Greater Boston and Cambridge are home to nature and science centers
125 Arborway
Jamaica Plain, MA 02130
Phone: 617-524-1718
This 265 acre site is part of the emerald necklace of Boston parks designed in the late 1800s by Frederick Law Olmsted. The arboretum is a major center for plant research, with about 14,000 woody plants representing nearly 5,000 botanical classifications. The living collection is supported by comprehensive documentation, herbaria containing more than 1.3 million specimens, extensive library and archival holdings, and a state-of-the-art research center. The Visitor Center has maps and self-guided tour brochures; exhibits about the Arboretum and plants, and seasonal art exhibitions; a shop featuring books and educational items for children and adults; activities for children; and restrooms.
Hours: Grounds open year-round, daily, sunrise to sunset. Visitor Center open 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. weekdays; 10 a.m.-4 p.m. Saturdays; and noon-4 p.m. Sundays. Closed holidays.
Admission: Free.
Blue Hills Trailside Museum
1904 Canton Avenue
Milton, MA
Phone: 617-333-0690
Museum offers hiking trails, live animals and regularly scheduled programs. There is an admission charge.
Broadmoor Wildlife Sanctuary
280 Eliot Street
Natick, MA
Phone: 508-655-2296
At this sanctuary, visitors can enjoy nine miles of hiking trails, in addition to lectures and other programs in a renovated horse barn.
Charles River Reservation
Boston, MA
Phone: 617-698-1802
This natural refuge offers canoeing, hiking, fishing, cross-country skiing, and more. Interpretive programs are scheduled there throughout the year.
180 Hemenway Road
Framingham, MA 01701
Phone: 508-877-7630
The New England Wild Flower Society maintains this garden, the largest landscaped collection of native plants in the northeastern United States. This ever-changing living museum—New England’s premier wildflower garden—has more than 1,000 native plant species, with many rare and endangered native specimens throughout the gardens, as well as the unique New England Rare Plant Garden.
Hours: April 14–October 31; Tuesdays through Sundays; 9 a.m.-5 p.m. After October, trails close for the season. Museum Shop remains open with winter hours. Guided walks offered free with admission Tuesdays through Fridays at 10 a.m. and Saturdays and Sundays at 2 p.m.
Admission: Adults over age 18, $10; seniors over age 65, $7; youths age 3-17, $5
26 Oxford Street
Cambridge, MA 02138
Phone: 617-495-3045
Fax: 617-496-8782
Dinosaurs, Glass Flowers, Meteorites – Explorers Welcome
There is always something interesting to see and learn at the Harvard Museum of Natural History on Oxford Street in Cambridge on the historic Harvard campus. Lectures on fascinating subjects by authors and scientists – nature drawing classes -- are ongoing. In addition to the Blaschka Glass Flowers, new and changing exhibitions include New England Forests, Language of Color, Headgear, and the renovated Great Mammal Hall. Explore hundreds of animals, birds, and rare minerals in 17 galleries. For more information follow our link above or phone (617)495-3045
Moose Hill Wildlife Sanctuary
293 Moose Hill Street
Sharon, MA
Phone: 617-784-5691
The Massachusetts Audubon Society operates this nature center, the oldest in the state founded in 1916. There is an admission charge.
180 Hemenway Road
Framingham, MA 01701
Phone: 508-877-7630
Fax: 508-877-3658
The magnificent native plant botanical museum, Garden in the Woods, displays over 1,000 native plant species including over 150 rare and endangered species on 45 acres. Hours: April 15- October 31, Tuesday through Sunday plus Holiday Mondays 9 a.m.- 5 p.m. April 15-July 3, extended hours Thursday and Friday evenings until 7 p.m. After October, trails close for the season. Fee charged.
Stony Brook Nature Center
North Street
Norfolk, MA
Phone: 508-528-3140
This nature center includes a self-guided hiking trail. An extensive boardwalk system lets you walk along the edge of Teal Marsh.
Stony Brook Reservation
Turtle Pond Parkway
Hyde Park, MA
Phone: 617-698-1802
A 475-acre park and wildlife refuge, featuring fishing areas, biking and hiking trails, public swimming, and picnic areas. Programs are scheduled there throughout the year.
106 Central Street
Wellesley, MA 02481
Phone: 781-283-3049
The Margaret C. Ferguson Greenhouses contain over 1000 specimens of desert, tropical and semi-tropical species. The Alexandra Botanic Garden and Hunnewell Arboretum offer hundreds of specimen trees and shrubs in 22 acres of Olmsted-inspired landscape.
Hours: Year-round, daily, 8 a.m.-4 p.m.
