This page will be updated as events are added. Come back often to see what new programs we have coming up!
Events will meet in the garden near the garden pond unless otherwise noted.
Beal Footprints Walking Tour Series
4th Wednesday of each month, April - October, 2025
12:10 - 1:00 p.m.
Register Here
Join Beal Botanical Garden and Campus Arboretum for lunchtime guided tours on the the fourth Wednesday of each month, April through October, exploring conservation, ecology, and sustainability. These will be walking tours around campus and will always begin at the Beal Pond.
Schedule:
- April 23 - Spring Ephemerals; Carolyn Miller, Arboretum & Invasive Species Coordinator
- May 28 - Plant identification for everyone; Alan Prather, Director
- June 25 - Plants in the eyes of pollinators; Jennifer Apland, MSU Herbarium Collections Coordinator
- July 23 - Topic TBD; Bethany Troy, Botanical Lead & Head Horticulturist
- August 27 - Topic TBD; Katie Fry, Collections Manager
- September 24 - Topic TBD; Katie Fry, Collections Manager
- October 22 - Riverbank restoration and clean-up; Carolyn Miller, Arboretum & Invasive Species Coordinator
Music and the Garden
Select Sundays, June - August, 2025
1:00 - 3:00 p.m.
Come celebrate the ten year anniversary of Music and the Garden! Join us in the garden as we get "Wild at Heart." Each event will feature a theme and partners that reflect the new way we are approaching our plant collections and how we are reimagining the garden.
Dates:
- June 8 - Understanding Our World
- The Red Cedar Quartet (Graduate string quartet)
- June 29 - Nourishing Our World
- Mixed chamber ensemble (piano and other instruments)
- July 13 - Transforming Our World
- Bow & Tonic (jazz fusion trio featuring electric violin, double bass, and keyboard)
- August 10 - Wild at Heart Celebration
- Jazz trio (guitar, double bass, and drums)
This outdoor musical event is a collaboration with the College of Music.
Beal Botanical Garden Tour: Summer Solstice - Celebration and Care
June 12, 2025
12:10 - 1:00 p.m.
Register Here
Join Botanical Lead and Head Horticulturist Bethany Troy for a garden walk learning about the plants used in celebrating the summer solstice, and how to grow and care for them. Meet at the garden pond.
Garden Edition: Deep-Rooted Tour Series
Multiple Dates
1:00 - 2:00 p.m.
Dates:
June 15, 2025 (Register Here)
July 13, 2025 (Register Here)
August 10, 2025 (Register Here)
What can art tell us about the relationship between plants and humans? Join us for the summer garden edition of this popular tour series as we gather in the garden with Maeve Bassett, Applied Ethnobotanist and Education Director. Together, we’ll unearth the historical, social, and political narratives growing within plants in the garden and artworks from the MSU Broad Art Museum’s collection. Registration for this free tour is encouraged.
Deep-Rooted is an ongoing tour collaboration with the Eli and Edythe Broad Art Museum, exploring where art and plants intertwine in a conversation about the extraordinary ways our natural world has influenced art and human societies throughout history.
Photo credit: University Communications and Marketing
Beal Botanical Garden Tour: Etymology and the Naming of Plants
July 10, 2025
12:10 - 1:00 p.m.
Register Here
Join Education Director Maeve Bassett to explore where plants get their names, including the stories of the good, the potentially problematic, the downright weird, and debate common vs. scientific names! Meet at the garden pond.
Conjuring Hope: Deciphering Parables
July 12, 2025
11:00 a.m. - 1:00 p.m.
Register Here
Join Beal Botanical Garden and Dr. Kinitra Brooks (MSU Dept. of English) in a community event diving deep into the concepts of hope, Afrofuturism, and conjure through Octavia Butler's Parable Series. This event will begin with time to explore the graphic novels, Parable of the Sower and Parable of the Talents, in the garden, followed by a group discussion and an opportunity to share your own book recommendations.
Light refreshments will be served and all registered guests may keep the graphic novels and take a plant home to nurture. Supplies are limited, registration is required.
Beal Botanical Garden Tour: Forest Bathing
August 14, 2025
12:10 - 1:00 p.m.
Register Here
Join Community and Sustainability Coordinator Angelica Bajos for a summertime rest. Take time to connect with the garden and indulge your wellbeing through forest bathing invitations. Meet at the garden pond.
Beal Botanical Garden Tour: Gardening for a Better World
September 11, 2025
12:10 - 1:00 p.m.
Register Here
Join Collections Manager Katie Fry for a lunchtime tour exploring plant resiliency and their potential to mitigate climate change. This tour will include ways Beal Botanical Garden and MSU are contributing and practices to be more sustainable. Meet at the garden pond.
Beal Botanical Garden Tour: Taking a 'Peak' of Fall
October 9, 2025
12:10 - 1:00 p.m.
Register Here
Join Botanical Steward and Horticulturist Mackenzie Hiatt for an autumnal garden tour engaging all five senses and embracing seasonal changes. Meet at the garden pond.
