This weekend at MUCBO we held the Spring Night at the Museum; more than forty children enjoyed a night sleeping very close to science, with activities and games in the evening and in the morning. Taking advantage of the garden being at its most lush time of the year, the activities in this edition focused on botany, learning about the plants of Mallorca—what they are like, where they live, and how to tell them apart.
On Saturday evening, from 7:00 p.m., the registered children began to arrive. Shortly after leaving their sleeping bags and mats on the upper floor of the museum, and making the most of the long daylight hours, we went out to the garden to learn about plant herbariums. We saw how a plant press works, what an herbarium is used for in research, and how we can make one ourselves. Afterwards, each child created their own herbarium with plants from the garden—a small collection to take home and complete with plants they find during the spring and summer.
Then it was time for dinner, and afterwards it was already time to put on pajamas and go back downstairs to watch a movie (and eat lots of popcorn!). Before going to sleep, the Lorax reminded us of the importance of protecting trees!
Early in the morning, everyone had breakfast and then we began the activities we had prepared: a botanical Cluedo! A tricky plant had stolen the garden key and hidden it inside a chest. At different points in the garden, following clues, we ruled out the innocent plants as we learned about their biology. The culprit was none other than the orchid Ophrys tenthredinifera (sawfly orchid). So used to deceiving insects, it had fooled us too. Working together, we managed to recover the key, and everyone received a gift for completing all the challenges.
And with the butterfly gift in one hand, the sleeping bag in the other, and backpacks on their shoulders, the children were ready for their families to come and pick them up. Until next time!
