Events

Orientation for all who will be working at the Greenhouse this year. 

Greenhouse/ plant sale update; in-person meeting/presentation sign-ups sheet; 2023 tax status; January Porter County MG Garden Show-volunteer update; February Board Meeting-officier availability 

The Porter County Master Gardeners put on a great event that has something for every garden lover out there.

Wild Ones will have a booth/table at this event.  We will be handing out information and selling educational books.  Stop by if you are going to this event.

Members who would like to volunteer for this event can sign up by clicking the button.  Hopefully, we will have enough volunteers to split up into three shifts.

Click on the "Registration Link" if you are a member of our chapter and would like to volunteer.

Please contact us if you have any questions.

Join us at Gibson Woods to watch live on the 'big screen', or join us via Zoom

Indiana is home to the Sandhill Crane and the endangered Whooping Crane. Join Katelyn Garrett, Whooping Crane outreach program assistant for the International Crane Foundation, to learn about the cranes of Indiana. Following this presentation, you will be able to identify Sandhill Cranes and Whooping Cranes, know the history of both crane species, understand the current work crane conservation partners are doing to protect cranes in Indiana and throughout their flyways, and find out how you can be an ambassador for cranes in Indiana.  

In-person attendees must RSVP to Mickey Taylor at [email protected] or call/text 219-742-2775.

All board members are encouraged to attend, and all members are welcome.  We will discuss & decide our administrative and chapter goals for 2023.  I recommend you attend this meeting if you think you'd like to take on a leadership role or become involved with one of our committees.  We are also  trying to improve some of our behind-the- scenes administrative functions like mass mailing & email list  upkeep, our social media presence, book & merchandise inventory, file sharing, etc.   If any of this interests you, please register for this meeting !

Member: $15,  Non-member: $20.  This will help us pay for the cost of supplies.

We're going to try something a little different... Please join us for a painting party!  There will be an instructor who will help us every step of the way & will supply everything needed to create a beautiful lake scene featuring a Crane ( see how this ties in with our February presentation?).  We are limiting this to 20 people, so make sure to reserve your spot before they're all taken!  RSVP to Mickey Taylor at [email protected] or call/text 219-742-2775.  We expect spots to fill quickly!!

All painting supplies will be furnished, and you will get to take your canvas painting home with you!  Please note: we will NOT have snacks or hot beverages at this event 

Register in advance for this meeting.
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After registering, you will receive a confirmation email directly from Zoom containing information about joining the meeting.

A recording of the meeting will be sent to all active members.

Register in advance for this meeting.
​
After registering, you will receive a confirmation email directly from Zoom containing information about joining the meeting.

A recording of the meeting will be sent to all active members.

Oakley Molinaro, a master naturalist with tree care & orchard work experience, will demonstrate the basics of tree and shrub pruning in person at the home of Kim Moor, member & current president of the Gibson Woods Chapter of Wild Ones.  

Oakley will cover some plant biology to understand the healing/growth process, and will give examples of what to watch for in assessment.  After tree assessment, Oakley will demonstrate corrective pruning, shaping, and orchard pruning methods.

Please RSVP to Mickey Taylor at [email protected] or call/text 219-742-2775.  Mickey will give you the address at this time.  This event will be rain or shine, so please dress accordingly.  We will have shelter areas set up in case of rain, and indoor accomodations for warming & personal needs.

Snack & hot beverages will be served at this event.

The NWI Earth Day Celebration will feature: •Reuse Fair •Area school rain barrel design contest•LIVE music with steel drums•Raffle giveaway •Wildlife show with Humane Indiana•Recycle cycle show•Working bikes•Alternative fuel equipment on display•Smokey bear•Children's activities •Guest speakers•Interactive vendors/exhibitors.   *Wild Ones will have a booth at this event.

The public is invited to help improve our new Monarch Waystation with a hands-on Expert led Weed Wrangle®/Clean-up

Family friendly activities 10 AM to 2 PM.  The centerpiece will be a speaker and entertainment series, plus information booths and young visitor focused activities. 

Please register if you will be attending the clean-up.  A lite lunch will be served to all who register and participate.

Wild Ones will have a booth at this event.

https://gibsonwoods.wildones.org/meetings-events/annual-native-plant-sale/

Over 100 species of flowers, grasses, sedges, & shrubs; including prairie, wetland, shade, & woodland.

This event is rain or shine, so dress accordingly

Come early for best selection

Member review of Plant Sale, and discussion of this year's projects & other summer activities. Followed by some clean-up at the Butterfly Garden. This is a great summer volunteering opportunity for Wild Ones members, as well as Non-Members. Hours throughout the Summer are available. If interested in summer volunteering, please contact us. Bring your own beverage & snack to the meeting & don't forget your garden gloves & favorite shovel! Non-members are welcome.

Please use the RSVP on our Chapter Event page if you'd like to attend this meeting in person. 

To attend this meeting via Zoom, please register.

Bring your own drink & snack

We will have a business meeting indoors at Gibson Woods, followed by a native plant & seed swap outdoors. We will also be dedicating the new Kiosks in honor of Joy & Rick Bower.

If you are not a member, and just want to attend the swap, please arrive at 11:00 a.m.

Please go to our Chapter Event page to RSVP if you'd like to attend this meeting in person.

Snacks & drinks will be available.

Family Fun - rain or shine!  For information on Munster's Monarch project, visit "Munster Monarch City" on Facebook.

Some of the activities will include: opening ceremony•live music and dancers•food•plant giveaway - while supplies last•LIVE monarch tagging and release•learn about Monarch Waystation•learn about Monarch migration•kid activities.

Wild Ones will have a booth at this event.

Bring your family and friends to the sixth annual Festival de la Monarca and help welcome the monarch butterflies as they journey across northwest Indiana on their way to Michoacan.  This is a FREE event.  Please visit facebook.com/ECMonarchfestival often to get the latest details.

Bring your family and friends to the sixth annual Festival de la Monarca and help welcome the monarch butterflies  as they journey across northwest Indiana on their way to Michoacan. This is a FREE event. Please visit facebook.com/ECMonarchfestival often to get the latest details.

Contact us for in-person RSVPs

Many of our bats are becoming endangered and people can take simple steps to help!

The Good Bat Neighbor (GBN) Program helps inform about the plight of bats and how to protect and restore their habitat right in your own backyard.

Learn how to create a Bat Garden with native plants, and improve habitat with actions as easy as reducing Artificial Light at Night (ALAN).

Bats have a uphill battle-habitat loss, pesticide use, a deadly infection spread by humans... Yet they help us so much-they eat disease- causing insects, protect crops from agricultural pests, and fertilize everywhere thy go.  Won't you give them a helping hand, too?

Bio: Jen Woronecki-Ellis has been passionate about helping wildlife since her first bird rescue when she was three.  She started on habitat restoration when she founded Juniper 's NatureScaping in 2006, with a focus on birds and pollinators, and began to incorporate bats with her graduate studies while she pursued a Master's in Biology through Project Dragonfly at Miami University Ohio in partnership with the Chicago Zoological Society.

Jen created the Good Bat Neighbor citizen conservation program and has presented at the annual Midwest Bat Working Group conference in Missouri and the Wild Things conference in Illinois, as well as meetings of local non-profit organizations in Northwest Indiana... she has also made a number of nature documentaries, including work for the Ohio Bat Working Group.

When she's not busy producing bat  education and outreach materials, and connecting with bat rehabbers and organizations around the world, she enjoys birding with her spouse in and around the Indiana Dunes.

Food and drinks will be provided.

Agenda:

-Welcome New Members

-Treasurer's Report

-September Minutes Review

-Greenhouse Update

-Sept/Oct Events & Projects Review

-2023 Donations

-Upcoming Officer Election & Considerations

-Chapter By-Laws required by National

-If there is time at the end of the meeting, Members' Summer Garden Review

Join Wild Ones Honorary Director Heather Holm as she explores the nesting habitats, life cycles, pollen collection, brood rearing, and general characteristics of some of the most common native bees in eastern North America, while highlighting the pollination of native plants and the mutualism between native plants and native bees.

When creating and managing thriving habitats for native bees, many factors such as seasonal phenology, nesting strategies, and flower preferences must be considered—and with approximately 3,600 species in North America (north of Mexico), there are many unique aspects to keep in mind when managing successful landscapes for bees. 

Contact us for in-person RSVPs

This program looks at how ecologically and economically important oaks are, how they came to be so common, and the problems they now face. As for the problems we can help them if we apply ourselves!

Spencer Cortwright earned his bachelor's degree in biology from Washington University in St. Louis and his Ph.D. from Indiana University in Bloomington. After further training as post-doctoral researcher at the University of Michigan, Spencer became a Professor of Biology at Indiana University Northwest. He spent over a quarter of a century studying amphibian population ecology and during that time slowly transformed himself into a plant ecologist focusing on ecological restoration of natural areas. He teaches classes in ecology, restoration, zoology, and diversity of life.

Food and drinks will be provided.

Agenda

·         September Minutes Review

·         Treasurer’s Report

·         2023 Monetary Donations

·         Greenhouse/Plant Sale Update

·         Officer Nominations

·         Chair & Admin Positions Update

·         December & January Events Update

Join us for an enlightening webinar featuring authors, Neil Diboll and Hilary Cox, as they present their latest book, "The Gardener’s Guide to Prairie Plants." This comprehensive compendium is a treasure trove of knowledge for gardeners looking to incorporate native prairie plants into their landscapes. Neil and Hilary will delve into the making and application of this essential guide, sharing rich historical and ecological insights about prairie ecosystems, all while showcasing stunning images of prairie flora. 

RSVP is required. Please use the Contact Us form on our Website

Book Sale - We have many educational books available - Come out on December 2nd to do some Holiday shopping for the nature lovers on your list. 

Ornaments using natural materials - We invite you to collect & share items from nature that you’ve found. Stay awhile & make your ornament at the open house to take home. Or we will provide paper bags so you can take a little of this & that to create your own natural ornament at home. 

Native Seed Swap - bring in some of your native plant seeds to swap with others at our December meeting. Please label what you have. or other finger food to share with attendees - and make sure to bring your appetite! Coffee & water will be supplied.

Potluck - feel free to bring your favorite holiday cookies or other finger food to share with attendees - and make sure to bring your appetite! Coffee & water will be supplied.

Agenda

·         November Minutes Review

·         Treasurer’s Report

·         Greenhouse/Plant Sale Update

·         2024 Officer Elections

·        January Events Update - Greenhouse Orientation & PCMG Show