Follow the yellow brick room into a land of enchantment & make-believe where little pirates can sail the high seas on The Pirate Queen, fairies can have tea in fairyland & kids can climb towards the clouds in our tree fort!  The Woodland Cafe waits in Hobbitville for kids to create mud pies or mud cakes, the rain forest beckons kids to run through the cool mist & our costume room welcomes kids to dress up for creative fun! We are a 501(c)(3) nonprofit and public charitable organization and rely on admission and donations to support our mission, which is to keep kids connected to nature.  We do so through fostering imaginative play as well as offering weekly nature and art programs for children.  We hope to see you soon!
Hours of operation
Tuesday through Sunday: 10:00am - 4:00pm
Closed Mondays
Admission
Adults and Teens 13 years & up: $10 +tax
Seniors 60+years and Military: $9+tax
Children 3 years & up: $6 +tax
Infants and toddlers 2 & under visit for free!
Check out our upcoming nature, gardening, and art programs below, or click on the Calendar button to view all of our events coming up in the next month and keep your kids connected to nature. Each class is designed for kids of all ages! Please note, all classes are parent supervised. 
  • Tuesday, November 18th, 11am Turkey’s Gift to the People Join us for a reading of this story, based upon a traditional Navajo folk tale, and plant your own heirloom Indian “glass gem” corn to bring home and watch grow.
  • Thursday, November 20th, 11am Stellaluna Learn all about this special bat and her friends, then make a bat-themed craft to take home.
  • Saturday, November 22nd, 8am-12pm Sprout Squad - Squash Seeds We are back at the Sarasota Farmer’s Market to plant squash seeds to bring home and watch grow, with color-your-own sprout trellises and seed packets. 
  • Tuesday, November 25th, 11am How to Catch a Turkey A turkey is running loose in a school right before a Thanksgiving play. Can YOU help catch it so the show can go on? Join us at the stage at 11am to hear the rest of the story, and color in your turkey paper crown.
  • Wednesday, November 26th, 10-11am Thanksgiving Placemats Get ready for Thanksgiving Day by coloring your own placemat. Please note: We are closing at 3pm today.
  • Thursday, November 27th Closed  Happy Thanksgiving! The Garden will be closed today as we celebrate the holiday, and will reopen tomorrow at 10am.
Saturday, November 29th, 10-11am
🍂Fall Harvest Festival🍁
Celebrate the beauty of fall! Pick out your own candy corn egg filled with sweet treats, enjoy a special story time featuring "The Leaf Thief" at the stage, and create your own Fall Leaf Scratch Art to take home. Apple cider will be served as we welcome the cozy colors and playful spirit of the season.
Our November Newsletter is now available!
nov_2025_the_dirt_newsletter.pdf
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File Type: pdf
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Birthday Parties at The Garden 

Want to make your next celebration magical?  The Garden is completely outdoors with lots of room for your party of up to 30 guests.  To make your party even more special, check out our Crafts-to-Go, unique and whimsical crafts & activities where we handle 100% of the prep! 

For more information on parties, visit our page here.
We have been included in the most recent article on the best field trip locations to visit in Florida by the international educational publisher Twinkl! 
​(You can learn more about field trips at The Children's Garden here)
Program ​Events: 
  • ​Nature Art Programs
Perfect for all age children!  From our "Sticks & Stones" program to our "Art Rocks" program and our "Wild crafting" program, kids will have fun creating their works of nature art!
  • ​Learn the Magic of Gardening in our Planting Programs! 
    We love getting our hands dirty and learning about our fruits & veggies.  Join us for one of our many gardening program like "Mama Mia We Are Making Our Own Pizza Garden", "Can You Dig It" & our "Munch Crunch Grow Your Own Lunch" gardening programs!  

The Children's Garden & Art Center is where the magic and fun begins!
Explore! Imagine! Make-Believe!

Just like "Alice", kids and adults alike will feel as if they have fallen down a rabbit's hole to "Wonderland"! Magic begins at the yellow brick road where entering the jasmine covered tunnel "The Black Pearl" awaits for little pirates to set sail, the Amazing Maze turns and twists down paths of intrigue and the Fairy Garden welcomes all fairies and elves for tea under the mushrooms.
Down the winding path you will find the Monster Garden where our giant green dragon "Snuffy" resides with her other fun & unusual monster friends.
 The 3 little pigs dare any big bad wolf to blow their houses down in our Butterfly Garden. Next door is our Caterpillar Cottage which hosts lots of birthday parties and celebrations with it's "Snow White" theme and twinkling lights.
Nature, gardening and art classes are taught weekly at the garden to nurture and teach children the beauty in Mother Nature. Whether it is our "Art Rocks" class, our "Munch Crunch Grow Your Lunch" class or our "Nature Explorers" class to name a few, our mission is to keep kids connected to nature at The Children's Garden & Art Center.
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 The Children's Garden was created in 2003 by Joan Marie Condon, together with her husband David, their artisan sons Ray and Roy, and daughter Robin Fulk. They envisioned a small piece of wonder—a place for children to leave the electronic world behind, explore creative play, and discover magic in Mother Nature. Today, Robin carries that vision forward as the head of the Garden, keeping its spirit of imagination and connection to nature alive.
 The Children's Garden & Art Center became a non-profit 501 C (3) and public charitable organization in the fall of 2009. We do yearly fundraisers for "All Faith's Food Bank", the "Humane Society of Sarasota" and "Make-A-Wish Foundation". Our wish is to continue our education classes in hopes of teaching  our children to become good stewards of the earth. Help support this safe haven for children of all ages!