Invasive & Weedy Species Management 101 Workshops Scheduled
Galena, IL: Prairie Works Inc., the source for ecological and landscape services in northwest Illinois, is pleased to announce that it will be hosting a series of workshops on invasive and weedy species management in cooperation with the Jo Daviess Conservation Foundation (JDCF). The series is designed to provide education about the types and eradication of invasive and weedy species that inhabit our area, especially to individuals interested in volunteering to maintain JDCF’s public use sites. Anyone wishing to donate 10 hours of volunteer work to JDCF over the next year can attend the series at no charge. Others are welcome at a cost of $40.00/person.
The first session will be held at 2 pm August 22nd at the Galena Adventure Center located next to Fever River Outfitters just before the floodgates in downtown Galena. It will be a class room setting featuring a presentation by Cory Ritterbusch of Prairie Works on invasive species management. The following sessions will be held outdoors over the course of several months led by expert staff from both Prairie Works and JDCF. Participants will get hands on training in dealing with a variety of species such as thistles, reed canary grass, sweet clover, garlic mustard, and poison parsnip. A winter session will focus on tree species and forest management. Please reserve your spot by August 14th to the JDFC office at (815) 858-9100 or info@jdcf.org.
An exciting new program is available to the citizens of Northwest Illinois. I highly recommend readers of this website to participate. Cory Ritterbusch will be teaching the October 5th session titled, Ecosystem Management. Here is the official press release:
The University of Illinois Jo-Carroll Extension Unit is pleased to announce the formation of the Northwest Illinois Master Naturalist Program. This program will offer interested participants the ability to be trained by local and regional natural resource instructors about the natural communities found in the northwest Illinois area. Participants will be trained weekly, typically on Monday mornings from 8-12 over three months from August through October. Once training is completed participants are expected to complete a volunteer service project to become a certified Master Naturalist. Once certified the Master Naturalists are expected to annually conduct some level of volunteer stewardship and continuing training to maintain their certification. The curriculum will cover topics ranging from natural history, understanding the natural world, communicating with nature, and environmental ethics & philosophy. The course will also teach people about the natural communities ranging from aquatics, grassland and forestry to special communities, agricultural and urban communities. Also covered are will be ecosystems management, archaeology, and volunteer service projects opportunities.
The program is scheduled to start August 3rd and space is limited to 20 participants on a first come first serve basis until paid registration is full. Cost for participating in the program is $275. The U of I Extension and the JDCF are very excited about offering this great opportunity for individuals in northwest Illinois. Interested participants are encouraged to contact the Jo Daviess Extension Office at 815-858-2273 to register and Chris Kirkpatrick at the Jo Daviess Conservation Foundation at 815-858-9100 for details about program.
