Chapters in Illinois

Join us for a timely presentation, “Leave the leaves.”  Presented my local naturalists Pam Otto and Valerie Blaine, this presentation will focus on ways to leave these valuable resources in your gardens and still manage to make you yards look tidy.  Come and learn the many ways the many benefits of keeping fallen foliage around.  

This event is free.  Please register for on-line or in person.  

Come join us for an evening of getting creative with native plants and your yard! Learn how to take notes on your site and how to develop plant lists to grow on for your garden. Kelsay will go over the basics of using native plants to fit their needs and your garden aesthetic. This will be a “kinda hands on” experience, as he will go over the steps of how to read the site, design creatively and incorporate ideas for those in attendance. He will try to help to dispel myths and foggy information on native plant use in design and try to expand your planting palate.

Pollinators play a vital role in sustaining our ecosystems and natural resources by helping plants reproduce. This often-overlooked ecosystem service is essential to the health of our environment and deserves our attention and support.

Research shows that local native pollinators thrive alongside local native plants. We know how much these important species support us-- now discover what we can do to support them. Join us to learn practical ways to create healthy, sustainable pollinator habitats in our own landscapes and communities.

Please join us for this special screening of The Extraordinary Caterpillar, a beautifully shot 60-minute documentary that reveals the vital—and often overlooked—role caterpillars play in our ecosystems.  This new documentary takes viewers on a journey that celebrates nature’s tiniest superheroes, while showing practical ways we can all contribute to caterpillar conservation.                                                           

Illinois led the nation in developing a system for protecting nature when it created the Illinois Nature Preserves System. Join Amy Doll, Director of Friends of Illinois Nature Preserves, as she shares the history of this world-leading conservation effort, highlighting the critical role that advocacy and community-based volunteers play in protecting these lands.