Step back in time and roll up your sleeves for a day of fun at one of our region’s historic farms dating back to well over 100 years ago. Decades ago, a section of creek here became a convenient—but damaging—dumpsite. Today, it’s littered with old oil drums, rusted metal, broken glass, plastic, and other debris…

Help bring back the natural engineering power of beavers—without the beavers. In this hands-on restoration project, we’ll install a Beaver Dam Analog (BDA) downstream of the Fox Creek culvert. This simple, low-tech structure mimics a natural beaver dam, slowing water, raising stream levels, and reconnecting upstream and downstream habitats. By restoring natural flow patterns, BDAs…

Be among the first to explore The Wilderness Center’s newest preserve while helping prepare a fallow field for its transformation into a thriving native prairie. This workday focuses on maintaining burn breaks, clearing encroaching woody vegetation, and creating snags—standing deadwood that provides vital perches for birds and habitat for insects. These efforts are the first…

Step into the heart of TWC’s prairies and meadows to gather the seasons ripe native seeds ready to bring new life to restoration projects. This year’s bounty of seeds will be used to establish the future prairie at Murray Preserve, ensuring plants are adapted to our local climate and soils. By sourcing local ecotypes, we…

Tackle the toughest invaders in one of our most diverse habitats. This project focuses on removing large invasive shrubs—primarily bush honeysuckle and autumn olive—from an upland area bordering the Brewster wetland complex. By cutting and hauling brush to designated piles, we’ll open the canopy, improve light availability, and give native understory plants the space they…

A collapsed barn and the remains of an abandoned home sit at the heart of this site—surrounded by decades of accumulated waste. Rusting metal, broken glass, plastics, and hazardous debris have been leaching into the soil and waterways, posing ongoing risks to both people and wildlife. This cleanup will tackle it all—removing the deteriorating structures…

Let’s get spooky this Halloween—with some trees! Along the banks of Sugar Creek, we’ll plant a diverse mix of native trees and shrubs to strengthen the riparian buffer—a natural zone that protects the creek and its wildlife. These plantings will stabilize the upper bank, filter surface runoff before it reaches the water, and provide cooling…

Eroding streambanks along Sugar Creek threaten water quality, aquatic habitat, and the stability of the surrounding floodplain. This project uses live stakes and other low-tech bioengineering techniques to stabilize vulnerable banks while working with the creek’s natural processes—not against them. By planting deep-rooted native vegetation in key hydraulic zones, we’ll reduce sedimentation, filter runoff, and…

Building on restoration work from last year’s Fall Stewardship Challenge, this project continues to strengthen Fox Creek’s banks with deep-rooted native vegetation like willows and dogwoods. These plantings help hold soil in place, filter runoff, and create a shaded, cooler environment that benefits aquatic life. The expanding riparian buffer will provide food and shelter for…

For our final Fall Stewardship Challenge event, we’re giving thanks to Sugar Creek by protecting its banks and improving its future. Eroding streambanks here threaten water quality, aquatic habitat, and the stability of the surrounding floodplain. This project uses live stakes and other low-tech bioengineering techniques to stabilize vulnerable banks while working with the creek’s…