Party For The Planet April 23 & 24

Flower

“Party for the Planet”Sponsored by Xcel Energy & Summer Flower Show Opening

A Weekend ‘Earth Day’ celebration April 21 and 22

April 22, 2022 marks the 52nd anniversary of Earth Day, a global celebration that also reminds us what we can do to protect the planet’s most precious resources. At Como Park Zoo and Conservatory, we invite the public to a “Party for the Planet” presented by Xcel Energy, on April 23 & 24 from 10-4 each day. Bring the family for a fun weekend of activities, crafts and education programs that explore animals, plants and people that depend on this big blue ball. You’ll leave with some great ideas for reducing your own impact on the planet, and improving our natural habitats.

Our presenting sponsor Xcel Energy will be bringing their 110sq foot Tiny House. Find out how easy it is to make energy efficiency improvements in homes both large and small. Also, check out the Xcel Energy Light Board and learn more about LED lighting and ways to conserve energy. And for even more planet-friendly ideas be sure to ask about Renewable*Choice – a range of renewable energy programs to best fit your individual lifestyle.

If the Party For The Planet’s not enough to get you to Como, maybe this is: it is the first weekend of the Summer Flower Show! The 2019 Summer Flower Show main feature a color scheme of purple, lavander, and peach provided by an array of flowers including roses, lilies, heliotrope, lemon verbena, begonias, foxglove, lewisia, caladium, cuphea, and snapdragons. The final day of the Spring Flower Show is April 21. The Sunken Garden will be closed Monday, April 22-Friday, April 26 to prepare for the Summer Flower Show.

Reduce, Reuse, Recycle at Como

Party for the Planet isn’t just fun and games—it’s also a great way to learn more about simple ways you can make a difference.

• Have an old cell phone? Drop it in our recycling collection bin in the Visitor Center. Como partners with Eco-Cell for this recycling effort, where proceeds help invest in preserving one of the most critically endangered species on earth, the orangutan. Recycling these items at Como prevents toxic batteries from harming our earth when land-filled and helps to reduce the need to mine coltran, a product used in making cell phones and small handheld electronics that is often illegally mined in an area of Africa that is home to endangered gorillas.

Party for the Planet – Daily Schedule

10:30 Polar Bear Program……….Polar Bear Odyssey

11:00 Zookeeper Talk: Pollinator Evolution………Visitor Center Lobby

11:30 Gorilla Program…….Gorilla Forest

12:00 Story Time: One Plastic Bag………Visitor Center Lobby

1:00 Gardener Talk: Sunken Garden Show Change…….Sunken Garden

2:00 Gorilla Program…………..Gorilla Forest

2:30 Polar Bear Program………….………Polar Bear Odyssey

All Day: First Weekend of the Summer Flower Show………..…Sunken Garden

On Sunday, April 28 at 1:30, The Merry Minstrels (kids from St John the Baptist school in New Brighton, MN) will be entertaining the crowds with English Morris Dancing!

Also on Sunday at 10:30, join us for “Como: Making A Global Impact“. This week features Zookeeper Liz who recently spent time working in Costa Rica at the Alturas Wildlife Sanctuary. Come hear her stories and how her work in Costa Rica ties in with her work at Como Zoo. Yes, there will be adorable sloth photos!