Featured

  • Night Hike: Winter Solstice Special

    Dec 20, 2024 6:30PM—9:00PM

    The Wilderness Center 9877 Alabama Ave SW Wilmot, OH 44689

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    Enjoy a night hike at the Wilderness Center during the longest night of the year. Learn about the history of the winter solstice and why it is celebrated. Also enjoy a special holiday planetarium show before the hike. Bring your red-light flashlight – white lights are not allowed on the trails at night. Don’t have…

  • Seed Cleaning and Planting

    Jan 03, 2025 4:00PM—6:00PM

    The Wilderness Center 9877 Alabama Ave SW Wilmot, OH 44689

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    Seeds in the winter? Yes! Milkweed, ironweed, brown eyed Susan and more! This will be a hybrid volunteer and learning event. We will clean and sow native seeds in the greenhouse with TWC's Director of Conservation. You will learn about the winter requirements of seeds that allow them to grow in the spring. We will…

  • Animal Keeper for a Day

    Jan 11, 2025 10:30AM—12:00PM

    The Wilderness Center 9877 Alabama Ave SW Wilmot, OH 44689

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    Have you ever wondered what it’s like to be an animal keeper? This program offers the experience of caring for our ambassador reptiles! Participants will learn about our Eastern box turtles and corn snake and will be trained how to safely handle them. Activities will include animal care and husbandry tasks such as diet preparation…

  • Presentation: Dark Skies Matter

    Jan 11, 2025 11:00AM—12:00PM

    The Wilderness Center 9877 Alabama Ave SW Wilmot, OH 44689

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    Light pollution was a term coined by astronomers, but today it’s used by ecologists, physiologists and neurologists who study the effects of the disappearing night.  Loss of the night is no longer just about losing our view of the heavens, it’s about all living things, including humans.   Of all the types of pollution humans have…

  • Night Hike at Foxfield with Dark Skies Presentation

    Jan 17, 2025 6:30PM—8:30PM

    The Wilderness Center 9877 Alabama Ave SW Wilmot, OH 44689

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    Join us for a night hike with a twist. We will be adding a dark skies presentation before our night hike. Foxfield is our green burial grounds that have trails that many people can enjoy during the day, but we will hike there at night for this program! You will learn about the importance of…

Current & Upcoming

Butterflies Day

Mar 14, 2024 6:00PM—7:00PM

MARCH 14 IS BUTTERFLIES DAY Did you know Ohio is home to about 140 species of butterflies and nearly 500 species of native bees? March is the perfect time to learn how to help them thrive this summer. Discover Ohio’s wild butterflies and bees and how to help them flourish. Enjoy music, art, lawn and garden…

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Native Plant Sale Programming

May 04, 2024 10:00AM—3:00PM

The Wilderness Center 9877 Alabama Ave SW Wilmot, OH 44689

We will have speakers throughout the day with topics about pollinators, gardening, and salamanders for Salamander Day. 10:00 AM-11:00 AM: Dawn to Darkness: A Pollinator Palooza! ~ Presented by TWC’s Director of Education, Mike Hensley Celebrate the remarkable relationship between native plants and pollinators throughout Ohio. We will explore how backyard habitats and native plants…

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Native Plant Month Speaker Series: Seed Banking for Restoration – How to get Involved in Northeast Ohio’s Seed Banking Movement.

Apr 04, 2024 6:00PM—7:00PM

The Wilderness Center 9877 Alabama Ave SW Wilmot, OH 44689

Kimberly Lessman: “Seed Banking for Restoration: How to Get Involved in Northeast Ohio’s Seed Banking Movement” Holden Forests & Gardens is teaming up with partners in our region to collect, store, and redistribute native seeds of local ecotype to support restoration projects in Northeast Ohio and beyond. Learn the basics of collecting native seeds and…

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Night Out With Nature at Hoodletown Brewing Company: Naturally Native

Mar 15, 2024 6:00PM—8:00PM

Hoodletown Brewing Company 424 W 3rd St Dover, OH 44622

We’ve partnered with The Garden Gurl, Heather Pariso, and Hoodletown Brewing Company for plants, food, fun, and friends! Learn about incorporating native plants into your daily life. Registration required. We are thrilled to be able to accommodate walk-ins for this program and are happy to register you at the event after registration closes online! So come…

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Preparing And Planting Your New Native Plant Garden!

May 13, 2023 1:00PM

  Congratulations on learning about and understanding the incredible value of adding native plants to your landscape! Now what? How do you prep the site? What types of plants work best for your location? Can a native plant garden be aesthetically pleasing to your naysaying neighbors? Join us to learn how to plan, design, and…

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Pollinator Pathways and The Green Corridor: Improving Biodiversity on Protected Land in our own Yard

May 13, 2023 11:30AM

The Wilderness Center 9877 Alabama Ave Wilmot, OH 44689

  Virtual presentation by Mary Ellen LeMay, Aspetuck Land Trust, Connecticut With more than 16 states in various stages of launching Pollinator Pathways, this landowner outreach strategy has taken the region by storm in only 6 years. By planting natives, avoiding pesticides, and reducing lawn, this very scalable initiative has the potential to create healthy,…

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Planting For Pollinators

May 13, 2023 10:30AM

The Wilderness Center 9877 Alabama Ave Wilmot, OH 44689

A part of our free Come Grow with Us Series. Join us for a talk about planting for pollinators.  Presentation by Jill Halligan, Portage County OSU Extension. Jill is passionate about native gardening, wildlife and protecting our pollinators. Long before joining the educational team at OSU Extension, she has been serving as a Master Gardener…

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Restoring Ecological Services With Native Plants

Apr 15, 2023 12:00PM

The Wilderness Center 9877 Alabama Ave SW Wilmot, OH 44689

A part of our free Come Grow with Us Series. Learn about your garden’s potential to help the planet and how to use that as a framework for selecting native plants, including important considerations for getting the look and visitors you want. Presentation by Jen Johnson with Native Roots. Sonia Bingham and Jen Johnson formed…

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Earth Day Adventures

Apr 22, 2023 2:00PM—3:30PM

The Wilderness Center 9877 Alabama Ave Wilmot, OH 44689

Celebrate Earth Day in this family-friendly program full of fun activities. Learn about water quality by performing a bio-survey at the pond and see how plants act to filter runoff. And you won’t leave empty-handed! You’ll make plantable seed paper and a portable compost to take home with you. For families/groups with children of all…

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The Wilderness Center Native Plant Sale

Mar 15, 2023 9:00AM—May 14, 2023 4:00PM

Place your Native Plant order online and pick up at The Wilderness Center on May 5, 6, 12, or 13 between 10 am and 4 pm.

The Wilderness Center’s Native Plant Sale features Ohio native plants. The plants that dominate home landscapes are very pretty but provide no benefits to local wildlife. In contrast, native plants are not only beautiful, but also support local wildlife. This year’s plant selection has grown to include recognized native plant cultivars for our region that provide…

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Past | Archive

Guided Hike

Dec 13, 2024 1:00PM

The Wilderness Center 9877 Alabama Ave SW Wilmot, OH 44689

Planetarium Show: Season of Light

Dec 07, 2024 11:00AM—12:00PM

Astronomy Education Building at TWC 9877 Alabama Ave SW Wilmot, OH 44689

Star Watch with TWC Astronomy Club

Dec 06, 2024 8:00PM—9:30PM

Astronomy Education Building at TWC 9877 Alabama Ave SW Wilmot, OH 44689

Planetarium Show: Season of Light

Dec 06, 2024 7:00PM—8:00PM

Astronomy Education Building at TWC 9877 Alabama Ave SW Wilmot, OH 44689

Wilderness Center Woodcarvers Club Meeting

Nov 23, 2024 9:30AM

The Wilderness Center 9877 Alabama Ave. SW Wilmot, OH 44689

TWC Nature Photo Club Meeting

Nov 23, 2024 9:30AM

The Wilderness Center 9877 Alabama Ave. SW Wilmot, OH 44689