Fun at the Botanical Garden

Enlarge Image Image Gallery This Buddha was created by Nicki de Saint Phalle as a gift to a Japanese art collector who has purchased many of her sculptures. The exhibit, Nicki in the Garden, continues through October 31 at the Missouri Botanical Garden in St. Louis. Courtesy Missouri Botanical Garden/Heather Marie Osborn

The world-renowned Missouri Botanical Garden in St. Louis offers 79 acres of blooms, new exhibits, free concerts and events and more this summer. The garden is open 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. daily, with extended hours until 8 p.m. on Wednesdays from Memorial Day through Labor Day.

Roses, the favorite flower of garden founder Henry Shaw, bloom all summer. Climbing varieties cover the circular white fence and trellises of the Gladney Rose Garden. The Lehmann Rose Garden features the newest rose hybrids.

A new addition to the Garden is the Niki pop art exhibition of 40 imaginative sculptures created from fiberglass, glass, mirrors, ceramic tiles and semi-precious stones. Many of the works are meant to be touched or explored from the inside out. The exhibition is open daily and on “Niki Nights” from 5 to 9 p.m. Thursdays.

The popular Whitaker Music Festival outdoor concert series returns on Wednesday evenings through August 13. Music begins at 7:30 p.m., with free admission after 5 p.m. The Doris I. Schnuck Children’s Garden is open on concert nights and free from 5 to 7 p.m.

Throughout the summer, Great Green Adventures family programs will be offered inside the 2-acre Children’s Garden from 10 a.m. to noon on Tuesdays through Fridays, and from 1 to 3 p.m. Saturdays. Summer day camps and programs for all ages are offered in June and July; call 314-577-9506 or visit the Web site at www.MOBOT.org/education.

The Arbor Day Foundation’s interactive traveling exhibit, “Exploring Trees Inside and Out,” presented by Doubletree, allows visitors to climb into a large oak, explore the inside of an oversized leaf, crawl through a giant log and more through September 1 inside the Brookings Interpretive Center.

At the Garden through Aug. 17 is Seasons of the Heartland, an exhibition of stunning photos of Missouri and Illinois landscapes, from the pages of Midwest Living magazine.

A narrated tram tour offers a way to see much of the grounds in just 30 minutes. Hop off at Tower Grove House for a free guided tour through Mr. Shaw’s country estate. Stroll through the pincushion gardens, maze and gorgeous flower beds of the newly renovated Doris Waters Lichtenstein Victorian District, to be dedicated June 13. Nearby, more than 1,250 varieties of daylilies reach peak bloom in June and July. Head to the Cherbonnier English Woodland Garden for a cool and shady respite under the trees, then explore the Japanese Garden, Seiwa-en, to find sacred lotus rising from the muddy lake waters, blooming in June.