Garden Overview Tour
Daily (30 minutes)

Take a guided orientation of the plant material and architecture of America's oldest landscaped garden. Tours depart daily at 10:00am - 3:00pm from the benches on the greensward adjacent to the North Flanker Ruins (map location #2).

Birds of the Lowcountry
Available by reservation - 266-7492

Tread lightly on Middleton's lowland sanctuary as a naturalist guides you to our most spectacular spots for viewing birds. Learn how to identify some of our most common species from the graceful great egret to the majestic osprey and look for migratory waterfowl landing on our ricefields!

Wildflower Walk
Seasonal - Available by reservation - 266-7492

In the spring months of March and April, join a Naturalist on a walk to one of the most unique and specialized ecosystems at Middleton, the Beech forest. Participants will discover natural blooming beauties including: Little Sweet Betsy, Jack in the Pulpit and Bloodroot. This one-hour tour departs the Visitor's Center.

Waterfowl Watch
Seasonal - Available by reservation- 266-7492

This seasonal walk will open your eyes to the many fascinating habits of our favorite- feathered friends, the ducks! Learn the basics of migration patterns, identifying characteristics, courtship and feeding behavior from one of our naturalists.

Wild Edibles and Medicinal Plant Walk
Available by reservation - 266-7492

Discover which Low Country plants can entice your pallet or cure your cold while walking through some of the more "wild" spots in the garden.  Naturalists will explain how throughout history, humans have used some of the native plants that grow here.

This interpretive tour focuses on the lives of the African American slaves and freedmen that lived and worked at Middleton Place and their contributions to the Low Country culture.  Interpreters explore domestic life, rice cultivation, religion and spiritually as well as the role of the slaves in creating and maintaining the landscaped Gardens.

Camellia Walk
Every Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday in Feb and March 11am
Advance reservations required - 556-6020 

Special guided tours focus on camellias throughout the original gardens as well as the "new" camellia garden of the 1950s.  Middleton Place has hundreds of varieties, including the 1786 Reine des Fleurs, one of the first camellias planted in America.  Tours begin at the Garden Market & Nursery and last 1 1/2 hours.

Sheep and Wool Days
Saturday, April 25 and Sunday, April 26

Experience the joys of sheep and the crafts made from their wool during Sheep and Wool Days at Middleton Place. See sheep dogs herding and sheep being sheared and bathed. Artisans will be dyeing, spinning, weaving and knitting with wool. Adults may participate in a wine and sheep cheese tasting while children enjoy fun activities making crafts out of wool. For tickets, call 843-266-7489

Spoleto Finale
Sunday, June 13

Bring a blanket and picnic supper to enjoy under the live oaks on the Middleton Place Greensward. The Spoleto Festival concludes with a concert by the Festival Orchestra performed under the stars and followed by a dazzling display of fireworks. Tickets available through the Spoleto Festival Box Office or at the ticket gate the evening of the event.

Interactive Rice Harvest
September 18, 21, 29

Its harvest time on the plantation!  Join a costumed interpreter at the rice field overlook as he describes and demonstrates how Carolina Gold rice was harvested on Low Country plantations. This interactive program will also enable participants to understand how the grain went from the field to the plate as they learn about the laborious task of processing the grain after harvest.

Plantation Days
Saturday, October 16 & Sunday, October 17
Saturday, November 6 & Sunday, November 7 

Craft workers demonstrate the skills practiced by slaves as they prepared the antebellum plantation for harvest time.  Each Saturday a different aspect of 18th and 19th-century plantation life will be explored:  Domestic Skills, African American Traditional Arts, Low Country Food ways and the Plantation Natural Environment.  For more information call (843) 556-6020.

Family Yuletide
Saturday, December 11

Families can enjoy storytelling around a warm fire, Christmas caroling, ornament and wreath making, candle dipping, a live nativity scene featuring many of the plantation's animals, and craftspeople working in their shops.  Hot cider and seasonal refreshments are also included.  Advance ticket purchase required. $10 per adult, $5 per child ages 7-15 and children 6 & under are free.  Call (843) 556-6020.

Cypress Swamp Kayak  Tour
Jan-May

Explore a magical 1,100 acre cypress swamp by kayak and discover the plants and animals that thrive under the 120 ft tall trees on a Cypress

A qualified naturalist will give basic safety and paddling instruction before leading a small group into a flooded tupelo and cypress filled forest.  Learn about swamp ecology during the tour with a chance to  see various bird species including wood ducks, eastern  phoebes, prothonotary warblers, pileated woodpeckers and nesting red shouldered hawks. 

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