School Tours

The May Arboretum offers guided school tours on a limited, first-come, first-serve basis Monday through Thursday at 9:30 and 11:00 a.m. We encourage classroom visits for our self-guided Tree Walk and Wetlands programs. All tours whether they are guided or self-guided require a reservation though the Arboretum office at 785-4153.

Currently we have four programs that we offer for grades K-12.

1) The Natural History of Trees- This includes an introductory talk on trees and tree identification, followed by a walk through the Arboretum looking at and comparing trees both native and introduced to the Great Basin Ecosystem.

2) Trekking the Great Basin Wetlands- The wetlands program has several components involving hands-on activities in the Evans Creek Wetland area including examination and identification of aquatic insects, activities relating to the food web and the benefits of wetlands.

3) Native plants of the Great Basin- This program examines the native flora of the Great Basin with discussion on the uses of plants for food, fiber and medicine. Students will see and learn about cattails, Mormon tea, pinyon pine, and bristlecone pine. There will also be discussions about the natural history of the Great Basin.

4) Walk Trough Time- This program with educational handout and study guide is appropriate for self-guided or guided tours. The handouts locate and chronicle the development of various plants and animals or their modern descendents from the Paleozoic to Holocene that are found in the Great Basin and the Arboretum.