Top Things to Do at Powell Gardens in 2025 

The new year is full of possibilities, including opportunities to explore more, to take those plant classes you’ve been putting off, and to experience a deep connection with the natural world.  

The best place in Kansas City to experience all three is Powell Gardens, Kansas City’s botanical garden. With an exciting 2025 line up, Kansas City’s botanical garden offers events and activities for all ages to discover.  

Check our seasonal guide of top things to do at Powell Gardens in 2025.  

Top Things to Do in Spring 

The spring season brings delights in every color from emerging blooms to special exhibitions and festivals. Step back into nature after a long winter with Kansas City’s botanical garden. 

Check out Powell Gardens’ top four spring events along with kid and adult friendly activities.  

Top Four Spring Events 

Orchid Delirium (March 1-April 13)
Orchid Delirium, an indoor exhibition featuring hundreds of unique orchids, draws inspiration from Victorian-era fascination with the flower that led to a collecting hysteria.

New in 2025, the Conservatory features updated displays of ethereal orchids and companion plants centered around a staged orchid hunter’s encampment. In the Perennial Lounge, discover a display inspired by Victorian sun parlors and Wardian cases. Don’t forget to stop by the Lab (Visitor Center) for pop-up kid-friendly activities from story time to nature-themed crafts and Explorer Backpacks, which can be picked up in The Marketplace at Powell Gardens.

Brush up on your orchid knowledge by visiting Powell Gardens’ Gardening 101 series where we explore Cattleya orchids and Powell Gardens’ orchid greenhouse.  

Watch Gardening 101: Cattleya Orchids

Watch Gardening 101: Orchid Greenhouse Tour

Daffodil Days (March 26-April 6)
Daffodil Days features more than 100,000 daffodils emerging in a variety of locations. In-person and digital education opportunities available. 

Painted Garden (April 26-June 15)
Imagine Powell Gardens as a gallery and celebrate joy and color with inventive botanical displays, spring blooms, and works of art. New in 2025, Tyler Kimball (Monarch Glass Studio) takes over the Conservatory with a brand-new installation! 

Conifer Tips (April 30-May 11)
Powell Gardens will highlight its conifer collection during Conifer Tips! Learn about what makes Coniferae special and see unique features from the Powell Gardens collection. 

Top Activities for Adults 

1. Grab your loved ones for a Garden Tea morning with botanically inspired tea with bubbly, blooming tea, and scrumptious goodies.  
2. Tap into your creative side with a spring art class for adults. These botanically inspired art classes are the perfect way to learn a new skill and get in touch with the natural world.  
3. Join Tyler Kimball for an Artist Brunch (April 26, 2025). Kimball will discuss his special installation in Powell Gardens’ Conservatory. Tickets on sale soon! 
4. Attend the fourth-annual Orchid Symposium (March 29) with orchid presentations and hands-on demonstrations. 

Top Activities for Kids 

1. Orchid Delirium for Kids features pop-up children’s activities such as Young Explorer Backpacks and educational moments in the Lab (located in the Visitor Center).
2. Introduce art and nature with a spring art class for kids (recommended age varies). 
3. Family Programming (ages 7 and under) introduces young attendees to bees, spring flowers, and frogs and tadpoles through story time, crafts, a snack, and an adventure!  
4. Bring the whole family to celebrate the mother figure in your life with Powell Gardens’ Mother’s Day Weekend. Moms receive free admission and can purchase tickets for a special Mother’s Day Brunch. Tickets on sale soon! 

Top Things to Do in Summer 

This sunny season, join Powell Gardens for Summer Fun at Powell Gardens featuring Painted Garden (through June 15), Fortopia, Festival of Butterflies, and more! Check out Powell Gardens’ top five spring events along with kid and adult friendly activities. 

Top Five Summer Events 

Desert Days (June 17-29)
Desert Days brings the arid climate and its botanical treasures to visitors! Look for creative displays featuring Powell Gardens’ cacti and succulent collection.

Wildflower Week (July 7-16)
Enjoy the beauty of the Midwest landscape with Wildflower Week! Featuring native plant displays, two meadows, and more, celebrate these important blooms at Powell Gardens.

Native plants are a crucial aspect of the Midwest’s ecosystem and Powell Gardens’ Gardening 101 series is the perfect place to start your learning journey.

Watch Gardening 101: Native Plants 

Festival of Butterflies (July 17-August 3)
Step into the magical world of pollinators and enjoy opportunities to learn more about these important creatures. Can’t wait for Festival of Butterflies? Check out Powell Gardens’ Gardening 101 series, where we discuss different types of native butterflies.  

Watch Gardening 101: Native Butterflies

Waterlily Wonders (August 5-17)
Lotus, waterlilies, and carnivorous plants, with their vibrant colors and unique structures, will be on display at Powell Gardens! Discover more about these important collections. 

Check out our Gardening 101 video series for more educational content!  

Watch Gardening 101: Aquatic Plants

Top Activities for Adults 

1. Enjoy a botanically inspired craft with a summer art class for adults. 
2. Immerse yourself in a delicious meal and learning opportunities as Cultural Nights return to Festival of Butterflies. Tickets on sale soon! 
3. Impress your friends with plant knowledge by diving into a Summer Symposium. Tickets on sale soon!  

Top Activities for Kids 

1. Visit a collection of life-size forts at Fortopia! Designed with play in mind, this exhibition on the East Lawn encourages imagination and outdoor discovery. 
2. Let imaginations run wild with a summer art class for kids, featuring botanically inspired crafts perfect for rain or shine. 
3. Cool off at the Fountain Garden, featuring 56 spray heads in a 42-foot diameter interactive water feature.  

Top Things To Do in Fall 

The Midwest provides a peak fall experience, and Kansas City’s botanical garden is the perfect place for atmospheric scenery and enjoying the crisp fall air. Check out Powell Gardens’ top fall evening events along with kid and adult friendly daytime activities. 

Dark Forest
Step into spooky season with an immersive walkthrough experience in the woods, presented in partnership with Quixotic. Dark Forest (October 17-18, 23-25, 31, and November 1) offers visitors an eerie evening escape full of unique performances and unforgettable multimedia displays.  

Top Activities for Adults 

1. Complete the seasonal symposium series by attending Powell Gardens’ Fall Symposium. Tickets on sale soon! 
2. Don’t forget to add a craft to your autumn to do list with a fall art class for adults. Tickets on sale soon! 
3. Family Programming (ages 7 and under) introduces young attendees to the wonders of nature through story time, crafts, a snack, and an adventure! Tickets on sale soon! 
4. Hike the Byron Shutz Trail System, including the Prairie Ridge Trail (3.25 miles). Discover a variety of ecosystems and native plants along the way. 

Top Activities for Kids 

1. Fall art class for kids 
2. Take the family leaf peeping and discover the vibrant colors of fall across the Midwest landscape. 
3. Hike the Family Discovery Loop (1-mile trail) and explore a variety of ecosystems along the way. 

Top Things to Do in Winter 

Close out the year with evenings of garden magic only at Kansas City’s botanical garden. Festival of Lights (November 20-January 3) brings light and natural joy to wintry nights, complete with a variety of light displays inspired by the forms within a slumbering botanical garden. 

Top Activities for Adults 

1. Don’t miss your last chance at enhancing your art skills with a winter art class for adults. 
2. Enjoy an evening stroll through the Gardens surrounded by the magic of twinkling lights and inventive displays. Festival of Lights is the perfect activity for the entire family! 

Top Activities for Kids 

1. Beat the winter blues by signing the kids up for a winter art class, the last of our botanically inspired series for 2025. Tickets on sale soon! 
2. Step into Santa’s Workshop complete with letter-writing stations and Santa himself! Santa and Mrs. Claus appear on select nights during the festival. Tickets on sale soon.  

Powell Gardens brings a little garden magic to every season! Our guide for all things fun is only a snapshot of the endless opportunities that await. Your next adventure is just around the corner at Kansas City’s botanical garden.