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Kansas City, Mo. – Get outdoors and connect with nature during June with free programs at the Missouri Department of Conservation’s (MDC) Anita B. Gorman Discovery Center in Kansas City. Learn about native plants in the blooming month of June, take a prairie hike, and learn how fireflies manage to light up early summer nights.
The Discovery Center is at 4750 Troost Ave., in the heart of Kansas City. Some programs require registration.
- A Native Landscape Chat is from 1 to 2 p.m. on Friday, June 2. Native Landscape Specialist Alix Daniel notes that during June a new prairie plant seems to bloom every week. This event features a tour of the Discovery Center’s native plant garden and discussions about native plants led by Daniel. Registration is not required. This is a cooperative program with Deep Roots KC.
- Discovery Center will lead two Pride on the Prairie hikes from 10 a.m. to noon and from 5 to 7 p.m. on Saturday, June 10, at public prairie conservation areas near Cole Camp. Instructor will talk about the importance of biodiversity in Missouri’s remnant prairies and restored grasslands. The hike is judgement free and open to all experience levels for participants ages 12 and older. An email will be sent to registrants with directions and car-pooling information. To register for the morning hike, visit https://short.mdc.mo.gov/4dA. To register for the afternoon hike, visit https://short.mdc.mo.gov/4dd. This is a cooperative program with the Missouri Prairie Foundation.
- Learn how to use the sun for printing nature images at three offered sessions for Nature Art: Solar Saturday, on Saturday, June 10.This is the art of creating direct images of found objects from nature using an antique photography process known as cyanotypes. Participants will collect materials in the garden and return to the workshop to create monochromatic images using fabric, sun, and water. This program is for participants ages 18 and older. To register for the sessions: 10 to 11 a.m., https://short.mdc.mo.gov/4dP, and from 11:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m., https://short.mdc.mo.gov/4dW.
- Discovery Center will host an outdoor film showing in a Movie Under the Stars event from 8:30 to 11 p.m. on Tuesday, June 13. This program is in partnership with the Kansas City Police Department. Welcome all ages, registration is not required.
- Learn about Missouri’s only bioluminescent insect at a Fascinating Fireflies program from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Saturday, June 17. This is a walk-in program for all ages, and a chance to make a firefly-inspired lantern. Registration is not required.
- Humans have been using native plants for food, medicine, and shelter for thousands of years. Some species that they used are growing in the Discovery Center’s native plant garden. Learn about Ethnobotany of the Midwest from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Saturday, June 24. This is a walk-in program for all ages. Registration is not required.
To learn more about MDC’s Gorman Discovery Center, visit https://mdc.mo.gov/discoverycenter.
