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Chicago Botanic Garden

The Chicago Botanic Garden is a world-renowned living museum and conservation science center that offers multiple unique nature courses spread throughout 26 gardens and four natural areas on 385 acres.

Upcoming Classes (18)

All courses are held at unless indicated.

Wednesday, June 25th
6–8pm CDT

$65

Wednesday, July 9th
6–8pm CDT

$65

Saturday, July 12th
9–11am CDT

$65

Saturday, July 12th
1–3:30pm CDT

$62

Wednesday, July 16th
6–8pm EDT

$40

Tuesday, August 5th
1–3:30pm CDT (6 sessions)

$499

Wednesday, August 27th
6–8pm CDT

$40

Saturday, September 6th
9am–12pm CDT (8 sessions)

$499

Tuesday, September 9th
1–3:30pm CDT (7 sessions)

$349

Wednesday, September 10th
9:30am–12pm CDT (8 sessions)

$349

Wednesday, September 10th
1–3:30pm CDT (6 sessions)

$349

Thursday, September 18th
6–8pm CDT

$65

Saturday, September 20th
11am–1pm CDT

$65

Tuesday, September 30th
6–9pm CDT (6 sessions)

$449

Wednesday, October 8th
1–3:30pm CDT (6 sessions)

$437

Tuesday, October 28th
1–3:30pm CDT (7 sessions)

$349

Wednesday, November 5th
9:30am–12pm CDT (7 sessions)

$349

Wednesday, November 5th
1–3:30pm CDT (6 sessions)

$349

Provider Description

The Chicago Botanic Garden opened a little more than 40 years ago as a beautiful place to visit, and it has matured into one of the world's great living museums and conservation science centers. In 2013, one million people visited the Garden's 26 gardens and four natural areas, uniquely situated on 385 acres on and around nine islands, with six miles of lake shoreline. The Garden also has a renowned Bonsai Collection.

The Chicago Botanic Garden has 50,000 members—one of the largest memberships of any U.S. botanic garden. People of all ages, interests, and abilities participate in programs, take classes, and stroll the grounds year-round. Within the nine laboratories of the Garden's Daniel F. and Ada L. Rice Plant Conservation Science Center, scientists and graduate students conduct a wide array of plant research. The Garden is one of only 17 public gardens accredited by the American Association of Museums. Its Lenhardt Library contains 110,000 volumes — including one of the nation's best collections of rare botanical books.

HISTORY

The Chicago Botanic Garden traces its origins back to the Chicago Horticultural Society, founded in 1890. With the motto Urbs in Horto, meaning "city in a garden," the Society hosted nationally recognized flower and horticultural shows, its third the World's Columbian Exposition Chrysanthemum Show, held in conjunction with the world's fair in October 1893.

After a period of inactivity, the Chicago Horticultural Society was restarted in 1943. In 1962, its modern history began when the Society agreed to help create and manage a new public garden. With the groundbreaking for the Chicago Botanic Garden in 1965 and its opening in 1972, the Society created a permanent site on which to carry out its mission. The Garden today is an example of a successful public-private partnership. It is owned by the Forest Preserve District of Cook County and operated by the Chicago Horticultural Society.

1000 Lake Cook Road, Glencoe, IL 60022
Chicago Botanic Garden
Glencoe, Suburbs
1000 Lake Cook Road
Btwn Edens Exprsswy/Rt 41 & Green Bay Rd
Glencoe, Illinois 60022

Reviews of Chicago Botanic Garden

(4.4-star rating across 141 reviews)
  • iPhone Photography

    Phyllis R. • May 13, 2025
  • Spring Containers at the Garden

    Theresa C. • April 16, 2025
  • Painting the Natural World

    Mindy M. • April 9, 2025
    Judith was great! Can’t do next session, but will be back! M
  • Wet-Felted Rose Workshop

    Anonymous • March 12, 2025
    Enjoyed learning the art of wet felting. Will definitely sign up for another class.
  • Houseplants 101

    Alicia S. • February 12, 2025
    I loved the class, I learned a lot of things because I am a new learner in this subject, but I needed more time to take more notes
  • Fiber Arts: Winter Bird Ornament

    Anonymous • December 9, 2024
  • iPhone Photography

    Anonymous • December 9, 2024
    I definitely learned from this class, although it was a bit disorganized. The instructor covered how to use the editing tools within the Camera app on the iPhone as well as an app called Snapseed. He also recommended a variety of other editing apps. He showed us examples of photos he had edited. The class was listed as 6 PM - 8:30 PM and actually was 6:30-8:30 PM. For the first class, I waited on Zoom from 6 PM wondering what was going on. The instructor would benefit from a planned curriculum. He seemed to meandered through tools and his own photos with a lot of repetition.
  • Hands-on Baking: Cake Decorating

    Anthony R. • November 6, 2024
  • Hydrangeas for the Home Garden: Online

    Jewel M. • October 27, 2024
  • Creating a Garden Sanctuary: Online

    Rene C. • October 22, 2024
    Helpful. Good intro but not what I expected.
  • Needle-Felted Pumpkin

    Anonymous • October 17, 2024
    The course was fun! Well organized, clear instructions and positive feedback. I love the pumpkin I made. My only criticism is that there is insufficient handicap parking at the learning center. In my opinion, all of the spaces right at the learning center should be reserved for handicapped people.
  • Forest Bathing Experience

    Anonymous • May 27, 2024
    Loved this class!
  • Elements of the Garden: Patios

    John E. • May 23, 2024
    It was a good class. I learned a lot. The instructor was quite informative and obviously an expert in this field of study.
  • Spring Lawn Care

    John E. • April 20, 2024
    Well, informative. Helpful tips that will improve my "green thumb" effort.
  • Arranging Store-Bought Bouquets: Online

    Katherine K. • April 14, 2024
  • Container Gardens: Pots with Panache

    Anonymous • April 12, 2024
    I enjoyed the instructor and the slides were very helpful to her presentation. I think the course could run 90 minutes rather than 2 hours and would have appreciate a few more tips on putting containers together with a video showing the steps. But, I enjoyed it and appreciated the pacing and her recommendations on different potting soils and plants for the various seasons.
  • Arranging Store-Bought Bouquets: Online

    Eileen P. • April 11, 2024
    I learned good flower arranging techniques from this class and really liked the instructor
  • Plants That Attract Beneficial Insects

    Nadine T. • April 8, 2024
    The class was very good, I learned a lot. More than I thought I would on the subject. The teacher took her time, I was able to follow everything she said.
  • Wet Felted Bowl Workshop

    Barbara B. • March 21, 2024
  • Growing Orchids Indoors

    Julia Z. • March 2, 2024
Show More Reviews

Review Summary by CourseHorse

According to student reviews, the classes at Chicago Botanic Garden cover a wide range of topics such as forest bathing, beekeeping, painting, gardening, plant care, and more. Many students reported learning a lot of information and gaining new skills from their classes. Some specific skills mentioned include learning about brushes and paint mixing in painting classes, gaining knowledge about specific plants and how to care for them in gardening classes, and learning about the process of making soap. The instructors are frequently praised for their knowledge and teaching abilities, with many students expressing a desire to take more classes with them. Quotes: - "My first class at the Botanical gardens. It was great! Looking forward to other related classes. Mr. Lucas had a lot of knowledge. I love his teaching techniques. Thank you" - "This class was a delight! I learned so much. It is an intensive class, so expect to spend time out of class studying, but also expect to come away with newly gained understanding of the plant world and how much we rely on it." - "The best Bonsai teacher ever... Chris Baker! Learnt a lot in those two three short hours. Me Baker was very generous with sharing his knowledge and expertise on the subject. I only wish we could have had a week-long workshop. Thank you."

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