North Chapter Events & Activities
Current Events
Saturday, June 6
10:00am EST
Identification Hike at Wildwood Acres
409 IN-14, Silver Lake, IN 46982
The trails at Wildwood are a medium difficulty level and wind through a variety of habitats including a small pond, wet flatwoods, open wetland and streamside habitats that boast an array of Carex diversity. For the best experience, bring waterproof shoes, (knee boots are even better), and bug spray! Twenty parking spaces should be available! There will be room for spillover parking if need be.
Joanna is the conservation manager at ACRES Land Trust. She works in the stewardship side of the organization on a range of projects relating to land management and natural resources, including; due diligence on land acquisitions, coordinating farm program contracts, collaborating with partner organizations and assisting field staff where needed!
Please contact Marci DeGroot to sign up: marci.degroot@stantec.com
On the Horizon
Saturday, July 11
Hike at Bonneyville Mill County Park with Vince Gresham from Elkhart County Parks
More information to come!
Past Events
May 2026
Hike at Springfield Fen Nature Preserve
Join Indiana DNR ecologist, Derek Nimetz, on a guided hike at Springfield Fen Nature Preserve in LaPorte County on Sat., May 30, from 9:30 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. CT. This guided hike will start on North Wilhelm Road, and participants will walk a short section of trail through an upland forest, down a staircase, along a boardwalk, and into a fen wetland. The wetland does not have a trail, and participants will be among the wetland vegetation. On this guided hike, participants can learn about habitats, plants and animals, nature preserve history, and natural resource management activities.
Photo of Springfield Fen provided by Derek Nimetz.
May 2026
Plant rescue at Bluhm County Park
LaPorte County Parks is hosting a plant rescue at the Bluhm County Park. There are many spring ephemerals growing in the old stream channel that can be rescued to take home. There is a project to remeander the channelized stream later this year. Folks are encouraged to bring their own plant pots, spades, gloves. There will be some transportation from the Bluhm parking lot to nearby the plant rescue area. Rugged, possibly muddy ground expected.
May 2026
Volunteer Opportunity: Indiana Dunes Birding Festival
Migration Marketplace, Indiana Dunes Visitor Center
The INPS North Chapter will have a booth again this year in the Migration Marketplace.
May 2026
Hike at Ambler Flatwoods Nature Preserve
Led by Doug Botka—This is a botanical and ecological hike of our rare Flatwoods habitat in La Porte County. These Flatwoods are sand systems with a lower clay layer that keep much of the habitat very close to the water table. These are incredibly diverse habitats – having over 700 plant species in the complex! They are sometimes labeled as Boreal Flatwoods because of the many Boreal relicts present, but there are also over 15 Atlantic coastal plains disjuncts out there as well. We will be stopping to look at many things, particularly sedges (70 Carex species at Ambler complex), native groundcovers, birches (gray and paper), and five different species in the Lycopodiaceae Family. There will also be time to talk about succession in these sandy ecosystems, and how soil, pH, and low nutrients affect the plant communities as well as the structure of the systems.
Doug Botka is the Stewardship Ecologist with the Shirley Heinze Land Trust. He works with all elements of their nature preserves ranging from: evaluating areas for preservation, analyzing natural communities, performing plant inventories, helping with grant proposals, controlling invasive species, implementing prescribed fire, and planning and maintaining trails. He has been working in restoration work for over 15 years.
May 2026
INPS North Chapter Annual Meeting
Please join us at Bendix Woods County Park Saturday, May 2nd for our annual INPS North Chapter Members meeting. We’ll start the day at the DeNeve Shelter at the Otahnagon Picnic Area to help St. Joseph County Parks with their Weed Wrangle. This runs from 9-12pm EST and then we’ll head to the Glen Bauer Shelter for lunch (provided) and our public meeting.
We’ll keep the meeting short in which we will mostly review our 2025 activities, our upcoming 2026 events and then vote for our executive board members. Please come out to help pull garlic mustard or just come for the food and public meeting. We won’t be leading a hike this year since we’ll volunteer at the Weed Wrangle.
Help the parks protect the old-growth forest in Bendix Woods’ Nature Preserve from invasive Garlic Mustard (Alliaria petiolata)! Learn how to identify and remove this invasive species, which crowds out native plants if left untreated.
Bendix Woods Forest Preserve photo submitted by Heidi Gray.
April 2026
Weed Wrangle Volunteer Day
Join us at Rogers Lakewood Park for a hands-on volunteer day removing invasive plants and helping native habitats thrive. Volunteers will learn how to identify invasive species and gain practical experience removing them to improve local ecosystems.
No prior experience needed — we’ll provide guidance and tools. Register here!
- Learn to identify common invasive plants
- Help remove invasive species threatening native habitats
- Support healthier ecosystems for birds, pollinators, and wildlife
- Connect with others who care about the environment. This event is a great way to learn something new, meet like-minded people, and find out how to get involved. We can’t wait to see you there!
March 2026
Presentation: A morning with Dr. Doug Tallamy: “Saving Nature in Your Yard”
La Porte County Master Gardener Association proudly presents Dr. Doug Tallamy, Professor of Agriculture in the Department of Entomology and Wildlife Ecology at the University of Delaware who will present his keynote, “Saving Nature in Your Yard.”
Dr. Doug Tallamy is an entomologist, conservationist, and professor, whose work has transformed our understanding of the relationship between native plants and wildlife. His research and books, including Bringing Nature Home and Nature’s Best Hope, have inspired millions to see their own yards as part of the solution to the biodiversity crisis. Driven by the belief that everyone can play a role, Doug co-founded Homegrown National Park to encourage people to plant natives in the spaces they care for. See his full bio here.
October 2025
Hike at Timothy Richie Nature Preserve
Join us for a fun and informative nature walk through Shirley Heinze’s Timothy Richie Nature Preserve led by IU biology professor, Spencer Cortwright.
In the eastern half of the United States, tracts of old-growth forest are, with a few exceptions, very small and far apart, with younger, regrowing woods or non-woods in between. Close examination of some older woods shows that some forests have old-growth features even if they are not true old-growth. We’ll walk through Shirley Heinze Land Trust’s Ritchie Woods examining its old forest features and coming to a potential understanding of its value, understanding the ecological nature of our forests. Photo submitted by Spencer Cortwright
October 2025
Hike at South Bend City Cemetery
Join us for a fun and informative nature walk through Shirley Heinze’s Timothy Richie Nature Preserve led by IU biology professor, Spencer Cortwright.
Let’s explore the biodiversity in South Bend’s oldest cemetery! We will start at the cemetery (founded in 1832). At this site, we will share some of our findings on bird and tree diversity. Some of the trees are older than the cemetery. Then we will walk along the Greenway to the Navarre Cabin at the South Bend Center for History. The Greenway is in the process of being developed with a goal of increasing the native plantings along the route. The walk will be about one mile and mostly flat (except for the numerous groundhog holes), let by Deb Marr & Andy Schnabel Biology Professors at Indiana University South Bend. Picture from South Bend VPA website
September 2025
Cressmoor Prairie Hike
Let’s take a leisurely walk through Cressmoor Prairie in Hobart lead by Candice Peterson-Smith, INPS North Chapter Board Member! Cressmoor Prairie is a Shirley Heinze Land Trust property and an Indiana state nature preserve. It is a very high quality black-soil tallgrass prairie that contains several threatened plant and insect species and, hopefully, it will be in full bloom for our walk.
Photo submitted by Shirley Heinze Land Trust
August 2025
Chapter Public Meeting & Tour of Stantec Nursery
Come meet the INPS North Chapter board and members over pizza (provided) at the Stantec Native Plant Nursery on August 22nd from 5:00-8:00 PM EST. We’ll review our recent events and activities and share what’s coming up in the fall, winter, and beyond. We’ll keep the meeting and mingling to an hour or less so we can enjoy the nursery tour led by Jason Fritz, Stantec Native Plant Nursery’s Business Development Manager. This is a flat hike with easy terrain, and parking is available in the large parking lot.
May 2025
Indiana Native Plant Society, North Chapter Heron Rookery, Flowers and Feathers Hike
Join Indiana DNR Regional Ecologist Matt Beatty as we venture forth to appreciate one of the great wonders of spring… the beauty of spring ephemerals! We will be trekking along a branch of the Little Calumet River in the Indiana Dunes National Park’s scenic Heron Rookery.
April 2025
INPS North Chapter Public Meeting and Spring Ephemeral Hike
Come meet the INPS North Chapter board and members over some lunch (provided) at the Glenn Bauer Shelter at Bendix Woods April 26 th at 12 Eastern. We’ll review our recent events and activities and share what is coming up in the spring/summer. We’ll keep the meeting and mingling to less than an hour so we can go on a hike to look for some spring ephemerals with Scott Namestnik as the lead. Gate fees in effect.
September 2024
Doug Tallamy in Person: Start a new Habitat—HomeGrown National Parks!
The Notre Dame Environmental Change Initiative, South Bend Wild Ones, Indiana Native Plant Society, North Chapter, and South Bend Elkhart Audubon Society are bringing Dr. Doug Tallamy, entomologist, Professor at The University of Delaware, and author to speak.
August 2024
Great Marsh Trail Field Trip
Join INPS board members Daniel James and Candice Peterson-Smith for a foray into our local National Park as we visit the Great Marsh Trail, a beautiful wetland ecosystem with a long history of restoration. Expertise from our hike leaders will provide for a deeper understanding and appreciation of restoration projects within the area, especially within the Indiana Dunes National Park. Some likely plant species to be seen during the hike include great blue lobelias, rose mallows, swamp asters, as well as a wide variety of sedges, rushes, and grasses.
May 2024
Hike at Potato Creek State Park
Meet at the Quaking Aspen shelter at Potato Creek State Park to join a guided hike with Indiana’s State Botanist, Scott Namestnik. The hike, hosted by Friends of Potato Creek State Park, will begin at 2:00 and last two hours. We will hike the approximately 1-mile Trail 3, which traverses slightly hilly terrain through a rich forest filled with spring-blooming wildflowers.
May 2024
Hike at Moraine Nature Preserve
The Indiana Department of Natural Resources, Division of Nature Preserves, is partnering with the Old Growth Forest Network to host a free guided hike at Moraine Nature Preserve in Porter County, Indiana. More information about the guided hike at Moraine Nature Preserve can be found at Guided hike: Moraine Nature Preserve, Porter County – State of Indiana.
May 2024
INPS Member Meeting and Wildflower Walk
INPS North Chapter Members and Guests (especially moms) are cordially invited! Join your fellow chapter members for an afternoon of food, discussion, and a walk in the beautiful surroundings. We’ll meet at the Glenn Bauer Shelter for pizza, snacks, and drinks.
July 2023
Hike at Elkhart Conservation Club
ECC members Judy Wenig-Horswell, Charlie Horswell, and John J. Smith led the hike through woodland and wetland that has a number of high conservation value plants, such as Canada mayflower (Maianthemum canadense), striped wintergreen (Chimaphila maculata), pale Indian plantain (Arnoglossum atriplicifolium), puttyroot (Aplectrum hyemale), tubercled orchid (Platanthera flava var. hebiola), purple fringed orchid (Platanthera pyscodes), maple-leaved viburnum (Viburnum acerifolium, maidenhair fern (Adiantum pedatum), marsh marigold (Caltha palustris), and more.