We are excited to announce our 2017 Garden Discovery Camps!
All camps require preregistration. You can now make payment for camps online. Follow the links below to register online.
If you prefer to pay by check you can contact Derrick Stowell, Director of Education, at
dstowell@utk.edu or (865) 974-7151.
Payment must be received to guarantee your child's space in a camp session.
Campers are divided by the following age groups:
Grands & Me (ages 4-12 and a grandparent)
Lil' Gardeners (ages 4-5)
Explorers (ages 6-10)
Teen Thrive (ages 11-13)
**Please review our cancellation policy before registering**
Grands & Me (ages 4-12 and a grandparent)
Make memories while gardening with your grandchild. These camps give grandparents a chance to be a kid again and experience the UT Gardens with their grandchildren.
Gardening for the Birds
Date: 6/2/17
Time: 9:30 a.m. – 2 p.m.
Cost: $20/members, $25/nonmembers
In this day camp we learn all about birds around the garden. We will learn what birds do for a garden and what gardens can do for birds. We will explore the gardens looking for birds in their natural habitats and how they make their homes. We will also learn how to build a birdhouse/feeder to take home to get your garden ready for the birds of summer!
Fairy Gardens
Registration closed. Camp is full.
Date: 7/21/17
Time: 9:30 a.m. – 2 p.m.
Cost: $20/members, $25/nonmembers
Have you ever wondered where fairies live and how to attract them? Well, look no further than this day camp where young and old can learn all about fairy gardening. We will learn all about fairies, dwarf and miniature plants. Then we will design and maintain the perfect miniature landscape to attract fairies to your garden for all seasons.
Lil' Gardeners (ages 4-5)
Single Day Sessions
How does your Garden Grow?
Date: 6/5/17
Time: 8:30 a.m. – 3:30 p.m.
Cost: $22/members, $26/nonmembers
Children will spend time learning how plants grow in this exciting camp session. Campers will get to help us care for the plants in our Children's Garden. We will also get to harvest and taste some of the things growing in our Kitchen Garden.
Fantastic Beasts & Where to Find Them in the Garden
Date: 7/20/17
Time: 8:30 a.m. – 3:30 p.m.
Cost: $22/members, $26/nonmembers
Enter into the amazing world of the UT Gardens and share in the excitement as Newt Scamander helps us explore the many beasts that we find crawling and flying around the garden. Learn how to help encourage beasts like pollinators and birds in your garden. We will learn ways to help conserve these beasts. Of course we will throw a little magic into the mix also.
Week-long Sessions
Growing Art & Gardens
Dates: 6/12-6/16
Time: 8:30 a.m. – 3:30 p.m.
Cost: $110/members, $130/nonmembers
During this week-long camp, we will learn about plants and gardening through arts, crafts and exploration. We learn about different kinds of plants, gardens and art. Participants will learn how to find art in nature and put nature into art using observation, collection, patterns, and manipulation of found objects to create two and three dimensional art.
Lil' Gardeners on the Farm
Dates: 7/31-8/4/17
Time: 8:30 a.m. – 3:30 p.m.
Cost: $110/members, $130/nonmembers
In this week-long camp, campers will learn about where people get their food. We will explore the ideas of gardening, farming, producers, consumers and food chains. Lil' gardeners will learn to plant vegetables, care for the vegetable garden, harvest, clean, store and prepare summer veggies for snacks! We will also learn about different kinds of food using MyPlate.
Explorers (ages 6-10)
Single Day Sessions
Art in the Garden
Date: 6/1/17
Time: 8:30 a.m. – 3:30 p.m.
Cost: $22/members, $26/nonmembers
Join us for this day camp where we will learn about gardens in art, art in gardens and make art in the gardens. We will look at gardens in artwork throughout art history. Then, we will explore the gardens looking for art. Participants will practice drawing while observing plants in the gardens, use collage to make a plant portrait and learn to make an impressionist inspired landscape drawing. Don't let the idea of creating art intimidate you. This camp will be fun and give you plenty of opportunity to be creative and develop your artistic side.
Week-long Sessions
Fantastic Beasts & Where to Find Them in the Garden
Registration closed. Camp is full.
Dates: 6/26-6/30/17
Time: 8:30 a.m. – 3:30 p.m.
Cost: $110/members, $130/nonmembers
Enter into the amazing world of the UT Gardens and share in the excitement as Newt Scamander helps us explore the many beasts that we find crawling and flying around the garden. Learn how to help encourage beasts like pollinators and birds in your garden. We will learn ways to help conserve these beasts. Of course we will throw a little magic into the mix also.
Cultivating the Edible Garden
Dates: 7/10-7/14/17
Time: 8:30 a.m. – 3:30 p.m.
Cost: $110/members, $130/nonmembers
In this week long camp we will explore the world of edible gardening and foraging in nature. We will learn how to plant, maintain and harvest seasonal vegetable gardens. We will also learn about different ways that people grow vegetables, how to identify them, clean them, prepare and serve them. Participants will learn through exploration of the gardens' plant collections how to forage for unusual edibles.
The Garden as a Science Laboratory
Registration is closed. Camp is full.
Dates: 7/24-7/28/17
Time: 8:30 a.m. – 3:30 p.m.
Cost: $110/members, $130/nonmembers
During this week-long camp, we will learn all about the science behind plants and gardens. Participants will learn how plants grow, the movement of materials through plants, the life cycle of plants, the water cycle, the nitrogen cycle, decomposition and more! In this exciting week of camp participants will learn how to indulge inquiry in the garden, set up simple research experiments, collect and share data! It's never too early to cultivate research gardeners!
Teen Thrive (ages 11-13)
Art & Nature
Registration is closed.
Dates: 6/19-6/23
Time: 8:30 a.m. – 3:30 p.m.
Cost: $110/members, $130/nonmembers
In this week long camp, participants will learn about botany, horticulture, plants and landscaping through creative arts exploration. We will explore the fundamentals of two dimensional art and design, as well as nature art, while learning how to identify, classify and care for plants in the summer landscape. We will look at benchmarks in art history where gardens, plants and people have come together as subjects of art and learn how context informs perceptions of meaning. We will also learn how to mimic the styles of various artists and artworks to create new works of art.
Specialty/Partner Camps
Garden Explorer Camp
Dates: 6/6-6/9/17
Time: 9:00 a.m. - 2:00 p.m.
Cost: Garden member $35 / non-member $45
Grow into a gardener from the ground up with this fun-filled camp hosted by the Knox County UT Extension Master Gardeners. Sow your own seeds to take home. Learn about soils, composting, harvesting, and photosynthesis while exploring the sights, sounds and tastes of the UT Gardens. This camp has a different registration process. Please download the registration form and mail it into the address on the form.
Ages 6-11
Camp Cultivate: Food Allergy Friendly Camp
Dates: 7/17-7/19/17
Time: 9:00 a.m. - noon
Cost: Free
This is an opportunity for kids with food allergies to learn healthy coping skills in a beautiful garden setting. Explore the gardens, learn about plants, make new friends, and join in the fun! Children without allergies are welcome to attend.
Ages 6-12 (Children under 6 may attend with a parent)