Iowa Arboretum & Gardens

Iowa Arboretum & Gardens A community-supported public garden that inspires curiosity, discovery, and appreciation of the natural landscape!🌸
https://linktr.ee/iowaarboretum

This unique showplace contains over 5,000 accessioned woody and herbaceous plants. It is one of the largest and most diverse displays of plants that can be successfully grown in Iowa. In addition, the Arboretum manages a 300-acre native woodland featuring century old oaks and a 4 acre prairie.

🎵 Tunes in the Trees featuring FAT TUESDAY & THE GREASE FIRE HORNS! 🌳 Mark your calendars for a perfect summer evening o...
09/06/2026

🎵 Tunes in the Trees featuring FAT TUESDAY & THE GREASE FIRE HORNS!

🌳 Mark your calendars for a perfect summer evening of live music, delicious food, and family-friendly fun at the Iowa Arboretum & Gardens!

📅 Tuesday, September 8, 2026
⏰ 5:00 PM – 8:00 PM
📍 Beckwith Grand Pavilion

Bring your lawn chairs, picnic blankets, kids, neighbors, and even the family dog! We have lawn activities ready for the kids and beautiful gardens open for exploring, playing, and strolling.

🍔 Food & Drinks (5:00 PM – 7:45 PM)
• Food Trucks (Grab dinner on-site!) - Comfort Food Huxley
• Fabled Ice Cream & Popcorn (Sweet treats)
• Christiani’s (Serving both alcoholic and non-alcoholic drinks)

🎸 Schedule & Activities
• 5:00 PM: Gates & Food Trucks open
• 5:00 PM - 6:00 PM: Dean and Adele Bowden Treehouse Village open ($5 per child; Member children are FREE)
• 6:00 PM – 8:00 PM: Live music by Fat Tuesday & The Grease Fire Horns

🎟️ Concert Tickets (Available at the door)
• Members: $10
• Non-Members: $15
• Children 12 & under: FREE

☀️ Rain or shine! In case of rain or extreme heat, the concert will be moved indoors.
Settle in, relax, and enjoy great music in a beautiful setting. See you there! 👇

Homeschoolers—Your Classroom Has Never Been This Fun!🌿Take learning outdoors at the Iowa Arboretum & Gardens! Explore tr...
09/05/2026

Homeschoolers—Your Classroom Has Never Been This Fun!

🌿Take learning outdoors at the Iowa Arboretum & Gardens! Explore trails, discover plants and wildlife, enjoy a picnic, and let the kids play and explore—all while learning in nature.

PLUS, check out our free themed educational backpacks and other resources to add even more discovery and learning to your visit!🎒

👢EXPLORE TRAILS
Wander, discover, and connect with nature.
🌱DISCOVER PLANTS & WILDLIFE
Spark curiosity and learn together.
🍉ENJOY A PICNIC
Relax and make memories in our beautiful botanical gardens.
🏡PLAY & EXPLORE
Let the kids play and imagine in our treehouse village.

Interested in bringing your homeschool group?
Click the link in our bio to navigate to our website to learn more under "Visit"

Do you know a kid who is too good at hide and seek? Put those skills to work and do a monarch caterpillar count!🦋Countin...
09/04/2026

Do you know a kid who is too good at hide and seek? Put those skills to work and do a monarch caterpillar count!🦋

Counting monarch caterpillars is a fun and easy outdoor activity. It helps children learn about nature, conservation, ecology, and science while they look for tiny green and black striped bugs on milkweed plants in the yard or a local park.

🧩Why Kids Love It
Quick game: Spotting the tiny bugs feels like a treasure hunt.
Hands-on fun: Kids can touch the soft leaves and look closely at the bugs.
Easy setup: You only need a green plant and good eyes.

🔎How to Start
Find milkweed: Look for the plant where the bugs live and eat.
Look close: Check the top and bottom of every leaf.
Count them up: Keep a tally on paper as you spot each one.

🌸Places to look at the Arboretum:
Children's Garden: Lots of swamp milkweed and butterfly milkweed.
Butterfly Garden: Six species of milkweed and dogbane.
Hughes Education Center: Milkweed all around the front door.

🌿 Quick Update for Your Next Nature Walk! 🌿Heading to the Iowa Arboretum & Gardens on September 9th or 10th? Please note...
09/03/2026

🌿 Quick Update for Your Next Nature Walk! 🌿
Heading to the Iowa Arboretum & Gardens on September 9th or 10th? Please note that the Adele & Dean Bowden Treehouse Village will be closed for the day.
The good news? The rest of our beautiful grounds are fully open! 🌳✨

Come out and enjoy:
🚶‍♂️ Peaceful walks along our shaded garden pathways.
🌸 Stunning summer blooms throughout the curated botanical gardens.
☀️ Wide-open green spaces perfect for a summer escape. Lace up your walking shoes and spend your day immersed in nature! 🥾

🗺️ Plan your visit: Check our website or follow our page for the latest updates on Treehouse Village hours and upcoming summer events before you head out.

👻Save the date and get your costumes ready, Trick or Treat in Treehouse Village is coming soon! This annual Halloween ev...
09/02/2026

👻Save the date and get your costumes ready, Trick or Treat in Treehouse Village is coming soon! This annual Halloween event at the Iowa Arboretum & Gardens features fun activities, trick-or-treat stops along Treehouse Village Trail, and seasonal snacks. All activities are included with admission - members are always free!

🎃Event Highlights:
Fun Halloween-themed activities and games
Trick-or-treat stops along the paved, accessible Treehouse Village Trail
Seasonal snacks and beverages
Playtime on the Adele & Dean Bowden Treehouse Village

🦇Spooky details:
Sunday October 25, 2026
Trick or treat and activities from 1-4pm

Intern spotlight!🌟 Meet Katie Thompson, our incredible summer intern here at the Iowa Arboretum & Gardens!Katie is an Io...
09/02/2026

Intern spotlight!🌟

Meet Katie Thompson, our incredible summer intern here at the Iowa Arboretum & Gardens!

Katie is an Iowa State University Horticulture major with an emphasis in landscape design. This summer, she rotated through our horticulture departments to gain hands-on experience in every aspect of the field.

She spent a good portion of her time keeping our Trial Garden beautiful🌱—planting, weeding, and capturing stunning photographs. When she wasn't working, you could find Katie on the lookout for turtles or experimenting with leaf textures and foliage palettes for her future designs. 🐢🌿

Thank you for all your hard work this summer, Katie! We can’t wait to see where your design career takes you.💚

From farmed soil to a thriving wild ecosystem, ecological succession is unfolding right before our eyes in our west 40 a...
08/31/2026

From farmed soil to a thriving wild ecosystem, ecological succession is unfolding right before our eyes in our west 40 acres. 🌲✨

Only 65 years ago, this land was covered in extensive woodlands. It was logged, tilled a few times for farming, and eventually became part of the botanical garden. Because the ground was only disturbed for a short window, the underlying topography and a hidden native seed bank remained intact. In 2023, we stopped mowing the lawn around the 2 acre flowering tree grove to see what nature would do.🌱

Here is the step-by-step science of how this space is transforming through ecological succession:

Phase 1: The Pioneers (Years 1–2)🌸
When mowing stops, early successional species take over. These are mostly annuals and weedy plants that thrive in disturbed soil. Just like after a wildfire or flood, these fast-growing plants rush in to stabilize the soil, prevent erosion, and create the first layer of competition.

Phase 2: The Perennials Awake (Years 2–3)🌿
As the soil surface stabilizes, perennial grasses and wild forbs take root. Many of these young perennials survived years of being mowed flat; now, they finally have the room to reach full size. At this stage, new species also blow in from surrounding areas or sprout from seeds that slept underground for decades. By year three, the true structure and diversity of a meadow begins to take shape.

Phase 3: The Climax & Design Intervention (Future)🌾
Left entirely alone, aggressive plants eventually crowd out weaker ones. To keep the meadow healthy and beautiful, our team will use garden design interventions. We will manage aggressive species and introduce missing native plants, guiding the habitat into a balanced, natural space that supports local pollinators and wildlife.

💬 Let’s chat in the comments:

Have you ever let a section of your yard grow wild? What was the first plant to show up?

What kind of native wildlife or pollinators do you hope to see thriving in our new meadow?

If you could pick one native flower to sprout from our ancient seed bank, what would it be?

08/30/2026

Swaying in a shaded hammock at the Iowa Arboretum & Gardens in offers the ultimate peaceful family escape. Surrounded by 160+ acres of tranquil trees, vibrant gardens, and the nearby Adele & Dean Bowden Treehouse Village, it is the best spot to unwind, feel the breeze, and unplug in nature.

Why the Hammock Hangout Hits Different
Total Relaxation: Tucked away in leafy, quiet corners, the dedicated hammock spots let you completely disconnect from daily stress.
Nature All Around: Listen to rustling oak and hickory leaves while catching glimpses of local birds and butterflies.
The Perfect Pairing: Combine your swing time with a stroll through the Children's Garden or an exploration of the scenic woodland trails.

Plan Your Visit
Location: 1875 Peach Ave, Madrid, IA 50156
Hours: Weekdays 9:00 AM – 4:00 PM, Weekends 10:00 AM – 4:00 PM (April through October)
Admission: $12 for adults (13+), $7 for kids (3-12), and free for infants/members.

🦋Transform your next walk through the Iowa Arboretum & Gardens into a conservation mission! You can help scientists prot...
08/29/2026

🦋Transform your next walk through the Iowa Arboretum & Gardens into a conservation mission! You can help scientists protect the epic monarch migration by becoming a citizen scientist—no biology degree required.

How to join the mission:
1) Download: Install the Project Monarch app (Android & Apple) before your visit.
2) Scan & Track: Follow the in-app instructions to detect radio-tagged monarchs as you walk through the beautiful prairies and gardens.
3) Compete & Win: Follow your detected butterflies as they migrate across the continent, earn awards, and climb the leaderboard!

Grab your walking shoes, take your phone, and make a difference this season.

The next critical window for tracking migration is late summer/fall as millions embark on their journey south. They should begin in Central Iowa very soon!

About the project:
“Incredibly small tracking devices - weighing only 60 milligrams, which is about the same as a grain of rice - have been deployed on monarch butterflies for the first time ever. These trackers transmit over the same frequency as Bluetooth, which means that your phone can detect the tagged monarchs!
With the help of community scientists like yourself, we have the potential to create the world's largest wildlife tracking network! All you have to do is go outside, look for monarchs, and use this app to record and upload your detections to the Project Monarch data server.

This data will allow scientists to track the movements of monarch butterflies in detail never previously imagined. We will see how monarchs utilize key stopping points along migratory routes and learn more about the speed and direction of migration, helping identify the most important sites for habitat conservation and restoration. Ultimately, this technology can help guide conservation planning and lead to increases in monarch populations.”

Address

1875 Peach Avenue
Madrid, IA
50156

Opening Hours

Monday 9am - 4pm
Tuesday 9am - 4pm
Wednesday 9am - 4pm
Thursday 9am - 4pm
Friday 9am - 4pm
Saturday 10am - 4pm
Sunday 10am - 4pm

Telephone

+15157953216

Website

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