Events

Celebrate spring during our annual Nature Fest! This FREE and fun-filled festival features various family and EcoExcursion(science investigations) activities at Merry Lea.

Celebrate spring during our annual Nature Fest! This FREE and fun-filled festival features various family and EcoExcursion (science investigations) activities at Merry Lea.

Join us as we explore the power of pollinators this spring. Hike around different ecosystems to explore the wide variety of pollinators that are out and about. Tromp through a meadow to catch pollinators, investigate signs of pollination, examine parts of flowers and more!

Let’s explore what is happening in the education garden as we read Plant the Tiny Seed by Christie Matheson. We will also find different stages of plants from seedling to flower and discover if worms and pollinator insects are helping out.

Don’t miss this opportunity to join Merry Lea at this free, family-friendly event designed to get people outside as part of a state-wide effort by Indiana Children and Nature Network (ICAN) Nature Play Days!  There will be a variety of guided and self-guided activities to choose from all afternoon.

Upcoming high school juniors and seniors can make Merry Lea their home for a week this summer during Conservation Leadership School! Camp overnight and explore a world full of natural resources and conservation. Enjoy an educational and rejuvenating week at our beautiful 1,189 acre nature sanctuary with peers and professionals inspired by the natural world. 

June’s Nature Expedition program will invite students to hike into nature - literally! Put on some boots and find out what wildlife is inhabiting Merry Lea’s woods. Use microscopes to examine specimens and see details in plants. Students will also get the opportunity to make a nature collage from plants they find while exploring.

Let’s hop around a vernal pond as we read And the Bullfrogs Sing by David L. Harrison. We will explore the life cycles of frogs and other small creatures that we find in our vernal pond and look for other herptiles nearby!

July’s Rock & Mineral Mania program will have students engaged in an active investigation of Indiana’s rock and minerals. Students will get the opportunity to practice their rock and mineral ID skills, walk through the rock cycle, identify characteristics of rocks and much more! It would be gneiss if you could join us to rock out!

Seeds aren’t the only way to get more native plants. Many of our favorite grasses, sedges and forbs can be propagated through root division. Learn how to select which plants work best for this process and how to make individual plants cover more ground. If you do start seedlings in a flat, what do you do when they start filling their space? We will also go over methods for potting up seedlings you may start in the future.