This month, we’ll explore the Glacial Retreat Center with our Environmental Education & Outreach team, walking through portions of our popular field trip route. Along the way, we’ll discover a fascinating geological formation, visit the gravel pit, and even take on the bog jump.
Join us to read Winter Is Coming by Tony Johnston, Illustrated by Jim LaMarche! We will spend some time outdoors documenting seasonal changes that we see around us. As we explore the trails, we will create a nature journal to take home.
Join us for a guided night hike through the peaceful winter landscape of Merry Lea, where crisp air, quiet trails, and starry skies reveal nature in a whole new way. As darkness settles in, we’ll explore the trails around Kesling Wetland by moonlight, using our senses to discover the sights, sounds, and signs of wildlife active during the winter season.
What do native seeds need to grow? What is stratification? What do you mean scarification?! Many of our native seeds require different “treatments” in order to grow their best and take root. We will go over a variety of ways to get your native garden growing.
Join Merry Lea’s former land manager for an engaging, hands-on workshop exploring how to identify trees in winter! Learn to recognize native species by their bark, buds, and branching patterns while discovering the unique beauty of Indiana’s winter woodlands.
Whooo? Who is getting prepared to nest soon? Come find out as we read Owl Moon by Jane Yolen. We’ll see some taxidermy owl mounts, touch owl feathers, search outdoors for places great horned owls might nest and learn to call like owls.
Native shrubs are an integral part of our natural areas providing food, nesting space, and cover for wildlife. They can also add interesting structural diversity, texture and color to a native planting area. Learn about native alternatives that work well in any location and how you can propagate your own shrubs from cuttings. Take your native gardening to the next level by learning how to propagate your own native shrubs.
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.
