Candles at the Conservatory | Kayla Heffernan of PGH Candle

Friday, Sept. 22 | 5:30 - 8 p.m.

Botany Hall Teaching Kitchen at Phipps Conservatory and Botanical Gardens
$50 members | $60 nonmembers

Join us for a night of candle-making at Phipps Conservatory. You will learn how to make your very own candle, picking from several signature PGH Candle Fall scents. Decorate your candle with locally designed artwork and learn how to reuse and repurpose your candle jar. While your candle is setting, explore the Conservatory at your leisure and pick up your candle on your way out. At the end of the night, you will have a customized soy candle and care card, with a burn time of up to 60 hours. 

This class has been canceled. Please see the 7:30 - 10 p.m. time slot below.

Candles at the Conservatory | Kayla Heffernan of PGH Candle

Friday, Sept. 22 | 7:30 – 10 p.m.

Botany Hall Teaching Kitchen at Phipps Conservatory and Botanical Gardens
$50 members | $60 nonmembers

Join us for a night of candle-making at Phipps Conservatory. You will learn how to make your very own candle, picking from several signature PGH Candle Fall scents. Decorate your candle with locally designed artwork and learn how to reuse and repurpose your candle jar. While your candle is setting, explore the Conservatory at your leisure and pick up your candle on your way out. At the end of the night, you will have a customized soy candle and care card, with a burn time of up to 60 hours.

Registration for this class is now closed. 

Beginner Juniper Bonsai | Kevin Haughey

Saturday, Sept. 23  | 10 a.m. – 12 p.m.

Phipps Garden Center in Mellon Park 
$85 members | $90 nonmembers

Level: Beginner

Bonsai Workshops Master the ancient art of bonsai in our hands-on workshops, and learn the horticultural techniques of styling, wiring, potting and root pruning. Style your own tree and take it home to build your collection. All classes are suitable for beginners. Materials are provided, but bring a pair of hand pruners if you have them. Class size is limited.

This class is now filled. Please email edu@phipps.conservatory.org to be placed on the waiting list.

Pressed Flower Stained Glass | Sarah Cohen - Petal Vision Glass

Thurs., Sept. 28 | 6 – 7:30 p.m.

Phipps Garden Center in Mellon Park 
$75 members | $80 nonmembers

Get crafty with us on a small scale! Learn different techniques with dried and pressed flowers and transform them into a cabinet of curiosities that preserve natural wonders and your memories. Students will learn how to cut sheet glass and foil the edges. Make 2 pieces of your choosing: brooches (pins), magnets, or curious objects. Optional: students may bring their own Poems, handwritten notes, paper collages, cut-outs, decals, magazines, pictures, and thin materials like dried flowers, feathers, or anything sentimental you’d like in the glass.

Mushroom Walk at Frick Environmental Center, Partnered with Pittsburgh Parks Conservancy | Stephen Bucklin

Sat., Sept. 23 | 10 a.m. – 12 p.m.
Walk begins at Frick Environmental Center
$15 members | $20 nonmembers

Join Phipps and Pittsburgh Parks Conservancy as we learn why Pennsylvania is the Mushroom Capital of the World! Stephen Bucklin from the Western PA Mushroom Club will take us through Frick Park to spot the native lichens and polypores that we walk by everyday. Some can be eaten while others play a vital role in the larger ecosystem, and others get munched on by microscopic organisms - the world of fungi is interwoven with interesting facts and otherworldly discoveries. Start your mushroom journey with us today! Walk will be held rain or shine.

This class is now filled. Please email edu@phipps.conservatory.org to be placed on the waiting list.

Backyard Time Machine: Learning Local History in Your Own Garden | Boaz Frankel

Thurs., Sept. 28 | 6:30 – 8 p.m.

Botany Hall Auditorium at Phipps Conservatory and Botanical Gardens
$12.50 members | $15 nonmembers

Gardening is more than arranging plants – it's an act of time travel. Planting an apple tree starts a conversation with Johnny Appleseeed, who collected his seeds in Western Pennsylvania two hundred years ago. Growing a backyard vegetable garden continues a tradition of agriculture brought here by indigenous people thousands of years ago. Nurturing a club moss hearkens back to the tropical forests that grew in this area 250 millions years ago. We’ll explore how the plants in our gardens can teach us about history both local and global in this lively and interactive presentation that concludes with related tastings and hands-on demonstrations.

Dyeing with Fungi | Judith Mackenroth

Mon., Oct. 2 | 6:30 – 8 p.m.

Phipps Garden Center in Mellon Park 
$20 members | $30 nonmembers

Did you know there was another rainbow UNDER your feet? There's an entirely different palette of colors from fungi and lichens. Discover how to use fungi safely and ethically for dyeing. We'll be using a variety of different fungi -- learn how to make several different colors in only one pot, perfect for smaller amounts of dyestuffs. Take home a sample sheet to then recreate your favorite colors with your clothes at home. 

Mushroom Walk at Frick Environmental Center, Partnered with Pittsburgh Parks Conservancy | Stephen Bucklin

Tues., Oct. 3 | 4 – 6 p.m.

Walk begins at Frick Environmental Center
$15 members | $20 nonmembers

Join Phipps and Pittsburgh Parks Conservancy as we learn why Pennsylvania is the Mushroom Capital of the World! Stephen Bucklin from the Western PA Mushroom Club will take us through Frick Park to spot the native lichens and polypores that we walk by everyday. Some can be eaten while others play a vital role in the larger ecosystem, and others get munched on by microscopic organisms - the world of fungi is interwoven with interesting facts and otherworldly discoveries. Start your mushroom journey with us today! Walk will be held rain or shine.

This class is now filled. Please email edu@phipps.conservatory.org to be placed on the waiting list.

Mushroom Fairy Wreath | Sarah Needham

Thurs., Oct. 5 | 6:30 – 8 p.m.

Live webinar presented through Zoom
$30 members | $40 nonmembers | $60 materials and shipping fee

Registration for this class closes on Sept. 25.

This class will teach students how to create a decorated mushroom wreath with elements such as mosses, mushrooms, pods and other forest items. With all of the supplies shipped straight to your door, craft along from the warmth of your home and bring in all the feelings of spring during those cold months. This wreath is perfect for both inside and outside as it will never wilt and has both natural and magical treasures hidden within.

Secret History of Plants (Phipps Walking Tour) | Boaz Frankel

Mon., Oct. 9  | 6:30 – 8 p.m.

Phipps Conservatory and Botanical Gardens
$15 members | $20 nonmembers

This interactive, after-hours tour of the Conservatory will encourage you to think about plants in an entirely new way. Plants aren’t just the building blocks of our gardens – they’re the source of our food, medicine, housing, clothing, culture, and so much more! We’ll stroll through Phipps’ collection and discover how plant and human interactions have shaped our world in surprising ways.

Migratory Bird Walk & Talk in Schenley Park | Dr. Maria Wheeler-Dubas

Sat., Oct. 14 | 8 – 9:30 a.m.

Meet at Center for Sustainable Landscapes classroom at Phipps Conservatory (directions will be sent upon registration)
$10 members | $15 nonmembers

It's that time of year again - birds are flying south for the winter! Migratory birds spend incredible amounts of energy traveling long distances for their seasonal migrations. Learn more about the how and why birds travel thousands of miles just to make the same trip again a few months later. We will start with a classroom introduction to migration and then seek out some feathered neighbors in Schenley Park. Feel free to bring your own binoculars, however a limited number will be available.

This class is now filled. Please email edu@phipps.conservatory.org to be placed on the waiting list.

Beginner Juniper Bonsai | Kevin Haughey

Saturday, Oct. 28 | 10 a.m. – 12 p.m.

Phipps Garden Center in Mellon Park 
$85 members | $90 nonmembers

Level: Beginner

Bonsai Workshops Master the ancient art of bonsai in our hands-on workshops, and learn the horticultural techniques of styling, wiring, potting and root pruning. Style your own tree and take it home to build your collection. All classes are suitable for beginners. Materials are provided, but bring a pair of hand pruners if you have them. Class size is limited.

This class is now filled. Please email edu@phipps.conservatory.org to be placed on the waiting list.

Whimsical Watercolor Mushrooms | Rosalie Haizlett

Thurs., Nov. 2 | 6 – 7:30 p.m.

$40 members | $50 nonmembers

Presented as a live webinar through Zoom

Relevant demos are recorded and made available to pre-registered students within 1 week of each class session. Videos will be viewable for one month from receipt.

With their funky shapes and bright color schemes, painting mushrooms is a delightful pastime that will help you appreciate new facets of the forest throughout all seasons. Join nature illustrator and author Rosalie Haizlett for a 90-minute, beginner-friendly class on how to paint a vibrant watercolor mushroom that can be found in the Central Appalachian region. In addition to guiding you through the step-by-step painting process, she'll also share some of the most unusual fungi that she's found over the years and tips for finding common mushroom species in our region.             

To Follow along, students will need: A Set of Watercolors, 2-3 watercolor brushes of varying sizes including one very thin one (size 1-4 round), Cold-pressed watercolor paper or mixed-media paper, sketching pencil, Eraser, Cup of Water and Paper Towel.

Botanical Art and Illustration elective

Making Masterpieces from Mushrooms (Full Series) | Britt from Flannel Roots Farm

Paper and Ink: Inkcaps - Thurs., Nov. 2 | 6:30 – 7:30 p.m.
Watercolor and Paint - Thurs., Nov. 2 | 6:30 – 8 p.m.
Mushroom Leather: Amadou - Thurs., Nov. 16 | 6:30 – 8 p.m.

Phipps Garden Center in Mellon Park 
Full Series: $160 members | $180 nonmembers

Did you know that you can create watercolors from the mushrooms you find in the forest? Ink from Inkcaps? Even leather from lichens! Join Flannel Roots Farm’s Britt as she discusses the artistic application of mushrooms -- from papermaking to paint, and even the application of mushrooms in her leather smithing. Learn about making pigments and experimenting with your own watercolor, or a more hands-on approach. Take all 3 classes or just one! No matter what you’ll leave with the knowledge of how you can make mushroom art with the free materials all around us!

Making Masterpieces from Mushrooms: Paper and Ink: Inkcaps | Britt from Flannel Roots Farm

Thurs., Nov. 2 | 6:30 – 7:30 p.m.

Phipps Garden Center in Mellon Park 
$20 members | $25 nonmembers | $20 supply fee

Do you have in interest in learning of natural mushroom pigment materials? Why not start with the basics and learn about our commonly found Ink Cap Mushrooms right here in PA! Let’s learn about the properties, process, and stamp mushroom designs with mushroom ink right from the Earth floor. Each guest will take home a one of a kind stamped design (sheet of hand pressed mushroom paper) created with Ink Cap Mushroom ink.

Secret History of Plants (Phipps Walking Tour) | Boaz Frankel

Mon., Nov. 6 | 6:30 – 8 p.m.

Phipps Garden Center in Mellon Park 
$15 members | $20 nonmembers

This interactive, after-hours tour of the Conservatory will encourage you to think about plants in an entirely new way. Plants aren’t just the building blocks of our gardens – they’re the source of our food, medicine, housing, clothing, culture, and so much more! We’ll stroll through Phipps’ collection and discover how plant and human interactions have shaped our world in surprising ways.

Making Masterpieces from Mushrooms: Watercolor and Paint | Britt from Flannel Roots Farm

Thurs., Nov. 9 | 6:30 – 8 p.m.

Phipps Garden Center in Mellon Park 
$30 members | $35 nonmembers | $30 supply fee

From spore to canvas let’s take a dive into the natural pigmentation of mushrooms and its watercolor application! Let’s learn how mushrooms can be used in everyday all natural pigments to create our our watercolor palettes. We will walk through the uses of mushrooms, how to obtain natural foraged colors, processing to pigments, and color mixing techniques/recipes. Each guest will hand mix their own natural paints palettes and be given a sheet of hand pressed mushroom paper to complete a mushroom permaculture piece of their own. Guests will take home both paints and pieces created. 

Making Masterpieces from Mushrooms: Mushroom Leather: Amadou | Britt from Flannel Roots Farm

Thurs., Nov. 16 | 6:30 – 8 p.m.

Phipps Garden Center in Mellon Park 
$30 members | $35 nonmembers | $40 supply fee

Mushrooms are amazing replacements of everyday things including the all time classic material leather! Let’s learn about the specific mushroom known as the Amadou that has been used for centuries for well known leather applications, most famously in haberdashery. We will go over some basic leather crafting skills and create one of a kind mushroom “leather” keychains/small crafts as take home from this workshop. Guests will take home a workshop crafted keychain made of Amadou leather. 

Introduction to Printmaking: Focus on Fungi | Lisa Rasmussen

Saturdays: Sept. 16, 23 and 30 | 9 a.m. – 12 p.m.

Phipps Garden Center in Mellon Park 
$70 members | $85 nonmembers | Optional supply fee: $115

The supply fee option will close on Sept. 8. Supplies can be purchased through Phipps or independently.

Supply list (PDF)

In this introductory course, we will create a one-color mushroom that can be printed multiple times. This course will take you through the multi-step process of creating a design, carving a plate and printing your design using the linoleum block method of printmaking. This process will be a different way of thinking about creating an image in that you will need to be very aware of the positive and negative spaces you create. 

Fantastic Fungi Screening

Thurs., Nov. 30 | 7:30 – 9 p.m.

Botany Hall Auditorium at Phipps Conservatory and Botanical Gardens
$10 members | $15 nonmembers

Delve into the magical world of Fungi while snacking on mushroom-salted popcorn – from mushrooms that clear oil spills to underground fungal networks that help trees to communicate; come be mystified by the magic of mushrooms.