April - We love dirt!

Saturday April 14, 2012
10 a.m.  Children's Garden
Worms & Dirt & Composting - Oh My!

Get your hands dirty with Marion County Environmental Services composting expert Beth Meyers-Shenai...learn how worms are not just wiggly, but are beneficial for growing flowers and vegetables! You can become a compost expert and try it out at home too!

Origami in February

Join us on Saturday February 11th as we dive in to the world of paper folding known as Origami. Instructor Yuki will bring her origami paper and expertise to The Oregon Garden. Yuki will share her knowledge of the history of origami and will teach Junior Gardener's Club members how to make wonderful creations from a single sheet of paper!

With Valentine's Day just around the corner, kids can make a special valentine origami as well! See you at 10 a.m. on February 11th in the Education Center. Remember to check in at the Visitor Center first!

Websites with more information about origami:
http://www.origami-fun.com/
http://www.origami-resource-center.com/history-of-origami.html

2012 Junior Gardener's Club Schedule

The fun and learning continue at The Oregon Garden in 2012. Our regular Saturday programs are listed below - additional programs will be announced throughout the year. Remember that Junior Gardener's Club members (and Oregon Garden members at the Trillium level & above) receive free admission to all regular JGC programs - don't miss the fun!

Contact the Garden at 503-874-8100 to pre-register for programs.

January 14, 2012        Motion Magic Tumbling

            Gymnastics, dance, yoga and creative dramatic play. Kids will partake in a gymnastics circuit, learning basic tumbling skills, strength exercises using fun props like hula hoops, ribbons, and parachutes. Stories, themes and music are woven into the class to encourage imagination and creative expression. For more info on Motion Magic, click HERE

February 11, 2012      I Love Origami

            Explore the ancient art of origami and learn to fold paper into amazing shapes. Learn about the history of this art form while you create. 

March 10, 2012          Bugs Can Be Good – Looking at Beneficial Insects

            See a wide variety of beneficial insects – pollinators, predators, and parasitoids – and learn the functions of each group. 35 insects will be shown via slides and display boxes and kids will make a bug box of their own to take home.

April 14, 2012 Dirt does Great Things for Composting & Worms Too

            Get down and dirty with us as we learn about dirt, soil, compost…and worms too!

May 12, 2012             Gardening for the Whole Family

            The Oregon Garden Horticultural Staff will be teaching easy garden design tips and methods in this class which will kick off the “Family Garden Contest.” The first 40 families to pre-register for this program will receive a free garden box from Naturalyards, Inc. More details on the contest will be listed on our blog and website.

June 9, 2012               Photo Scavenger Hunt

            “Click” – did you get the shot? This program will provide you with quick and easy photography instruction before sending you out into the Garden to find and photograph each item on the scavenger hunt list.

July 14, 2012              Geo-caching Adventures

            Oregon Garden friends, Chuck, Carol and Jen return to the Junior Gardener’s Club for more fun with geo-caching. Learn how to work the gps units and set off on a  modern-day treasure hunt!

August 11, 2012         Monster Plants

            Ghouls, vampires, zombies, space invaders, murderers—sounds like movie night on Halloween? Actually, this is a story of plants—MONSTER PLANTS. Come learn about plants that are much stranger than the ones in your garden. And even better, learn about the Monster Plants that live nearby—or that you could even grow in your garden! If you are brave enough!

September 8, 2012     Using Your Senses in the Garden

            Join Yoga Instructor, Tsipora Berman of the Silver Falls Yoga Studio for an engaging up close and personal one of a kind sensory experience in the Oregon Garden Children's Garden Area.  Explore the landscape of your personal connection with Nature expanding your unique understanding of 5 senses (touch , smell, feel, taste, and hear) to include 7 other sensory surprises. 

October 13, 2012        The Lonely Little Pumpkin Puppet Show

            Little Peter the Pumpkin is excited about being picked for Harvest and can’t wait to be picked at the Pumpkin Patch. But Peter is watching all of his friends get picked around him and is starting to worry that he won’t find a home and he’ll miss his big

chance to shine. Join the colorful cast of characters like Misty the Spider and Adley the Acorn and others who do their best to cheer up lonely Peter the Pumpkin.

November 10, 2012    Garden Art: Paper Making

December 8, 2012      Found Object Art

Fall Programs for Junior Gardener's Club Members

Coming to the Junior Gardener's Club this fall:

November 8, 2011
    Art in the Garden in the Education Center


November 26, 2011
   Junk Jam (rescheduled from August) in the Education Center


December 10, 2011
   The Reptile Man in the Pavilion


All programs begin at 10 a.m. Please bring your membership card with you to the program.

Chef Kids Make Salsa on September 10th!

The Junior Gardener's Club will bring Julie Merry of The Merry Kitchen to the Children's Garden on September 10th for a delicious program where club members will learn about fresh produce and will make salsa and lettuce wraps! Eating their creations will round out the hour.

After the program, club members will take a short tour of the Silverton Market Garden and may get to harvest some fresh produce to take home!

The program begins at 10 a.m. and will run for approximately 1 hour. All cooking and produce materials will be provided.

About the Merry Kitchen:

The Merry Kitchen is the brainchild of Julie Merry. Julie got her bachelor's degree in Nutrition at Georgia State University in Atlanta, Georgia and soon became a Registered Dietitian. While attending GSU, she switched her focus to the culinary aspects of nutrition. During college, she worked as a nanny for four children and discovered they had never been taught to cook. Julie took the opportunity to explore cooking with them. After seeing the excitement on the children's faces, she recognized her dream - teaching children to cook.

She moved to Portland, Oregon in the fall of 1999 and attended Western Culinary Institute. After graduating with honors, she cooked at a local restaurant and led the catering team for Elephants Deli. After gaining experience in a restaurant kitchen, she pursued teaching with the Western Culinary weekend program. She also volunteered at Sur la Table in the teaching classroom. After helping out for a few months, she was hired to teach the children’s cooking classes at Sur la Table. Her first class was such a success, she was asked to teach the Kid’s Cooking Camps that summer.

After two successful years with Sur la Table, Julie was then hired by Portland Public Schools to lead the after school cooking program at Fernwood Middle School. While teaching at Fernwood, she realized her ultimate dream. It was to have a cooking school out of her home, teaching teenagers and children of all ages to cook.

Ever since that realization, Julie has been remodeling an adorable house she found in NE Portland. While planning out the school, she decided that children should be learning how to grow the food they were going to be cooking. In 2008, she completed the Master Gardener program taught by OSU Extension Services. She has been cultivating a 500 square foot garden in her backyard and during summer camps, teaches children how to grow, maintain and reap the benefits of an all organic garden. Compost is made and utilized from the scraps of each cooking class.

The Merry Kitchen also does private parties, birthday parties or special themes not listed on their website. These need to be scheduled at least a week out. Please direct inquires to Julie Merry by phone: 503.946.8357 or email at julie@themerrykitchen.com. The Merry Kitchen is located at 5202 NE 72nd Avenue, Portland OR 97128. Please call for an appointment. No drop ins.

Updates on Summer Programs from the Junior Gardener's Club

We hope you have been enjoying the summer as much as we have! Tuesday programs continue for the Junior Gardener's Club - including tomorrow's Zumba program at 10 a.m. (Tuesday August 9th) and the last Tuesday program for the summer, Teddy Bear Picnic on August 16th.

Silverton Fitness instructor Lydia will be in the Children's Garden at 10 a.m. tomorrow to teach club members (and their parents!) how to move and dance to the zumba beat. Don't miss out on this great opportunity to wiggle and dance in the gorgeous summer air!

On Tuesday August 16th, the Junior Gardener's Club will celebrate the summer season with a Teddy Bear Picnic! Children of all ages are invited to bring their best Teddy Bear friend and enjoy a fun morning of teddy snacks and a wonderful puppet show by Penny Puppet Productions! This program will happen in the Children's Garden and may last about 80 minutes.

Note: if your teddy bear friend can't make it to this party, the Gift Shop will have some great teddy bears on sale - with special pricing for Junior Gardener's Club participants!

An update about Saturday programs:

Due to unexpected circumstances, the August 13th Junk Jam program is being postponed until this fall. A new date will be posted on this blog and sent to Junior Gardener's Club members as soon as it has been finalized. We apologize for any inconvenience!

Join us on Saturday September 10th at 10 a.m. for a cooking adventure! The Merry Kitchen will be at The Oregon Garden to teach us how to make fresh salsa and lettuce wraps with produce straight out of the Silverton Market Garden! Tasting these delicious creations will of course be necessary and kids can show off their culinary skills! Don't miss out

Fairy Garden Party on July 26

Use your wings and fly over to The Oregon Garden on Tuesday July 26th for a party!

The Junior Gardener's Club presents "Fairy Garden Party" at 10 a.m. on July 26th - location will be the Children's Garden.

NOTE: we will still meet if it is raining - we'll just move our party indoors!

Join Nancy and crew from The Party Fairies will be leading activities including face painting, fairy stories under the bower, and creating a fairy garden to take home. Children will also decorate a wand of their own.

Fans of all things fairy may want to consider having a Fairy Party of their own - Nancy has a variety of party options and suggestions. Also, if you are considering creating a fairy garden at your own home, check out this segment from the show "Fusion," a show produced by our friends at Gustin Creative Group (who put out Garden Time TV).

Wings and fairy costumes are encouraged on Tuesday....we look forward to seeing you there.

Tickets:

Junior Gardener's Club members and Oregon Garden members - Free

Non-members: $5 program fee per child, plus any applicable Garden admission needed.

Questions? Contact the Membership Department at 503-874-2533 or by email at membership@oregongarden.org