Dow Gardens

The kids area is really great for those with kids. They have a section where kids can play with bubbles, a small house, a large garden where kids can water and eventually pluck the vegetables, and do lots of other things. They also have quite a few nice events and it’s very affordable at $ 10 for a year pass.

Beautiful! It is $ 5 or $ 10 for a pass. It is $ 1 with a student ID… College included. If you get the pass, you have access to Whitings Forest too. They are open 7 days a week, from 9am-8:30 pm until September 4^th… then hours shorten. They have a children’s garden, rose garden, waterfall…

Beautiful gardens, perfect for weddings and or just needing to relax. Super cheap to visit and one of my favorite places in Midland.

This is another one of those places (like Grace A Dow Memorial Library next door) that I took for granted until I left Midland and realized that not everywhere has special places like this. So there are perks to growing up in a chemical-​factory wasteland, such as this one.
Every year when I was a child, my mom would buy me the season pass which I pretended was a credit card (so THAT’S who I can blame for my compulsive shopping problem!). I don’t think the price has gone up much in 20 years. I revisited last summer, and found it was as beautiful and historic as I remembered. The butterfly greenhouse is amazing (take children, if they are well-​behaved!), and the old barn which housed all kinds of Dow family memorabilia was fascinating. There was some kind of art-​folk concert going on, but not my cup of tea.

I have been coming to this area for 40+ years, but never visited until last summer.
I have to say this is the best kept secret in all of mid-​Michigan. The gardens are gorgeous, sprawling and not at all crowded. All for $ 5 for adults and $ 1 for kids? Amazing.
Currently, there is a butterfly exhibit in the conservatory.
Run, don’t walk to this wonderful place.