conservatory spaces.
•	Groups of 10 or more must register with our School and Group Trip Coordinator, Yadira Correa at 773-638-1766x25.

Any questions about participating in the weekend public programs, please contact Kelly Katzmann at 773-638-1766x23 or kkatzmann@garfieldpark.org.

Origami Open House
Presented by the Chicago Area Origami Society
Second Saturday of Each Month (throughout the year)

Hours: Drop in anytime between 1 pm - 4 pm

Where: Conservatory
Cost: Free

Origami is a fascinating, fun-filled creative activity for children as well as adults. With a minimum of folds and creases, you can transform a flat sheet of paper into a three-dimensional form like a swan, a boat, a flower or even a hat. So, if you're interested in creating animals, dinosaurs, flowers, decorative boxes and various other models, please join us.

Every second Saturday of the month in the Conservatory’s Classroom, the Chicago Area Origami Society presents a free drop-in Origami Open House to our visitors. Please drop by — both kids and adults are welcome, but children must be accompanied by an adult. Experienced folders welcome as well. Also, though there will be a limited supply of paper available, you are encouraged to bring your own. The workshop is FREE and OPEN to the public.

For more information, please contact Robert by e-mail at robertcubie@earthlink.net, or visit their website: www.home.earthlink.net/~robertcubie/origami

Eye Spy Conservatory Hunt

Download the PDF

Make the most of your family visit to the Garfield Park Conservatory; before your next trip to see us, download this free Garfield Park Conservatory Scavenger Hunt PDF, and print off a sheet for each member of your family.

Not only will your kids enjoy hunting for answers, but their experience will also be active and engaging. Your family will be introduced to some of the most intriguing and unique plants the Conservatory has to offer. Good Luck!!

Eye Spy Hunt PDF

Chicago Wilderness’s Leave No Child Inside

New Website

As a Chicago Wilderness member, we’ve always known that connecting children with nature is the first step to conserving our natural heritage for the future. We’re now learning that this connection is just as important to healthy childhood development. That’s why we are a part of Chicago Wilderness’s Leave No Child Inside, a multi-year initiative to improve children’s health and foster generations of children that care for nature.

Chicago Wilderness' new web site at www.KidsOutside.info is just for the Leave No Child Inside initiative. Throughout the initiative, this site will be a resource for parents and other caregivers with fun ideas on where to go and what to do outside with their kids.

Tips for Parents

More Information

For more information on Family Programs or to volunteer in the Children's Garden email Kelly Katzmann at kkatzmann@garfieldpark.org or call (773) 638-1766 ext. 23.