Garfield Park Conservatory

By Christine Escobar

Visit the desert and the tropics in the same day! See where chocolate comes from! At the Garfield Park Conservatory in Chicago you can do all this and more with your preschooler. One of the oldest conservatories in the nation, the Garfield Park Conservatory consists of approximately 4.5 acres of indoor and outdoor exploration rooms and exhibits.

The Elizabeth Morse Genius Children’s Garden houses many plants that preschoolers can interact with through touch, smell, sight and sound. The Garden also includes a twisting tunnel slide where your preschooler can let out some healthy energy. Giant leaf sculptures are perfect for playing hide and seek under or hanging from. There is also a baby crawling area in the Garden with large soft blocks and shapes for baby siblings.

Weekly Programs for Preschoolers

Monday Morning Glories is a weekly program for preschoolers and their parents with a varying theme. A related story is read and projects include everything from digging in a giant soil pit for hidden bones and plants to making crafts out of natural materials. All of the crafts are suitable for a preschoolers abilities.

On Thursdays, groups are welcome to schedule field trips to the Garden.

Every Saturday and Sunday the Children’s Garden hosts Family Explorations from 10 a.m to 3 p.m and Family Make and Take art and craft sessions from 1:30 to 3 p.m. These drop in sessions offer children and their families more sensory exploration with the natural world as staff bring out special seed collections, books and puppets to play with, plan buried treasure hunts in the soil dig pit and allow children and their parents to spend time together on a unique project they can take home.

What’s New at Garfield Park Conservatory

The newly opened Niki in the Garden is a mostly interactive sculpture exhibit running all summer until October 31. It highlights the amazing work of the late artist Niki de Saint Phalle. Naturally delightful to the eyes of preschoolers, the more than 30 grand and colorful, often whimsical sculptures of animals, chairs, and people are located both inside the conservatory and around the outdoor grounds. Preschoolers will love exploring their secret passages. Convenient signs indicate which sculptures are suitable for touching, crawling through and climbing on.

Garfield Park Conservatory Details

Garfield Park Conservatory is located at 300 N. Central Park Avenue Chicago, IL. (312) 746-5100

Open 365 days a year

Hours: 9 am - 5 pm Thursdays: 9 am - 8 pm

Admission: Free

Public transit: The CTA Green Line train stops just steps from the front door. Exit at the Conservatory-Central Park stop.

Parking: free parking is a short walk to the door just south of the Conservatory's main entrance. Free street parking is also available in the area.

The conservatory is stroller accessible.

Dining: the gift shop offers a small selection of sandwiches and salads, beverages, cookies, cereal bars, crackers and chips. You may bring your own lunch to eat at one of the many tables indoor or outdoor. There are no high chairs available.

Website: http://www.garfieldconservatory.org