There’s plenty to see and do at the Garden throughout the winter months, including a brand-new interactive exhibition, tours, trails, family activities and even some opportunities to warm up!
Winter in the Garden
❄️Winter wonder: Our Winter Garden is filled with bold colours, diverse textures and beautiful scents, providing a blissful stroll any time of year, but particularly from December to March.
🌿Cosy hideaway: Warm up in our Glasshouse Range amongst spectacular Tropical Rainforest plants, exotic orchids, cacti, succulents and beautiful alpine flora.
🌳Free Winter Interest Tours: Discover the Garden’s winter highlights with our expert guides. Taking place from 7 January to 1 March at 11.30am on Wednesdays, Saturdays and Sundays, free with Garden admission. Offered on a first come, first served basis and numbers are limited to 12 people per guide. Visitors can register for tour at Brookside Ticket Office. Our tours are not recommended for children aged under 12.
🌼Snowdrop Trail: Wander around the Garden’s impressive display of snowdrops. More than 40 different species and cultivars will fill the Garden between January and March and our trail will guide visitors to the Snowdrop hotspots. Find out more about snowdrop science, history, folklore and cultivation, or just enjoy their simple beauty. The trail is free with Garden admission.
Family events
🎨Family Saturdays: Our programme of monthly family activities for 2026 has been released, with lots of wildlife-themed crafts the whole family to enjoy. These activities take place on the first Saturday of the month between 10am and 1pm in the Schools Garden and are suitable for all aged 3+. Sessions need to be booked in advance, with bookings open one week before each event.
Upcoming activities include:
- Food for Feathered Friends: Saturday 3 January. Feed your feathered friends throughout the winter months.
- Potted Garden: Saturday 7 February. Make your own tiny Garden in a pot, plant it up and watch it grow.
- Printing with Vegetables: Saturday 7 March. Come along and print some lovely patterns with a variety of fruit and vegetables.
🗺️Crazy Cone Caper Trail: Join us in the Garden for a whodunnit mystery and track down who’s been stealing seeds from pinecones. Pick up a self-led trail from the Ticket Offices and start investigating, finding facts and solving puzzles along the way. The trail is suitable for all ages and free with Garden admission.
Learn with us
📚Courses for all: We’ve got something for everyone in our 2026 Short Courses. The Garden is the perfect place to develop your understanding of plants, discover your inner artist or learn new skills. Explore the full list here.
Coming up
🌱Talking Plants: A brand-new interactive exhibition is coming to the Garden in 2026! Using AI, visitors will be able to talk to plants in the Glasshouse Range, asking them questions about where they’re from, how they are pollinated and much more – opening up new ways to explore and understand our living collection. QR codes placed beside 20 of our most interesting and rare plants will allow visitors to scan and start their conversations. More details and dates will be released later this month.
🌟Twilight: The free after-hours event for families returns this year, with local museums and collections opening their doors for free or low-cost drop-in activities. Twilight at the Museums will take place during February half-term with full details to be released later this month.
