School classes and other groups can request private docent-led tours of the Botanic Garden by special arrangement. Tours can be tailored to suit the group's specific needs or interests. A minimum of 4 weeks advance notice for all docent-led tours is required.

General tours focus on the history and collection of the Garden. Explore California's native plants from different regions of the state: desert, mountains, coast, valleys, and islands. With additional preparation time, docents can give tours focused on a particular interest requested by a school or group.

You can also request one of the following themed tours:

• Pollination - Dissect a California poppy, watch pollinators at work, learn how seeds disperse. Spring flowers erupt in the garden calling all butterflies, birds, beetles, and bees.

• Plant Adaptations to Habitat - See plants in a wide variety of habitats from desert to high mountains. Learn how plants adapt to different amounts of sun, wind, water, and varying temperatures. Why do some plants have big fleshy leaves while others are tiny and leathery?

• Sensory - Explore the garden with hands, nose, ears, and eyes. Smell the sages, feel soft hazel leaves, listen to quaking aspen, look for crayfish in the creek and newts in the pond.

• California Native People and Plants (90 minutes required) - Grind acorns, wash your hands with soap root, and play the staves game. See artifacts and the plants that were used to make them. What is pinole?

For more information, click one of the following links. For general questions, call (510) 544-3169.

• School tours

• Group tours