Upcoming Events & Programs
LIGHTS at Fernwood
LIGHTS will return to the garden for 28 magical nights, November 29 –January 4. Tickets will be on sale for Fernwood members only, October 1 –31, and to the general public beginning November 1.
Our team could not offer this fun and festive multi-night community event without volunteers’ time and sponsors’ support.
Want to help? Learn more at www.fernwoodbotanical.org/lights
LIGHTS at Fernwood
LIGHTS will return to the garden for 28 magical nights, November 29 –January 4. Tickets will be on sale for Fernwood members only, October 1 –31, and to the general public beginning November 1.
Our team could not offer this fun and festive multi-night community event without volunteers’ time and sponsors’ support.
Want to help? Learn more at www.fernwoodbotanical.org/lights
LIGHTS at Fernwood
LIGHTS will return to the garden for 28 magical nights, November 29 –January 4. Tickets will be on sale for Fernwood members only, October 1 –31, and to the general public beginning November 1.
Our team could not offer this fun and festive multi-night community event without volunteers’ time and sponsors’ support.
Want to help? Learn more at www.fernwoodbotanical.org/lights
LIGHTS at Fernwood
LIGHTS will return to the garden for 28 magical nights, November 29 –January 4. Tickets will be on sale for Fernwood members only, October 1 –31, and to the general public beginning November 1.
Our team could not offer this fun and festive multi-night community event without volunteers’ time and sponsors’ support.
Want to help? Learn more at www.fernwoodbotanical.org/lights
LIGHTS at Fernwood
LIGHTS will return to the garden for 28 magical nights, November 29 –January 4. Tickets will be on sale for Fernwood members only, October 1 –31, and to the general public beginning November 1.
Our team could not offer this fun and festive multi-night community event without volunteers’ time and sponsors’ support.
Want to help? Learn more at www.fernwoodbotanical.org/lights
LIGHTS at Fernwood
LIGHTS will return to the garden for 28 magical nights, November 29 –January 4. Tickets will be on sale for Fernwood members only, October 1 –31, and to the general public beginning November 1.
Our team could not offer this fun and festive multi-night community event without volunteers’ time and sponsors’ support.
Want to help? Learn more at www.fernwoodbotanical.org/lights
LIGHTS at Fernwood
LIGHTS will return to the garden for 28 magical nights, November 29 –January 4. Tickets will be on sale for Fernwood members only, October 1 –31, and to the general public beginning November 1.
Our team could not offer this fun and festive multi-night community event without volunteers’ time and sponsors’ support.
Want to help? Learn more at www.fernwoodbotanical.org/lights
LIGHTS at Fernwood
LIGHTS will return to the garden for 28 magical nights, November 29 –January 4. Tickets will be on sale for Fernwood members only, October 1 –31, and to the general public beginning November 1.
Our team could not offer this fun and festive multi-night community event without volunteers’ time and sponsors’ support.
Want to help? Learn more at www.fernwoodbotanical.org/lights
LIGHTS at Fernwood
LIGHTS will return to the garden for 28 magical nights, November 29 –January 4. Tickets will be on sale for Fernwood members only, October 1 –31, and to the general public beginning November 1.
Our team could not offer this fun and festive multi-night community event without volunteers’ time and sponsors’ support.
Want to help? Learn more at www.fernwoodbotanical.org/lights
Greenwood Spoon Carving in the Slöjd Handcrafting Tradition
Class Details:
Greenwood carving is an accessible form of woodworking that utilizes freshly harvested woods, creates very little waste (mulch for your garden!), and can be done without machinery--making it very popular within the bushcraft community. In this class, you will learn how to carve a wooden spoon using a sloyd knife and a hook knife. To focus on proper knife handling techniques and cuts, the class will carve from pre-made spoon blanks. In addition, you’ll learn the full process of transforming a foraged log into a finished spoon and how to properly care for your carving tools.
Required materials:
Purchase the tools you’ll need for the class by following the links below and/or feel free to bring tools from home.
Hook knife (Please be sure to select the appropriate right or left handed option.)
Please note this course is open to all levels but requires a basic amount of hand strength--being able to open a sealed jar is an example of basic hand strength.
About the Instructor:
Riley Gillan is a practicing woodturner, self-taught green woodworker, and founder of Big Lake Wood Co.. He uses foraged, local woods--following the tradition of sloyd--to create spoons, bowls, cups, etc. Derived from the Swedish word “slöjd“ (meaning “handcraft"), sloyd woodworking is inspired by the practice of making the things you need using simple tools and materials that are all around you. Riley has an MFA from the University of Montana and currently teaches in SW Michigan.
Audience: Teens + Adults
Location: Flora Wing of the Sims Education Center
Cost: $65 ($52 Fernwood members)
*To receive your member discount, please be sure to sign in by clicking the button in the upper right-hand corner of the registration screen.
Seasonal Contemplative Retreats
One of eight annual contemplative programs that reflects a seasonal theme around “Reclaiming Our Nature,” the Fall and Winter Retreats draw from the falling leaves, changing colors, and frosty gardens to awaken our senses! Weather permitting, we will begin with an hour-long Mindful Movement session outside with your Instructor, Deirdre Guthrie, Wellbeing Coach and Scientist. After some brief instruction in Mindfulness and the benefits of Nature Therapy, we will begin a slow, mindful walk through the forest where you may find a "Sit Spot" to journal, take a leaf or bark rubbing, and savor the beauty of your natural surroundings. We will then return inside the Sims Education Center to share out in Circle and then enjoy a guided meditation inspired by Nature's elements (Fire, Water, Earth, and Air).
What to Bring: Please bring warm, comfortable clothes, a yoga mat, thermos of tea/water, journal, pencil, and open heart.
Audience: Ages 12 and up
Location: Fernwood Grounds & the Flora Wing of the Sims Education Center
Cost: $50 ($40 Fernwood members) - Please register by January 15
*To receive your member discount, please be sure to sign in by clicking the button in the upper right-hand corner of the registration screen.
Sunday Storytime - Animal Tracks
After a story and looking at pictures of different tracks, participants will join in a nature walk to look for tracks and other signs of winter wildlife, weather permitting.
About the presenter:
Sue, affectionately known as Grandma Sue, is a retired teacher who has always loved nature and has worked with preschoolers through adults in the course of her career. You may have met her during a school field trip or at the Visitors Center front desk, as she currently works as an Education Department Assistant and Visitor Services Representative at Fernwood.
Suggested audience: Preschoolers - 2nd graders
Location: Fauna Wing of the Sims Education Center
Cost: Free with admission
Walk-ins are welcome, but please let us know that you’re planning to join us by registering.
Lozenges, Syrups, & Teas: DIY Herbal Remedies for Common Colds
Class details:
Join us for an herbal make-and-take class all about using herbs as medicine for cold care! You’ll learn how to skillfully choose herbs that can support various symptoms of these maladies, as well as how to transform them into effective remedies using three extraction methods. You’ll leave with three sample-sizes and recipes of each remedy made.
About the instructor:
Carly is a holistic nutritionist, herbalist, and community educator. She is a committed life-long learner. She holds a master’s degree in holistic nutrition from a naturopathic university and has continued education in traditional western herbalism, functional medicine, and other traditional medical systems.
Audience: Teens-Adults
Location: Flora Wing of the Sims Education Center
Cost: $65 ($52 Fernwood members) - Please register by January 24
*To receive your member discount, please be sure to sign in by clicking the button in the upper right-hand corner of the registration screen.
LIGHTS at Fernwood
LIGHTS will return to the garden for 28 magical nights, November 29 –January 4. Tickets will be on sale for Fernwood members only, October 1 –31, and to the general public beginning November 1.
Our team could not offer this fun and festive multi-night community event without volunteers’ time and sponsors’ support.
Want to help? Learn more at www.fernwoodbotanical.org/lights
LIGHTS at Fernwood
LIGHTS will return to the garden for 28 magical nights, November 29 –January 4. Tickets will be on sale for Fernwood members only, October 1 –31, and to the general public beginning November 1.
Our team could not offer this fun and festive multi-night community event without volunteers’ time and sponsors’ support.
Want to help? Learn more at www.fernwoodbotanical.org/lights
LIGHTS at Fernwood
LIGHTS will return to the garden for 28 magical nights, November 29 –January 4. Tickets will be on sale for Fernwood members only, October 1 –31, and to the general public beginning November 1.
Our team could not offer this fun and festive multi-night community event without volunteers’ time and sponsors’ support.
Want to help? Learn more at www.fernwoodbotanical.org/lights
LIGHTS at Fernwood
LIGHTS will return to the garden for 28 magical nights, November 29 –January 4. Tickets will be on sale for Fernwood members only, October 1 –31, and to the general public beginning November 1.
Our team could not offer this fun and festive multi-night community event without volunteers’ time and sponsors’ support.
Want to help? Learn more at www.fernwoodbotanical.org/lights
LIGHTS at Fernwood
LIGHTS will return to the garden for 28 magical nights, November 29 –January 4. Tickets will be on sale for Fernwood members only, October 1 –31, and to the general public beginning November 1.
Our team could not offer this fun and festive multi-night community event without volunteers’ time and sponsors’ support.
Want to help? Learn more at www.fernwoodbotanical.org/lights
Winter Solstice Workshop
Class Details:
On December 21st of each year, we celebrate the shortest day, or the longest night, of the year. Some mark the occasion by burning a Yule Log each evening until Twelfth Night (January 6) or by staying up to greet the dawn. For others, honoring this special occasion means lighting candles, feasting, reading poetry, giving back to nature, or purifying sacred spaces with herbs.
Join the Herb Society for this make-and-take program, where you’ll learn multiple methods of acknowledging the Winter Solstice with beautiful combinations of herbs and other plant ingredients. You’ll create smudge sticks/bundles that produce calming and cleansing fragrances for the Solstice season, a practice used all over the world from Africa, to China, to Indigenous Peoples in the Americas.
Audience: All ages
Location: The Visitors Center - Chase Classroom
Cost: $25 ($20 Fernwood members) - Please register by December 13
*To receive your member discount, please be sure to sign in by clicking the button in the upper right-hand corner of the registration screen.
Michiana Unit of the Herb Society of America Meeting
The Herb Society of America, Michiana Unit is dedicated to the preservation and the cultivation of the Stan Beikmann Herb and Sensory Garden within Fernwood Botanical Gardens. Organized in 2004, the club is open to anyone with an interest in herbal gardening.
Garden Workdays and Monthly Meetings
As a rule the Herb Society works in the garden every Wednesday from 10am onwards and Sundays from 1pm onwards. The amount of time each volunteer works in the garden is up to their own availability, interest and discretion.
Members who work in the garden should bring their own tools (suggestions would be trowels, hori knives, spades, buckets for debris, water bottles, gardening gloves, comfortable clothing, snacks)
Many times garden volunteers will each lunch in the Fernwood Café and all members are welcome to join regardless of ability to work in the garden.
The monthly meetings of the Unit have a set agenda where the organizational business is conducted and also includes 15 minute presentations on the design and progress in different sections of the garden.
New members are always welcome. For more information, contact Elaine Fletcher-Janzen, HSA, Michiana Unit Chairperson at 440-655-0951 or Jeanne Hook, HSA, Michiana Unit Vice-Chairperson at 708-878-5366.
LIGHTS at Fernwood
LIGHTS will return to the garden for 28 magical nights, November 29 –January 4. Tickets will be on sale for Fernwood members only, October 1 –31, and to the general public beginning November 1.
Our team could not offer this fun and festive multi-night community event without volunteers’ time and sponsors’ support.
Want to help? Learn more at www.fernwoodbotanical.org/lights
LIGHTS at Fernwood
LIGHTS will return to the garden for 28 magical nights, November 29 –January 4. Tickets will be on sale for Fernwood members only, October 1 –31, and to the general public beginning November 1.
Our team could not offer this fun and festive multi-night community event without volunteers’ time and sponsors’ support.
Want to help? Learn more at www.fernwoodbotanical.org/lights
LIGHTS at Fernwood
LIGHTS will return to the garden for 28 magical nights, November 29 –January 4. Tickets will be on sale for Fernwood members only, October 1 –31, and to the general public beginning November 1.
Our team could not offer this fun and festive multi-night community event without volunteers’ time and sponsors’ support.
Want to help? Learn more at www.fernwoodbotanical.org/lights
LIGHTS at Fernwood
LIGHTS will return to the garden for 28 magical nights, November 29 –January 4. Tickets will be on sale for Fernwood members only, October 1 –31, and to the general public beginning November 1.
Our team could not offer this fun and festive multi-night community event without volunteers’ time and sponsors’ support.
Want to help? Learn more at www.fernwoodbotanical.org/lights
LIGHTS at Fernwood
LIGHTS will return to the garden for 28 magical nights, November 29 –January 4. Tickets will be on sale for Fernwood members only, October 1 –31, and to the general public beginning November 1.
Our team could not offer this fun and festive multi-night community event without volunteers’ time and sponsors’ support.
Want to help? Learn more at www.fernwoodbotanical.org/lights
LIGHTS at Fernwood
LIGHTS will return to the garden for 28 magical nights, November 29 –January 4. Tickets will be on sale for Fernwood members only, October 1 –31, and to the general public beginning November 1.
Our team could not offer this fun and festive multi-night community event without volunteers’ time and sponsors’ support.
Want to help? Learn more at www.fernwoodbotanical.org/lights
Kids Holiday Wreath Workshop
Class Details:
Join in the fun and tradition of wreath making at Fernwood! In this special kids workshop, you’ll assist your child in creating a festive wreath using fresh greens collected right from Fernwood’s gardens. Together, you’ll learn how to build your greens around a 12” form, add a personal touch with your choice of decorative ribbon, and leave with a charming creation that is sure to delight all season long!
Audience: Children with accompanying adults (each child receives supplies to make one wreath)
Location: Fauna Wing of the Sims Education Center
Cost: $25/child ($20 Fernwood members) - Please register by December 5
*To receive your member discount, please be sure to sign in by clicking the button in the upper right-hand corner of the registration screen.
LIGHTS at Fernwood
LIGHTS will return to the garden for 28 magical nights, November 29 –January 4. Tickets will be on sale for Fernwood members only, October 1 –31, and to the general public beginning November 1.
Our team could not offer this fun and festive multi-night community event without volunteers’ time and sponsors’ support.
Want to help? Learn more at www.fernwoodbotanical.org/lights
Holiday Wreaths Workshop
Class Details:
Join in the fun and tradition of wreath making at Fernwood! In this workshop, you’ll create your own festive wreath using fresh greens collected right from Fernwood’s gardens. You’ll learn how to build your greens around a 14” form, add a personal touch with your choice of decorative ribbon, and leave with a charming creation that is sure to delight all season long!
Audience: Adults
Location: Fauna Wing of the Sims Education Center
Cost: $50/person ($40 Fernwood members) - Please register by December 5
*To receive your member discount, please be sure to sign in by clicking the button in the upper right-hand corner of the registration screen.
Holiday Wreaths Workshop
Class Details:
Join in the fun and tradition of wreath making at Fernwood! In this workshop, you’ll create your own festive wreath using fresh greens collected right from Fernwood’s gardens. You’ll learn how to build your greens around a 14” form, add a personal touch with your choice of decorative ribbon, and leave with a charming creation that is sure to delight all season long!
Audience: Adults
Location: Fauna Wing of the Sims Education Center
Cost: $50/person ($40 Fernwood members) - Please register by December 5
*To receive your member discount, please be sure to sign in by clicking the button in the upper right-hand corner of the registration screen.
LIGHTS at Fernwood
LIGHTS will return to the garden for 28 magical nights, November 29 –January 4. Tickets will be on sale for Fernwood members only, October 1 –31, and to the general public beginning November 1.
Our team could not offer this fun and festive multi-night community event without volunteers’ time and sponsors’ support.
Want to help? Learn more at www.fernwoodbotanical.org/lights
LIGHTS at Fernwood
LIGHTS will return to the garden for 28 magical nights, November 29 –January 4. Tickets will be on sale for Fernwood members only, October 1 –31, and to the general public beginning November 1.
Our team could not offer this fun and festive multi-night community event without volunteers’ time and sponsors’ support.
Want to help? Learn more at www.fernwoodbotanical.org/lights
LIGHTS at Fernwood
LIGHTS will return to the garden for 28 magical nights, November 29 –January 4. Tickets will be on sale for Fernwood members only, October 1 –31, and to the general public beginning November 1.
Our team could not offer this fun and festive multi-night community event without volunteers’ time and sponsors’ support.
Want to help? Learn more at www.fernwoodbotanical.org/lights
Niles Handweavers Guild Meeting
Did you know Fernwood has a long history with the Niles Handweavers Guild? In 1949, Kay Boydston, a founder of Fernwood, discovered that her friend Gladys Kneeshaw shared her interest in weaving, and they decided to collaborate.
The purpose of the Guild is threefold:
1. To stimulate interest in handweaving and other fiber arts within our membership and in the community,
2. To encourage high quality of artistry and originality in handweaving and other fiber arts, and
3. To make information on handweaving and other fiber arts available to members.
There is always the fun of learning from each other, sharing what we have made, and bringing in teachers and projects to do together.
Visitors and new members are always welcome. For more information, contact the Guild President, Kathy Michener, at 269-429-6948 or kathymichener9@gmail.com.
LIGHTS at Fernwood
LIGHTS will return to the garden for 28 magical nights, November 29 –January 4. Tickets will be on sale for Fernwood members only, October 1 –31, and to the general public beginning November 1.
Our team could not offer this fun and festive multi-night community event without volunteers’ time and sponsors’ support.
Want to help? Learn more at www.fernwoodbotanical.org/lights
LIGHTS at Fernwood
LIGHTS will return to the garden for 28 magical nights, November 29 –January 4. Tickets will be on sale for Fernwood members only, October 1 –31, and to the general public beginning November 1.
Our team could not offer this fun and festive multi-night community event without volunteers’ time and sponsors’ support.
Want to help? Learn more at www.fernwoodbotanical.org/lights
Photography Club Meeting
Open to all ages and levels of experience. Meetings last about 90 minutes, starting with a sharing and discussion of recent images shot by club members, followed by a monthly topical program.
New members are always welcome. For more information, contact Paul Ewing or Mark Suggs at fernwoodphotoclub2@gmail.com.
LIGHTS at Fernwood
November 29, 2024 - January 4, 2025 LIGHTS at Fernwood will be back in the garden for the 2024 holiday season, illuminating evenings with a professionally designed light show. This enchanting experience will include light tunnels, cozy fire pits, a winter craft station, nature-inspired light sculptures, a full-sized Lite Brite, festive music, and more!
Visitors will make bright memories during the most magical garden lights Southwest Michigan offers this holiday season while enjoying hot chocolate, other seasonal drinks, snacks, and festive light-up merchandise for all ages! Learn more.
Advance ticket purchase is strongly encouraged, as each available time slot is limited. Parking is included in the ticket price.
BEGINNING OCTOBER 1, 2024: Fernwood Members may now purchase tickets ahead of the general public! Members also receive a 20% discount on regular adult tickets.
General ticket sales for nonmembers begin on November 1, 2024.
Our team could not offer this fun and festive multi-night community event without volunteers’ time and sponsors’ support.
Want to help? Learn more at www.fernwoodbotanical.org/lights
LIGHTS at Fernwood
November 29, 2024 - January 4, 2025 LIGHTS at Fernwood will be back in the garden for the 2024 holiday season, illuminating evenings with a professionally designed light show. This enchanting experience will include light tunnels, cozy fire pits, a winter craft station, nature-inspired light sculptures, a full-sized Lite Brite, festive music, and more!
Visitors will make bright memories during the most magical garden lights Southwest Michigan offers this holiday season while enjoying hot chocolate, other seasonal drinks, snacks, and festive light-up merchandise for all ages! Learn more.
Advance ticket purchase is strongly encouraged, as each available time slot is limited. Parking is included in the ticket price.
BEGINNING OCTOBER 1, 2024: Fernwood Members may now purchase tickets ahead of the general public! Members also receive a 20% discount on regular adult tickets.
General ticket sales for nonmembers begin on November 1, 2024.
Our team could not offer this fun and festive multi-night community event without volunteers’ time and sponsors’ support.
Want to help? Learn more at www.fernwoodbotanical.org/lights
Outlandish Herbal Stuffings
Class Details:
Everyone loves holiday stuffing! It supports the main dish, provides interest to the meal, and brings healthy and yummy memories. We all remember a family member’s favorite stuffing or recipes that have been handed down for generations. Come celebrate with the Herb Society and learn how herbs are used in dressings from historical recipes to modern day concoctions! This class will give an overview of how stuffings were introduced to our holiday meals, explore new and old herbs for consideration (courtesy of the Herb & Sensory Garden at Fernwood), provide tastings for various stuffing dishes, and deliver recipes to take home. Make the holidays well seasoned!
Audience: Adults
Location: The Visitors Center - Clark Gallery
Cost: Free with admission. Donations will be accepted to support the Michiana Unit of the Herb Society of America.
Michiana Unit of the Herb Society of America Meeting
The Herb Society of America, Michiana Unit is dedicated to the preservation and the cultivation of the Stan Beikmann Herb and Sensory Garden within Fernwood Botanical Gardens. Organized in 2004, the club is open to anyone with an interest in herbal gardening.
Garden Workdays and Monthly Meetings
As a rule the Herb Society works in the garden every Wednesday from 10am onwards and Sundays from 1pm onwards. The amount of time each volunteer works in the garden is up to their own availability, interest and discretion.
Members who work in the garden should bring their own tools (suggestions would be trowels, hori knives, spades, buckets for debris, water bottles, gardening gloves, comfortable clothing, snacks)
Many times garden volunteers will each lunch in the Fernwood Café and all members are welcome to join regardless of ability to work in the garden.
The monthly meetings of the Unit have a set agenda where the organizational business is conducted and also includes 15 minute presentations on the design and progress in different sections of the garden.
New members are always welcome. For more information, contact Elaine Fletcher-Janzen, HSA, Michiana Unit Chairperson at 440-655-0951 or Jeanne Hook, HSA, Michiana Unit Vice-Chairperson at 708-878-5366.
Holiday Wreaths Workshop
Class Details:
Join in the fun and tradition of wreath making at Fernwood! In this workshop, you’ll create your own festive wreath using fresh greens collected right from Fernwood’s gardens. You’ll learn how to build your greens around a 14” form, add a personal touch with your choice of decorative ribbon, and leave with a charming creation that is sure to delight all season long!
Audience: Adults
Location: Fauna Wing of the Sims Education Center
Cost: $50/person ($40 Fernwood members) - Please register by November 14
*To receive your member discount, please be sure to sign in by clicking the button in the upper right-hand corner of the registration screen.