Is it time for another Final Friday already?! Yes, it is!! Come hang out with your favorite group of restoration warriors as we take out invasive brush and enjoy friendly banter around a toasty campfire. We made a huge dent last week cleaning up the fallen log obstacles that were making it very difficult to manage […]

Join the exceptionally cool David Ducci for a wintery workday at Westwood! Last year we received funds through the state of Illinois’ Natural Areas Stewardship Grant to remove invasive species and introduce native seeds in a section of this Illinois Nature Preserve Buffer. Directions: From Woodstock, take South Street southwest out of town and over […]

Westwood is a Woodstock owned Illinois Nature Preserve buffer and serves as a ‘protective’ zone that helps slow the spread of invasive species into Yonder Prairie. We've got buckthorn and other wily exotics taking refuge amongst some downed trees that are hindering restoration progress and could use a hand cutting and burning them. Directions: From […]

Join Larry for another restoration adventure at Crowley Oak Woods! Restoration has been occurring on this 80 acre tract since the winter of 2020 and we're making excellent progress clearing the brush from the highest quality areas of the preserve. We conducted our first prescribed burn here this spring and the ground layer has responded in a really […]

Join us for another winter workday at this beautiful woodstock conservation area! This lovely park adjoins our Yonder property and is also open to the public. We hope to start working on the small island of oaks along the stream we cleared out last year! Directions: From Woodstock, take South Street southwest out of town and […]

Directions: Off of Fleming Road in Woodstock. This property can be accessed by the first driveway on the right hand side when heading north on Fleming Road. The driveway will split off in four directions, take the second drive from the right, which is also the third from the left, and continue past the first […]

These workdays are hosted by our extraordinary steward, Margee Pieper, who has been a vital part of the successes at this site. Under her thoughtful leadership, the history and beauty of Irish oaks is finally revealed for everyone to enjoy. We'll be revisiting an area near the pond on the west end of the property to work on […]

Join Donato’s site steward David for a brush clearing extravaganza at one of Woodstock’s many natural areas! This is a special little spot in the heart of Woodstock, though few people know about its botanical treasures. Head in through the northwest entrance and follow the trail to the right over the wooden walkway. Keep going and […]

There's still some dense clusters of buckthorn and honeysuckle in the area we've been working near Dick Tracy Park so we'll park over there again and continue chipping away! Directions: From the intersection of 14 and 47, head north on 47, left on Lake Ave, and left on Dick Tracy Way and park along the […]

Join Larry for another restoration adventure at Crowley Oak Woods! Restoration has been occurring on this 80 acre tract since the winter of 2020 and we're making excellent progress clearing the brush from the highest quality areas of the preserve. We conducted our first prescribed burn here this spring and the ground layer has responded in a really […]

It's been too long! Gosh, we haven't been back here since the burn and I'm sure you're missing our beloved Tryon as much as we are. We've really put a huge dent in the east end of the woodland but there's still a ways to go. For our last workday we left off at the […]