I continue to discover the many wonderful benefits of Friends of the Oak Park Conservatory (FOPCON) membership.
Some highlights of membership include discounts on popular summer ticketed events such as the Friday musical evenings at Uncorked in the Oak Park Conservatory gardens and the inspiring annual Oak Park/River Forest Garden Walk.
As a family, we have enjoyed complimentary visits to several gardens with reciprocal privileges for FOPCON members over the past few years, including the Lincoln Park and Garfield Conservatories in Chicago, as well as the outstanding Coastal Maine Botanical Gardens in beautiful Boothbay, Maine.
A highlight of the gardening season is the members-only early shopping at the very popular Friends of the Oak Park Conservatory Annual Plant Sale. Each spring, Friends members receive two weeks of early access to the online website for the best selection in a wide variety of colorful annual and edible plants. There are always some new discoveries to be found in the sale’s bountiful annual garden inventory!
I have found additional plants I want to plant in my gardens I can invariably find at Seguin Gardens and Gifts. Seguin Gardens in Cicero, IL, is a special place for employing adults with special needs and where, as one of several local Conservatory partners, members can enjoy an extra 10% savings.
The annual FOPCON membership fee quickly pays for itself with just a few of the aforementioned benefits!
Linda Piccinini,
Board Member & Membership Committee
Join the Friends by March 27, 2026 for a chance to win a $50 gift card for the Annual Plant Sale. For more information about Plant Sale 2026, click here.
