Remember, two children aged 16 and under can enter for free with every adult ticket. Additional children’s tickets can be purchased for €5.
Budding Bloomers Activities
With range of activities to grow, craft, and learn, there is much to inspire and engage our Budding Bloomers this year.
Paddy Courtney’s Planting Patch
Actor, screenwriter, and sowing and growing advocate, Paddy Courtney returns to Bloom once again to share his love of planting with children of all ages and abilities. His Planting Patch is always a huge hit with our junior visitors, just be prepared to get your hands dirty!
Dublin City Library
Dublin City Library is back with its ‘Library in the Community’ outreach service. At the pop-up library, you can join the library service for free and borrow books which can be returned to any public library after the festival. There’s also garden-themed colouring activities and fun outdoor games.
Westcountry Willows
Roscommon basketmakers Westcountry Willows are returning to share their skills and traditions. This year they will teach visitors of all ages how to make beautiful bird feeders with foliage gathered from the wild.
Budding Bloomers Arts & Crafts Corner
Budding artists can unleash their creativity in our Arts & Crafts Corner. Here they can take part in a number of fun projects, from crafting flowers and butterflies to making kites.
Face Painting
Two face painters are stationed in the Budding Bloomers Children’s Area for the duration of Bord Bia Bloom. To keep queues short, there is a selection of five or six designs to choose from.
Budding Bloomers Stage
The Budding Bloomers Children’s Stage, sponsored by the Road Safety Authority, returns with a rip-roaring programme of educational entertainment over five fun-filled days of Bloom.
Bat Conservation Ireland
The team from Bat Conservation Ireland are joining us on the Budding Bloomers Stage this year to talk about all things bats. With plenty of fun games and activities planned, you’ll learn all about how bats live in the wild.
Bitesize Biodiversity
In another new addition to the Budding Bloomers’ programme, Bitesize Biodiversity educators will take to the stage to discuss the Garden’s Hidden Heroes. This is a fun, interactive session with lots of audience engagement designed to teach all about the importance of biodiversity.
Scientific Sue
She’s back! Always a favourite at Bloom each year, Scientific Sue is returning with her Bubbling Botanicals performance. Discover how seaweed and plant-based polymers create giant bubbles, explore the role of yeast in fermentation, and experiment with botanical bath bomb reactions. This interactive science lab is packed with surprises, revealing the incredible chemistry hidden in everyday plants. The grand finale? A stunning giant bubble to leave you in awe!
Paddy Courtney’s Planting Fun
Paddy chats all about plants; how to grow them and why we need them. After the performance, Paddy and his team are on hand to help any young visitors who would like to try planting their own to bring home.
The Cool Food School
Join Deirdre, a food educator, children’s cookbook author and blogger from the multi-award-winning The Cool Food School, for some food fun. Here you can learn how to explain a tomato to an alien, find the ‘blue’ tomato, and make a simple tomato recipe!
Agri Aware
Agri Aware is presenting two talks and demonstrations on the Budding Bloomers Stage this year. ‘Tracing Our Food’s Journey’ explores the path our food takes from Irish farms to our plates. It highlights the wide variety of delicious fruits and vegetables grown right here in Ireland and why choosing local matters.
‘Sowing & Growing: Simple Steps to Success’ is an engaging talk on the art of sowing and growing plants which is perfect for beginners! You will be guided through the essentials of planting, nurturing, and caring for your seeds, with a quick hands-on demonstration to show you how easy it is to start growing at home.
Story Time with Dublin City Library
Dublin City Library’s storyteller-in-residence, actor Aisling Breen, is joining us on the Budding Bloomers Stage for story time again this year.
Buskers
The Bloom Buskers are playing on stage over the course of the weekend and are bringing percussion instruments for the audience to join in.
