ADVERTISEMENT

    Franklin Park Conservatory Plans Scotts Miracle-Gro Foundation Children’s Garden to Open Next May

    The Franklin Park Conservatory and Botanical Gardens announced the name of its new Children’s Garden this week. The Scotts Miracle-Gro Foundation Children’s Garden, sprouting from the relationship between Scotts Miracle-Gro Foundation and the Franklin Park Conservatory, will offer kids an immersive, educational and creative outlet in nature.

    ADVERTISEMENT

    “The addition of the Scotts Miracle-Gro Foundation Children’s Garden will transform the visitor experience at the Conservatory by presenting new interactive experiences for families and children punctuated with world-class display horticulture,” said Bruce Harkey, President and CEO of Franklin Park Conservatory, in a press release.

    Planned for May 2018, the Children’s Garden will have 16 experiences focused on art and education. It’ll include a Playhouse Garden, complete with an earth art installation that doubles as a stage, as well as a puppet stage, moveable furniture, and a secret path leading to the Nature Play Zone.

    A wheelchair-accessible Canopy Walk will take children through Mulberry Perch and Hammock Lounge as high as 13 feet off the ground. Following that, the Sandstone Bluff and My Ohio Woods portions are a collective nod to Hocking Hills topography and geology, taking the tiny visitors through the Central Ohio woodlands to get to Wetland Explore. Most enjoyable after a rain, Wetland Explore will wear many hats “as a functioning and interactive wetland, dramatic planted spiral display, and home to insects, birds and amphibians,” according to a press release.

    canopy

    To top it off, the Children’s Garden will have a Nature Art Studio, Learning Pavilion and garden plots where children can become educated on how to grow vegetables and flowers.

    “We know the best way to spark a connection to nature that can last a lifetime, is to teach a child to garden,” said Jim King, President of The Scotts Miracle-Gro Foundation. “The simple act of planting a seed in the dirt and watching it sprout into something beautiful will be at the heart of the new Children’s Garden.”

    The Children’s Garden’s ceremonial groundbreaking event is happening tonight, April 27, at 5:30 p.m. at Franklin Park Conservatory.

    ADVERTISEMENT

    Subscribe

    More to Explore:

    Behind the Scenes at Shadowbox Live’s Costume Department

    The costume department at Shadowbox Live is an 8-year-old’s...

    Art Review: El Color – ES at Franklin Park Conservatory

    While Blooms & Butterflies gets most of the attention...

    Where to Karaoke in Columbus (Almost) Every Night of the Week

    Columbus is the karaoke capital of the U.S.That isn’t...
    Lauren Sega
    Lauren Segahttps://columbusunderground.com
    Lauren Sega is the former Associate Editor for Columbus Underground and a current freelance writer for CU. She covers political issues on the local and state levels, as well as local food and restaurant news. She grew up near Cleveland, graduated from Ohio University's Scripps School of Journalism, and loves running, traveling and hiking.
    ADVERTISEMENT