Family friendly educational activities for all ages
The Leach Teaching Gardens in The Gardens at Texas A&M University will celebrate its annual Fall Festival on Oct. 21 with educational demonstrations and activities.
The free festivities will be from 9-11:30 a.m. in The Gardens at 556 John Kimbrough Blvd., College Station.
Fun for all ages
Visitors can enjoy fall refreshments and apple cider while participating in family friendly fun.
“The Fall Festival is one of the most popular events we host each year,” said Michael Arnold, Ph.D., director of The Gardens and professor in the Texas A&M College of Agriculture and Life Sciences Department of Horticultural Sciences. “After this summer’s challenging heat, it is particularly exciting to see campus and community visitors enjoy this unique, educational public garden in cooler autumn conditions.”
Educational demonstrations and activities include a demonstration about fall herbs and perennials by the Brazos County Master Gardeners, a spinning and weaving demonstration by the Brazos Spinners and Weavers Guild, a tabletop cotton gin by the Texas A&M University Cotton Improvement Laboratory, a worm composting demonstration by the Texas A&M Office of Sustainability and the Urban Howdy Farm, and a pumpkin and winter squash display by The Gardens.
Several partners have prepared hands-on craft and entertainment activities, including a Monster Plant activity by the Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service Junior Master Gardeners, story time in the Mexican Heritage Garden by the Texas A&M University Libraries, a craft project about the life cycle of a pumpkin by The Gardens and a Garden in a Glove take-home project by the Brazos County Master Gardeners – everything included for a child to grow a mini garden in a clear glove and later move the plants to their home garden.
Other available activities are face painting, a scavenger hunt, coloring sheets and an interactive mural. Bring your camera or smartphone for selfies in front of the festival’s pumpkin wall and share the fun by tagging #TAMUGardens.
A Sensory Free/Quiet Zone will be available during the event for anyone who may want or need a quieter environment at any point during the event.
Free event parking is available in lot 100c or lot 97. Directions and related information are available online at The Gardens transportation page.
Enjoy Fall Festival fun throughout the season
If you are unable to attend, here are suggestions for celebrating fall with The Gardens:
- Coloring pages will be available at the festival and can also be downloaded to color at home.
- Download the scavenger hunt activity and explore The Gardens, open to visitors daily from dawn to dusk.
- The autumnal displays will be up through November for the public to enjoy and for photo opportunities in front of the pumpkin wall.
- AgriLife Extension’s Dinner Tonight program has autumn-inspired recipes, including No Bake Pumpkin Cheesecake, Creamy Pumpkin Pasta and Cranberry Orange Bread.
For more festival information and seasonal inspiration, visit https://tx.ag/GardensFallFestival, and follow The Gardens on Instagram, Facebook and X, formerly known as Twitter.
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