Learn 

The Civic Garden Center offers plenty of ways to learn about what interests you!

K-12 Opportunities

We offer many learning opportunities for K-12 students, including field trips, school garden lessons and more.

Classes & Events

We pride ourselves on being a place for our community to gather and learn together. Online learning is great, but it’s hard to replace the experience of tackling a subject side-by-side with others in real time. You can see what's coming up on our schedule in calendar or list form. Our classes and events fall into six main categories:

• Gardening and Horticulture: At the CGC, gardening is in our roots. Whether you’re a newcomer preparing to plant your first garden, an experienced gardener starting a community garden, or a seasoned horticulturalist hoping to curtail your use of insecticides and pesticides, we have something for you. The CGC offers classes, workshops and lectures throughout the year that provide everything from basic how-to information to cutting-edge techniques and methods useful to gardeners of all levels and interests.

• Ecology: Being good gardeners and responsible stewards of the land starts with a solid understanding of our local ecology. The CGC is here to help you discover the role plants, insects, wildlife, birds, fungi and other organisms play in our Ohio River Valley ecosystem—and to understand how vital biodiversity is for our own well-being.

• Sustainable Living: Sustainable living is the practice of reducing your demand for natural resources by making sure that you replace what you use to the best of your ability. Creating a sustainable lifestyle takes a lifelong commitment—to learning, experimenting, exploring and adopting increasingly sustainable practices. The CGC support you in discovering how to change the way you do things so that you can become a more active part of the cycle of life.

• Homesteading: Whether you're looking to keep bees organically, make natural dyes from plants and vegetables, or make your own rain barrel, we’re your DIY learning center. Make the most of your urban or suburban landscape and learn to become more self sufficient through our Homesteading workshops.

• Health, Wellness & Cooking: Learn to support your health with plants, cook a delicious meal, or discover how being outdoors in nature can benefit your body and mind through our Health, Wellness & Cooking classes. Our programs include topics like meditation in the garden, making herbal body products, and how to cook what’s in season in our region.

• Art & Music in the Garden: Looking to enhance your artistic talents to capture your garden's beauty? Use objects from everyday life to create three-dimensional garden art? Relax in our Hauck Botanic Garden and enjoy some Bach? Our Art & Music in the Garden classes and events provide a wonderful opportunity to learn and engage with other curious and creative people under the tutelage of excellent instructors, artists and musicians.

Certifications

The CGC offers or recommends a number of certifications to those interested. Programs include:

• Compost Pro

• Community Garden Development Training

• Master Rain Gardener

• Master Gardener

• Ohio Certified Volunteer Naturalist

• Growing Our Teachers

Please see each program's page for more details.

Online Resources

Over the years, we've amassed quite a few resources in the form of PDFs, articles, classes and videos, and we’re always adding more. You'll find them here.