TLC Blog

Here are some photos from TLC’s Aug. 14 Learning Circle for women farmers and farmland owners. (Bonus photos include Claire’s daughter Nora on a planni…

Hi all, and welcome to our final week of TLC’s Conservation Leader Internship Program (CLIP)! This week’s blog is written by all four interns!  Monday was…

Hey it’s Madi and this is week 10 of CLIP! Our week started off with a rain day on Monday that we spent on two research projects investigating teasel seed…

Hello all and welcome to week 9! This week’s blog is written by CLIPtern Gia. We started out this Monday at Apple Creek targeting all kinds of invasive sp…

by Oliver Reisenbigler With three weeks remaining of the CLIP internship, we are trying to make the most of each passing day, whether it is rain or shine!…

by Emma Klein Hello from TLC’s 2024 Summer CLIPsters! This week was hot and buggy! After a particularly wet weekend, the mosquitoes are now out in full fo…

By Emily Ptaszek It’s sad to think we are already over half way done with our time in TLC’s CLIP, but there is still so much to look forward to in the com…

My name is Madi Benezra and this was our fifth week as CLIP interns! I just graduated from Prairie Ridge High School and plan to study wildlife rehabilitatio…

This week’s blog is written by CLIP intern, Gia. I am a sophomore at Michigan State University studying environmental studies and sustainability, and with ea…

We are now three weeks into the CLIP 2024 internship, and we have already learned so much! This week’s update is provided by one of the CLIP interns, Oliver….

We have officially completed our first full week of TLC’s 2024 CLIP and it has already been such a rewarding experience! I am Emily Ptaszek, a student at Lak…

Welcome to the first week of TLC’s 2024 Conservation Leader Internship Program (CLIP)! This week’s update is provided by CLIP’s 2024 crew leader, Emma. This …

Thank you to the many volunteers who helped prep and seed TLC’s Milpa garden at the Food Forest on May 21! What is Milpa? Milpa is an Indigenous s…

You can read TLC’s position here.

Last week a group of volunteers came out to help with a prescribed burn at Irish Oaks! Prescribed burns are conducted rotationally to mimic what would have o…

Thank you to the amazing volunteers from Woodstock High School’s Blue Streak Service Club who helped clear brush at Donato Woods on March 3! (Photos courtes…

How do you spend your days? Retirement has been an interesting motivational experiment, following decades of intense daily work and family demands.  Zen t…

How do you spend your days?  I have lots of hobbies including knitting, needlepoint, and I travel as often as I can. What are your ties to McHenry Coun…

How do you spend your days? (work, volunteering, etc.) I still work, but I own the company and have time to volunteer and do what I’d like to do most days. …

Happy New Year! Thank you to everyone who celebrated New Year’s Eve with an Oak Rescue at Thompson Road Farm in Bull Valley! This fabulous group…

Thank you for being a member of The Land Conservancy of McHenry County! When you refer a non-member friend to TLC, we will send you your choice of a 2024 …

Here’s a fun one! MobCraft Beer Woodstock takes votes on crowdsourced beers. TLC has nominated the Bitter Beaver beer, a Double IPA infused with elderberry a…

by Joee Cortina Seeding at Apple Creek Hello for the last time, and welcome to t…

by Katie Mikkelson Monday July 31 We started our day with a career panel where we talked to professionals in the field of ecology. They told us about h…

A bat in a pawpaw tree Monday we spent the day with Jack and Judy Speer at Small Wa…

A rusty-patched bumblee was spotted at a TLC site this week! TLC actually has two sites serving as rusty-patched bumblebee habitat. This bee is state and fed…

by Emma Klein and Leah Williams Welcome to week seven of TLC’s 2023 Conservation Leader Internship Program! This week’s update is provided by Emma and Lea…

by Joee Cortina Welcome to week 6 of CLIP! The summer is well underway – as I write this, we just passed over the halfway point of the program! As interns…

by Nari Coleman Date: Wednesday, July 5, 2023 Entry: On Wednesday morning, the CLIPsters arrived at Hennen early for a field trip to Midewin National T…

by Jenn Hernandez To start off week 4 of CLIP, Monday didn’t exactly go as planned due to rain forecasted later in the day. Sadly, we couldn’t spray the t…

by Kate Mikkelson Monday 6/19 We started our week with a visit to Pistakee Bay, which is a property that’s owned and managed by TLC. We met with Randy …

By Leah Williams Welcome to the second week of CLIP! This week all the interns picked up a ton of new skills, as we visited everywhere from Irish Oaks and…

by Emma Klein Welcome to the first week of TLC’s 2023 Conservation Leader Internship Program! This week’s update is provided by CLIP’s 2023 crew leader, E…

We had a great group of people at the Wildflower Walk on Saturday, May 6 at Spring Hollow in Woodstock! Thank you to all who attended and learned about our n…

Congratulations to Jermaine Burney on his Conservation@Home yard certification! A new oak landowner in Crystal Lake, he reached out to TLC for advice on cari…

TLC’s 32nd Annual Celebration took place on Sunday, April 23. Guests had a pleasant afternoon at a new venue, the McHenry Country Club and enjoyed a “high t…

TLC’s Winter Tree and Shrub Identification class took place Jan. 18 at Ryders Woods. We learned how to identify several native trees and shrubs as well as so…

Food Forest Manager (part time) View PDF job description  The Land Conservancy is looking for the right person to help us with our food forest! Our goal i…

Last year was a busy year for TLC’s farm programs! Watch this video to see some of the highlights from 2022.

The Land Conservancy of McHenry County is hiring a Seasonal Restoration Technician for the Summer of 2023. Position title “Seasonal Restoration Tech” May…

On New Year’s Eve, TLC hosted another successful McHenry County oak rescue! Thanks to the wonderful crew who worked at Irish Oaks Nature Preserve to free two…

The CLIP Class of ’22 put their knowledge and skills to work by putting together a research report on germination rates of Rudbeckia triloba after garlon che…

(Casper) Monday:  Since it was raining today, we read and discussed our last assignment. Then we worked on making a map of all the locations we have gone …

by Breanna Christensen To begin the week we spent Monday morning meeting on Zoom for a Conservation Career Panel. We met with multiple people CLIP Directo…

by Gretchen Casper On Monday, we had a work day around Hennen Conservation Area in Woodstock. We started by planting nine flats of plants donated from Red…

by Amelia Swiecki Week 8 of CLIP was packed full of invasive work, collecting mushrooms, and working with some great people out in the field!  We kicke…

by Isaac Servin This week was great; we got to get some work done obviously, but there were also some really fun activities and we met a couple new faces…

by Kristi Robinson, CLIP lead intern After the day off on Monday, July 4, we kicked off our 6th week of CLIP on Tuesday with a morning of parsnip pulling …

by Breanna Christensen Monday morning of CLIP’s week 5 was spent with Bruce Kessler, McHenry County restoration expert, at the Tauck Conservation Easement…

by Gretchen Casper On Monday we went to Glacial Park Conservation Area, and met with Sarah Michehl, TLC’s community engagement specialist. She talked to u…

by Amelia Swiecki To kick off Week 3 of CLIP, we all headed out to Bluestem Ecological Services, a native plant landscaping company in Marengo. We began o…

Welcome to Blog #2 of TLC’s internship program. This week it is brought to you by Isaac! He is one of the interns this year, and this week there was a lot of…

Welcome to Blog #1 of TLC’s 2022 Conservation Leader Internship Program! This first week’s blog is brought to you by Kristi, CLIP’s Crew Leader for the 2022 …

On June 1 TLC welcomed four new interns (and welcomed back a Crew Leader) to the Conservation Leader Internship Program (CLIP) for 2022. We are excited to ha…

As a nonprofit organization, TLC relies on the generosity of donors for the success of many of our programs. The CLIP team has created a wish list to help en…

TLC is happy to welcome local farmer Claire Hodge to the team as the farm program assitant. Claire will develop TLC’s Women’s Learning Circle program through…

Karen has lived in Wonder Lake, IL most of her life. She was an attorney for 35 years and is now retired. She has fond memories of growing up on a lake – whe…

On April 12 the Youth and Family Center of McHenry County Conversacion de Conservacion Small Waters Education and Friends of Hackmatack National Wildlife…

Christine is one of three people who were elected to the TLC Board of Directors in January. Christine has had a lifelong relationship with the land in McHenr…

Spring is here! Join us to watch American Woodcocks performing their amazing courtship flights. The male woodcocks will make several preent calls and then la…

Mark is one of three people who were elected to the TLC Board of Directors in January. He is a Village of Bull Valley trustee and has a certificate in ecolog…

Do you own or hope to own farmland, or know someone who does? Learn about agricultural conservation easements, what they can offer for your farmland, or how …

Have you ever wondered how to start a native plant garden, use a rain barrel or get rid of buckthorn? Check out some of the videos we have posted on these an…

If you are a business or organization that values the natural beauty and rural character of McHenry County and wants to make sure it remains that way, consid…

In 2017, through the advocacy of the Prairie State Conservation Coalition, Illinois Environmental Council, TLC and dozens of nonprofit conservation land trus…

TLC hosted an Oak Rescue on New Year’s Eve at Crowley Oaks Woods in Harvard. What is an oak rescue? It’s an opportunity for people to work together to fre…

Jack Newton led Boy Scout Troop 149 in building a bridge at TLC’s Boloria Meadows in September for his Eagle Scout project. In addition, the bridge on the le…

TLC dedicated a workday to our friend, the late Al Van Maren on Sunday, Oct. 31. Friends and family of Al Van Maren spent time clearing brush in his oak wood…

Each fall TLC hosts a native plant Seed Sharing Day in McHenry County. Sharing native plant seeds with others is a great way to get more native plants growin…

Monday: by Arden Podpora The crew at the TLC office Our last week started with r…

by Sofia Oropeza Chainsaw practice Monday always brings the start of a busy week…

by Claire Gregory It’s hard to believe that nine weeks have already passed since the CLIPterns joined the TLC team, but each day is still an adventure. …

by Kristi Robinson Though I was gone last week for a drum major camp, I was excited and ready to be back at TLC for week 8 of our CLIP internship!  We …

by Arden Podpora With more than half of the summer already gone, our time with CLIP has been flying by. Even though we had a reduced crew of just two inte…

By Evelyn Bustos Week 6 of the CLIP internship had many unique experiences and learning opportunities, from understanding forest pests to monitoring Plant…

by Sofia Oropeza So much mullen! Last week we were welcomed into the open arms o…

Testing plant identification skills by Claire Gregory Week 4 brought the first f…

by Kristi Robinson Hi! I’m Kristi, one of the CLIPterns, and I’ll be leading you through a recap of this past week.  [caption id=”attachment_5669″ alig…

by Arden Podpora The second week of TLC’s internship program, CLIP, was no less eventful than the first. From butterflies to brush saws, we gained valuabl…

Last week TLC launched its CLIP internship program, which is designed to be a hands-on learning experience designed to empower participants with the knowledg…

Those who attended the vernal pool hike on April 24 were treated to a beautiful hike and lots of tadpoles as well as other tiny creatures! Vernal pool…

TLC staff found a Blanding’s Turtle on a TLC site. The turtle appears to have suffered (and healed) from a past injury. Blanding’s turtles are considered end…

Throughout 2020, social distancing considerably limited our options for entertainment and hobbies. Sheltering-in-place has definitely expanded our appreciati…

Congrats to Carol Giammattei on becoming TLC’s 200th participating Conservation@Home property! Not only is Carol a dedicated TLC volunteer, she’s also la…

Need to stop by or call the TLC office in Woodstock? Our office hours for the next few weeks will be Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday and Friday from 1:00-5:00 p.m.

After traveling 6,000 miles from Argentina, you make a stop in Alden, Illinois. You are a bobolink, one of the most traveled migratory songbirds in the worl…

Sonja and Rich Brook have built a legacy on their farm in rural Harvard. People who frequent the Woodstock Farmers Market know the Brooks for their flavored …

I hope Phase 4 of Illinois’ coronavirus reopening finds you and your loved ones well, and that you are managing with any changes you’ve experienced through t…

The same month that I was born, August 1963, was when Martin Luther King Jr gave his “I have a dream speech,” in which he said he dreamed of a day when his “…

The Land Conservancy of McHenry County is pleased to announce that since the launch of the 5000 Acre Challenge in late January, private landowners and munic…

There are a lot of reasons why hiking is one of the most popular outdoor sports. It’s easy to do, and almost anyone can do it. There’s no need for a lot …

Dear Friend of TLC, On this beautiful day (March 17), I wanted to reach out and wish you and yours the best of health. Try to enjoy this pause …

51 new acres of oak woods added since January The Land Conservancy of McHenry County (TLC) has partnered with local landowners and donors to care for 51 ne…

The Land Conservancy was looking to create a fun and meaningful way to look back on all the work we’ve been able to do with our volunteers over the last year…

As we look back on 2019, we thank Food:Land:Opportunity for their generous support of our work to promote local food farmers and regenerative farming in McHe…

The Land Conservancy of McHenry County (TLC) has preserved an 83-acre property, Slough Creek Wetland Bank, located northwest of Woodstock on Jankowski Road. …

Earlier this fall a young red-tailed hawk was found at Wolf Oak Woods that had likely been clipped by a car. She had a concussion and other injuries. Staff …

The best ideas surface when friends meet new friends over coffee. In 2008, Rene Dankert invited me to meet Lisa Haderlein and Linda Balek for coffee and bra…

TLC member and friend Lynn Pensinger passed away on Sept. 1. In 2009 the Pensingers protected their three-acre Woodstock property with a conservation easem…

In August, TLC was accredited by the Land Trust Accreditation Commission. To become accredited, TLC provided extensive documentation and was subject to a co…