Unlock the garden gates and shine a spotlight onto a whole new world.

Visit the Gardens after closing time to experience the sounds, smells and textures of the Gardens in the dark.

Uncover the stories of our native plants and spy for nocturnal wildlife as you explore from the Rainforest Gully to the Red Centre Garden.

This is a great evening activity for local and interstate schools, scouts, guides and other groups.

Unlock the garden gates and shine a spotlight onto a whole new world.

Visit the Gardens after closing time to experience the sounds, smells and textures of the Gardens in the dark.

Uncover the stories of our native plants and spy for nocturnal wildlife as you explore from the Rainforest Gully to the Red Centre Garden.

This is a great evening activity for local and interstate schools, scouts, guides and other groups.

Unlock the garden gates and shine a spotlight onto a whole new world.

Visit the Gardens after closing time to experience the sounds, smells and textures of the Gardens in the dark.

Uncover the stories of our native plants and spy for nocturnal wildlife as you explore from the Rainforest Gully to the Red Centre Garden.

This is a great evening activity for local and interstate schools, scouts, guides and other groups.

Unlock the garden gates and shine a spotlight onto a whole new world.

Visit the Gardens after closing time to experience the sounds, smells and textures of the Gardens in the dark.

Uncover the stories of our native plants and spy for nocturnal wildlife as you explore from the Rainforest Gully to the Red Centre Garden.

This is a great evening activity for local and interstate schools, scouts, guides and other groups.

Get hands-on and dip for the weird and wonderful creatures that live in our freshwater ponds.

Explore the skimmers, slinkers and swimmers with magnifying glasses.

Can you figure out what the plants and animals are in your bucket?

Do you know who feeds on who and what they need to survive?

Get hands-on to investigate the teeming life in the Gardens’ freshwater ponds.

Examine your catches by eye before investigating every hair and claw in detail under our microscopes.

Can you work out who feeds on who? Classify and categorise your findings into a simple food web.

Get hands-on and dip for the weird and wonderful creatures that live in our freshwater ponds.

Explore the skimmers, slinkers and swimmers with magnifying glasses.

Can you figure out what the plants and animals are in your bucket?

Do you know who feeds on who and what they need to survive?

What affects the health of our aquatic ecosystems?

Survey two of the Gardens’ freshwater ponds to identify factors that influence the health of their biological communities.

Students will:

sample water;
complete a vegetation assessment;
use a key to identify macroinvertebrates and aquatic plant life; and
learn how to identify indicator species.

Years 3 to 6: Get hands-on to investigate the teeming life in the Gardens’ freshwater ponds. Examine your catches by eye before investigating every hair and claw in detail under our microscopes. Can you work out who feeds on who? Classify and categorise your findings into a simple food web.
Years 7 to 12: What affects the health of our aquatic ecosystems? Survey two of the Gardens’ freshwater ponds to identify factors that influence the health of their biological communities. Students will: sample water; complete a vegetation assessment; use a key to identify macroinvertebrates and aquatic plant life; and learn how to identify indicator species.

What is pollination and how does it fit into a plant’s lifecycle?

This enlightening session examines the strategies that Australian plants use to encourage pollination and produce seeds.

Discover the different features of wind-, insect-, bird- and mammal-pollinated plants – can you match the pollinator to the flower? We’ll investigate the important role of our native pollinators and how we can help to protect them.

You can also extend your learning with a post-activity pollinator count.

Follow the Aboriginal Plant Use Trail to learn about the importance of country and culture to Indigenous Australians.

This eye-opening activity explores how Indigenous people use resources from the bush around them to survive.

You’ll also examine the importance of looking after the land, plants, animals and traditional practice to maintain a living culture and country for future generations.

Discover how Indigenous land management practices have shaped Australian ecosystems.

Students will learn how Indigenous Australians use fire and the impact these traditional techniques have had on the distribution of key Australian plant species.

Explore the Gardens’ plants and landscapes through the eyes of Indigenous Australians.

Delve into our Indigenous handling collection to learn how native plants can provide many of the essentials of life, including food, medicine, tools, weapons and clothes.

You’ll also discover how Indigenous Australians use native plants today.

Who lives in the Gardens? Explore the different habitats of creatures big and small during a walk with our Rangers.

Discover what makes each habitat a successful home for a range of Aussie animals.

Play with creatures made out of natural materials to investigate what different animals need from their environment.

The Gardens are an outdoor classroom for everyone. Schools are welcome to wander and learn at their own pace.

There is no charge for school groups to visit the Gardens and explore. However, bookings are essential for safety reasons.

We also have a range of resource material that self-guided groups can use to explore the Gardens.

Whether you have a curriculum to follow or just want to enjoy a day in the great outdoors, a teacher-guided visit is the perfect way for your school to explore the Gardens.

How do plants make new plants? What are flowers for? And why do bees and other insects like them so much?

Play our pollination game to answer these questions and more.

Observe pollinators in action in the Gardens and discover:
the different parts of a flower; 
how plants attract animals to help them make seeds; and
the different Australian animals that act as pollinators.

Explore the important role of Australian insects and find out how we can help protect pollinators at home and school.

What special tricks do plants use to grow and survive in different environments?

This hands-on session will show you how to germinate Australian seeds and examine the different parts of plants under a microscope.

You’ll also learn about the Australian National Botanic Gardens’ role in conserving threatened plant species.

Our educational experts will design a program for your group’s needs based around the following modules:

Plant identification – Explore classification, major Australian families, herbarium specimens, microscope dissections and how to use keys.
Plant structures – Investigate seeds, leaves, stems and flowers with a microscope to understand the strategies plants use to grow and survive.
Photosynthesis – Learn the ins and outs of plant respiration and why we need plants to survive.

Digging deep into plants? We offer botany programs across four key areas: plant identification, plant structures, horticulture and photosynthesis.

Our educational experts will design a program for your group’s needs based around the following modules:

Plant identification – Explore classification, major Australian families, herbarium specimens, microscope dissections and how to use keys.
Plant structures – Investigate seeds, leaves, stems and flowers with a microscope to understand the strategies plants use to grow and survive..
Photosynthesis – Learn the ins and outs of plant respiration and why we need plants to survive.

Have you ever walked across Australia in an hour? Experience the sights, sounds and smells of Australia’s ecosystems, from subtropical rainforests to the dramatic desert scenery of the Red Centre Garden. This fascinating stroll through our country’s landscapes explores how the Australian environment has shaped our unique plants.

Have you ever walked across Australia in an hour? Experience the sights, sounds and smells of Australia’s ecosystems, from subtropical rainforests to the dramatic desert scenery of the Red Centre Garden. 

This fascinating stroll through our country’s landscapes explores how the Australian environment has shaped our unique plants.

Have you ever walked across Australia in an hour?
Experience the sights, sounds and smells of Australia’s ecosystems, from subtropical rainforests to the dramatic desert scenery of the Red Centre Garden.
This fascinating stroll through our country’s landscapes explores how the Australian environment has shaped our unique plants.

Step back in time and meet the enormous creatures that inspire myths and legends in Australia. 

Imagine yourself in Pleistocene Australia as you discover the Australian National Botanic Gardens. Roaming around you are wombats the size of cars, flightless birds twice the size of emus and gigantic seven-metre long lizards.

Trail maps are available online or can be requested for your group.