WILDFLOWER WALKS

Alan Branhagen and Barbara Williams will lead this hike on property owned and managed by NLI. One of the attractive features of this preserve is a series of creek-side cliffs known as the dells. 

Joni Denker and Daniel Pohl  will lead this walk at Rockford Park District’s Anna Page Park variety of plant communities, from creek bottoms to maple forest to view marsh marigolds, trillium, blue-eyed marys and numerous other spring flowers.

Join us for an evening with Mike Groves and Sandra Vaughn-Pottorf from the Forest Preserves of Winnebago County. We will be on the lookout for Virginia bluebells, trout lilies, red trillium, spring beauties, rue anemones, wild ginger, May apples and more.

Join Aaron Minson from Boone County Conservation District and Brian Hale on a hunt for spring wildflowers in the fen and oak savanna habitats of Piscasaw Fen. Guests will also see the habitat restoration at this Boone County Conservation District site.

Connie McIntosh and Kathy Martinez will take us on a tour of the Pecatonica Wetlands Forest Preserve, which includes river edge floodplain forest, oxbow pond marshes and upland forest along the Pecatonica River. The site has outstanding spring flora and birdlife.

Zach Grycan and Kyle Hulbert of the Natural Land Institute will be our guides on this 4-acre dry hill prairie in Ogle County. We will see one of the best displays of flora in remnant prairies in northern Illinois, including prairie dropseed, leadplant, and shooting stars.

Jessie Crow Mermel and Daniel Pohl will take you through the early summer landscape of Harlem Hills Nature Preserve. This can be a great time of year for spotting prairie smoke, shooting star, and early pale purple coneflowers. The always-beautiful sunset will be a bonus.

Russell Brunner will lead this hike at the Byron Forest Preserve District’s sand prairie restorations and remnant dolomite hill prairies. There are acres of wild lupine that should be in bloom as well as Golden Alexanders, Ohio spiderwort, foxglove beardtongue, Indigo, and pale purple coneflower.

NLI staff Alan Branhagen and Laura Helmich will lead a tour through this beautiful upland prairie, located west of Winnebago. Prairie smoke, leadplant, birdsfoot violet and New Jersey tea may be seen at this native prairie.

Joni Denker and Andrea Wallace Noble will lead this hike through mesic and wet-mesic prairie where prairie dropseed,Indian grass, and big bluestem grow. This site is one of the highest quality wet prairies in the state. We will explore the impacts of fire ecology on the landscape and enjoy a showcase of summer flowers.