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Monday 9am - 5pm Tuesday 9am - 5pm Wednesday 9am - 5pm Thursday 9am - 5pm Friday 9am - 5pm Saturday 9am - 5pm Sunday 9am - 5pm

Middle Rock Conservation Partners

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Franklin Grove, IL
Middle Rock Conservation Partners

MRCP is a 501(c)(3) not-for-profit conservation organization working to protect and manage native habitats.

02/20/2026

MRCP recently held their annual meeting and dinner in Oregon, IL. We celebrated this year’s addition of the Hildebrand property to our Sam and Edna Hill Prairie site south of Grand Detour, IL, the success of our prescribed burns, and the hard work of our Fecon operators at various sites in the area. The future and direction of MRCP was also discussed as were annual changes in officers and directors. We had over two dozen people in attendance and over 40 people dining and listening to author and speaker, Cindy Crosby, afterwards. We even had our first branded merchandise available! If you’re interested in donating and becoming a member and volunteer of MRCP, a QR code has been included below. We’d love to have you!

02/12/2026

Today, we conducted a prescribed burn at a 14 acre sedge meadow at Gremel Wildlife Sanctuary southeast of Amboy. Illinois Audubon Society’s Director of Land Stewardship, Jamie Arntzen, led the burn with volunteers from I.A.S., Middle Rock Conservation Partners and Nachusa Grasslands. The sedge meadow burned very well. Regular fires will help suppress weeds in this area that has also had a lot of willow removal done over the last couple years. We’re excited to see how this unit develops this spring!

11/17/2025

Last week, M.R.C.P. volunteers conducted a prescribed burn at the David O. & Helen M. Wiegel Memorial Tallgrass Prairie in northwest Lee County. This 12 acre site, often called “Mound Hill”, is owned and managed by the Lee County Natural Area Guardians (LeeN.A.G.). It is the second highest point in Lee County and can be seen from quite a ways off as one approaches. There is remnant prairie on the hill but the flatter, lower areas were once plowed and are being reseeded with seed harvested from above. The regular application of fire will help reestablish the prairie plants and push back on invasive species. At present, no public access is allowed .

11/13/2025

We conducted a very successful prescribed burn at the Samuel & Edna Hill Preservation Site on Wednesday. The prairie planting from 2022 was burned as was a section of woodlands in which invasive plant removal has been ongoing this year. Thank you to all the volunteers, organizations and donors that helped make this possible!

03/21/2025

The first full day of spring seemed like the perfect opportunity to search for Illinois’ first native wildflower of the year to bloom; Skunk Cabbage (Symplocarpus foetidus). Search carefully as most of these plants were barely emerged from the soil. These were located just south of Lee County.

03/10/2025

It's a busy week for prescribed fire crews in the region. Burns are occurring regularly at Nachusa Grasslands and scheduled for McCune Sand Prairie and Green River SWMA this week, too. Enjoy some photos from the last few days.

03/04/2025

We were able to burn again on Monday at Nachusa Grasslands and also at Gremel Nature Preserve near Amboy. Today's rain will put a stop in the action for a few days.

03/03/2025

The 2025 prescribed burn season has begun! Yesterday, 14 participants put fire to 150 acres at the Sand Farm Unit, a Nachusa Grasslands and IDNR property in Ogle County.

02/28/2025

3/3 Update: That was fast! All trees apart of our 2025 Public Tree Giveaway have been claimed. Thanks so much to everyone for supporting our MillionTrees Project!

FREE TREES! 🌳

Our 2025 MillionTrees Project free tree request will be opened to the public on Monday, March 3rd, at 10 AM CST!

Tree saplings are requested on a first-come, first-served basis, and they go like FAST! So be sure to get on that form on time. 🤘

This year, we are offering Bur Oak, Red Oak, Swamp White Oak, and Pecan. To learn more about each species and secure yours, head to https://www.livinglandsandwaters.org/million-trees.

01/23/2025

September 10–11, 2025 Join us in Lawrence, Kansas, to share insights from grassland restoration work, research, and outreach while experiencing this unique ecotone region. Small remnant prairies in…

01/22/2025

If you enjoy exploring Lee County’s prairies, woodlands and marshes cut by the Green and Rock Rivers, you may find you’re fortunate to be in a place with a great variety of bird species; about 300 of them, in fact. Recently, MRCP’s own Sam and Edna Hill Preservation Site, just south of Grand Detour, was added to the list of eBird hotspots. Hotspots are destination locations for birders seeking bird rich habitats to search. As our site is a new hotspot, the bird list is short but has so much potential to grow; especially during the upcoming spring migration. We hope you can visit the site this year, help grow our site’s eBird database and see the progress which has been made in restoring the prairie from former crop land and removing the invasive underbrush which once choked the forest floor. Shown below are some of this year’s unusual birds found in a general line from between the Rock River at Dixon, past Nachusa, through the Green River lowlands to the Illinois River by Utica. Hopefully, some of these special birds will visit our area again in 2025.

01/20/2025

Bald Eagle Weekend 2025 will be held on the weekend of January 25th-26th in the Starved Rock area near Utica, IL.. It’s not the Rock River but it’s close. Starved Rock Audubon members will have spotting scopes on the balcony of the Illinois Waterway Visitor Center, located off Dee Bennett Rd. on the north side of the Illinois River. Enthusiasts of all ages can get close-up looks at Bald Eagles perched on and flying about Leopold and Plum Islands. They’ll also have a table inside with brochures, magazines, and activities for children. All are welcome to attend this educational and entertaining event. Check out the activities poster of scheduled events below. Hope to see you there!

Address

8772 S Lowden Road
Franklin Grove, IL
61031

Opening Hours

Monday	9am - 5pm
Tuesday	9am - 5pm
Wednesday	9am - 5pm
Thursday	9am - 5pm
Friday	9am - 5pm
Saturday	9am - 5pm
Sunday	9am - 5pm

Website

http://www.middlerockconservationpartners.org/

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Who We Are

The Middle Rock Conservation Partners (MRCP) is a vibrant group of people with passionate concern for natural resources: our water, soil, air, flora and fauna. Young and old, professional and amateur; active and passive we share a concern for the health of our planet and we do something about this concern. Some members are private landowners; some are deeply involved in local and national conservation/environmental organizations; some members work as paid professional land managers and some volunteer thousands of hours. Diverse skill sets among members provide abilities for MRCP to implement prescribed fire, create websites, raise funds, pull weeds, inventory plants, monitor rare turtles and more!