Spring and gardens go together like bees and honey! It is time to break out of our winter cocoons and explore the Royal Botanic Gardens Victoria’s Cranbourne and Melbourne Gardens. Not only are there the beautiful gardens, the playgrounds and dozens of trails to explore, but there will also be a buzz of excitement with school holiday activities happening at both of these stunning family friendly destinations.

MELBOURNE GARDENS

FREE Spring into Nature Wed 2 Oct, 10am – 1pm, drop in anytime
Have an absolute ball in the Ian Potter Foundation Children's Garden with a day of fun nature play. The kids will have a great time water painting, making cubbies, going on a story telling walk, making bush potions, nature crowns and crafting. There will even be a designated quiet space to chill out.

FREE Threatened Species Children’s Art Exhibition, Sat 7 Sep – Sat 28 Sep, Daily, daylight hours, drop in anytime
The exhibition features the finalist artworks from children aged 5-12 years old from across the state helping highlight the plight of Australia’s threatened plants and animals.

Story Catching with Trace Balla, Monday September 23, $16 per person
Award-winning author and illustrator Trace Balla will demonstrate her technique using watercolour pencils and aqua brushes before taking families through the process of making mini concertina books.

CRANBOURNE GARDENS

FREE Big Bandicoot Backyard, Wed 2 Oct – Sat 5 Oct, 10am – 2pm, drop in anytime
A huge Bandicoot will be arriving in the gardens and there will be heaps of fun - and FREE - activities from making baby bandicoots from clay, sticks and leaves, building bandicoot bungalows and searching for clues of Southern Brown Bandicoots in the Gardens themselves on a guided tour. There are also plenty of chilled out activities with books, toys and beanbags, plus an exhibition to enjoy. Pledge to protect the endangered Southern Brown Bandicoot all while enjoying your day at the Gardens.
Activities that will take place that you may also wish to mention:

Kids Explorer (Special school holiday prices $10 Adult, $8 Concession, Children FREE) Sat 21 September – Sun 6 October, 10am – 4pm (25 mins)
During the school holidays, The Explorer mini-bus transforms into the Kids Explorer and children ride for free! Cruise through the Australian Garden and experience its wonders through sight, sound and smell on this special tour designed for a child’s view.

Welcome to Poorneet (Tadpole Season) Tuesday October 1, 2019
$10 per person
This is a wonderful opportunity to learn all about our froggy friends and their incredible lifecycle. During this 2 hour session, kids will learn all about the Dreamtime story of Tiddalik the Frog, go ponding in the Billabong, investigate beautiful flowers and leaves under a microscope and even pot up a frog-friendly pond plant to take home.
Bookings are essential for this workshop

Want to know more about these wonderful school holiday programs - click here!

Mamma and Royal Botanic Gardens Victoria have worked together on this article.