NatureFest at Hagley Encourages Kids to Explore, Experience, and Enjoy our Environment

CONTACT:  Meg Marcozzi, Marketing Manager

                          (302) 658-2400, ext. 238  mmarcozzi@hagley.org

IMMEDIATE RELEASE

NatureFest at Hagley Encourages Kids to Explore, Experience, and Enjoy our Environment

Wilmington, Delaware- April 2012- Hagley Museum and Library presents a new spring event, NatureFest, on Saturday, April 28. NatureFest combines Arbor Day, Earth Day, and May Day celebrations. Hagley’s upper property will host hands-on activities and crafts for families from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Admission to NatureFest is $2 for members, $3 for not-yet members, and free for children five and under. Please use Buck Road Entrance off Route 100. NatureFest is an outdoor event, held rain or shine. Please dress appropriately for outdoor fun.

            Below is a sample of the activities offered at NatureFest:

·         Nature Walks: Visitors will be guided on nature walks in honor of the du Pont family’s annual tradition of searching for the first signs of spring at Hagley.*

·         Tours:  Experience E. I. du Pont’s formal French Garden; the Eleutherian Mills greenhouses; and Hagley’s champion trees, led by Hagley’s knowledgeable gardens and grounds staff.

·         Tree Climbing: Using a climbing harness, kids can scale one of Hagley’s trees.

·         Leaf Rubbings: Children will make rubbings from leaf plates and match them to trees on Hagley’s property.

·         Floriography: Families will discover a Victorian cipher tradition by creating tissue paper flowers in a variety of colors to send a “secret message.”

·         Capillary Action Experiment: Young scientists and their parents can see how capillaries work to transport water throughout a plant.

*Nature hikes are not suitable for strollers or people with difficulty walking.

            NatureFest will also feature hands-on activities, experiments, and displays by the American Chemical Society, 4-H, Girl Scouts of the USA, and Boy Scouts of America.

The Belin House Organic Café will be selling a selection of family-friendly outdoor favorites. Highlights of the menu include hamburgers, hotdogs, and Portobello mushroom burgers, fruit salad, blueberry lemonade, and more.

Hagley Museum and library collects, preserves, and interprets the unfolding history of American enterprise. For more information, call 302-685-2400 weekdays or visit www.hagley.org.

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