Children's Garden Festival

Scoop up the kids for a Saturday morning of garden fun and critter encounters at  the first-ever Children’s Garden Festival at the LSU AgCenter Burden Botanic Gardens, 4560 Essen Lane just south of I-10. The festival, co-sponsored by the East Baton Rouge Master Gardener Association and the AgCenter, runs from 8:30 to 11:30 a.m. Admission is $10 per family vehicle for unlimited access to eight learning stations. Children can explore the world of bees, butterflies, and other pollinators at the pollinator station; express their inner Picasso through veggie art; get the dirt on soil and worms at the composting tent and create a pine cone feeder at the backyard bird center. Naturalists from Wings of Hope Wildlife Sanctuary in Livingston will be on hand with some of their flighty friends. Children also can make “no-legged” friends at the snakes in the garden tent and visit the herb petting zoo. And for a $3 fee, kids can plant a Mother’s Day gift to bring home. Healthy snacks will be available. Children must be accompanied by an adult. Advance registration is not necessary and parking is free. No pets are allowed. The festival takes place next to the AgCenter’s model Children’s Garden, Herb Garden and Oak Grove play area. Families are encouraged to make a day of it, visiting these other free facilities and taking a self-guided stroll along the Trees and Trails nature walk. Details on this and other EBR Master Gardeners activities for children are online  at ebrmg.com.