Registration is requested for this free event. For more information and to register by Friday, Sept. 25 visit: www.naturalland.org/event/fall-prairie-harvest-day-2026/ or call 815-964-6666.
Plenty of free parking on site. Refreshments will be provided. Dress for the weather, wear closed toe shoes, and bring gloves if possible. NLI will provide any needed tools and buckets to hold the seeds.
Individuals, families and all kinds of groups (Scouts, Girl Scouts, 4-H, Home School, Church, Youth, Employee) will enjoy this easy and fun activity. Learn how to identify plants in their dormant stage and how to properly collect the seeds from the plant, as well as benefit from the fresh air and exercise. See birds, insects and animal signs while you’re out in the prairie.
“Collecting seeds is an important community service activity for NLI, providing thousands of dollars’ worth of seeds for its ongoing restoration projects at Nygren Wetland and other NLI preserves,” said Alan Branhagen, NLI’s Executive Director.
Branhagen will be participating in “The Big Sit” by counting birds from within a 17-foot circumference in the area of the two benches overlooking the big wetland for several hours during this same day. Event attendees will be invited to visit while they are at Nygren Wetland during the harvest day and find out more about what he is doing and to look for birds.
About Nygren Wetland Preserve:
The Carl & Myrna Nygren Wetland Preserve is a 721-acre wildlife sanctuary owned by the Natural Land Institute and is celebrating the 25th Anniversary since the land was acquired in 2000 and the restoration from farmland was started. There are prairies, wetlands, bottomland forest, oxbow lakes and ponds in the preserve. Raccoon Creek runs through the preserve with the Rock and Pecatonica Rivers forming the southeast corner of it. The Dianne Nora Nature Trail is a free 2.5 mile hiking trail around the wetland and is part of the Prairie State Hike app (99¢ in the Apple or Android Store).
About the Natural Land Institute:
The Natural Land Institute, an accredited conservation land trust, is a 501(c)3, non-profit organization based in Rockford, Illinois, which has protected 18,000 acres of natural land in Illinois since 1958. The current service area covers twelve counties in northern Illinois. NLI’s mission is to create an enduring legacy of natural land in northern Illinois for people, plants and animals. For more information and to donate, visit www.naturalland.org.
