Chikaming Open Lands

05/27/2026

Thanks to all of the volunteers who helped plant trees and native plants at Hall Park over the past month! These trees and plants will not only provide important habitat for animals but also help keep Ox Creek clean by soaking up rainwater.

Berrien County Conservation District
Sustain Ox Creek

05/22/2026

𝗥𝗲𝗴𝗶𝘀𝘁𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗶𝘀 𝗡𝗢𝗪 𝗢𝗣𝗘𝗡 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝟮𝟬𝟮𝟲 𝗣𝗥𝗜𝗗𝗘 𝗣𝗔𝗗𝗗𝗟𝗘! 🌈🛶

Join Chikaming Open Lands and Harbor Country Pride for a scenic paddle through the Galien River Marsh, followed by a social hour at Seedz Brewery! Come dressed in your favorite rainbow gear as we celebrate and support the LGBTQ+ community together outdoors.

✨This event is 21+ and registration is required.
✨COL has limited kayaks available for others to use, with additional kayaks donated by our friends at Third Coast Paddling .
✨Participants with their own kayak, canoe, or paddleboard are encouraged to bring them.

Visit our event page for additional details and to register: www.chikamingopenlands.org/events/kayak-brews-pride-paddle

05/22/2026

🌿 𝗙𝗜𝗘𝗟𝗗 𝗡𝗢𝗧𝗘𝗦 𝗙𝗥𝗜𝗗𝗔𝗬 🌱 5/22/26
𝘍𝘪𝘦𝘭𝘥 𝘕𝘰𝘵𝘦𝘴 𝘪𝘴 𝘺𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘨𝘭𝘪𝘮𝘱𝘴𝘦 𝘪𝘯𝘵𝘰 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘸𝘰𝘳𝘭𝘥 𝘰𝘧 𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘱𝘳𝘦𝘴𝘦𝘳𝘷𝘦𝘴, 𝘢𝘴 𝘸𝘦 𝘴𝘩𝘢𝘳𝘦 𝘴𝘯𝘢𝘱𝘴𝘩𝘰𝘵𝘴 𝘧𝘳𝘰𝘮 𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘴𝘵𝘦𝘸𝘢𝘳𝘥𝘴𝘩𝘪𝘱 𝘵𝘦𝘢𝘮 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘴𝘵𝘢𝘧𝘧.

🥾 1: COL Outreach Naturalist Cala is busy gearing up for this year's Challenge! Stay tuned for the big trail reveal 😎

🪧2: While the trail system isn't completed and there is still MUCH work to be done at Chapman Family Preserve, the stewardship team got the sign installed this past week!

🥴 3: Deer vomit fungus. No it is not actually deer puke. It's a harmless "fungal volcano" made of wild yeasts and fungi. This slimy, gloppy substance has been making an appearance at some preserves, including this photo captured at Sugarwood Forest Preserve.

🛶 5-6: The stewardship team went birding on the Galien River Marsh with the Berrien Birding Club this week and spotted our resident Bald Eagles!

🪻7: Lupine is blooming at Grand Beach Marsh Preserve! Lupine blooms May through July and is the sole host plant for the endangered Karner Blue butterfly.

05/21/2026

🌤 Tomorrow's weather is looking nice! 😎
Get outside and help plant native species at Hall Park in Benton Harbor!

🌱 Help Us Plant the Future! 🌱

Join the Berrien County Conservation District
for our upcoming Hall Park Restoration Native Planting event on Friday, May 22 from 10 AM – 2 PM at Hall Park! Together, we’ll be restoring important wetland habitat by planting native species that support local wildlife, improve water quality, and strengthen our ecosystem for generations to come.

This is a hands-on volunteer opportunity, so come ready to get a little muddy while making a real difference in our community! Please bring:
🧤 Gloves
🥾 Boots
🌿 A spade shovel if you have one

Due to the marshy terrain, this event is not recommended for children under 10.

Every plant put in the ground helps restore and protect Berrien County’s natural resources. We hope to see you there! 💚

📍 Learn more & sign up here:
Hall Park Restoration Event Page-
https://www.berriencd.org/events/hall-park-restoration

05/20/2026

A huge thank you to everyone who joined us at The Historian on April 29 for an evening benefiting Chikaming Open Lands!

It was a fantastic night filled with great food, community, and generosity. We’re so grateful to The Historian for hosting, and to everyone who came out and made the evening such a success!

05/20/2026

COL MERCH UPDATE 👕📦

Due to the great response from our temporary online store, production is running a few days behind the original timeline. Items are currently still in production and are expected to be completed sometime next week.

☑️ If you selected pickup at checkout, please note that orders will NOT be ready starting Tuesday, May 26th as originally planned. We’ll post another update (and send an email) as soon as the items are in hand, along with designated pickup days and times.
☑️ If you selected shipping at checkout, your order will be mailed directly to you once fulfilled.

Thank you for your patience. We can’t wait to see everyone wearing their COL gear!

05/19/2026

Your favorite trail challenge returns in a little over a month 😎
Stay tuned for the big trail reveal...

05/18/2026

📚⏰ This is the final week to enjoy our StoryWalk on the Preserves before it comes down for the season. Take a stroll through the preserves, enjoy the stories page by page, and soak in a little extra time outdoors together!

Find all the details and make your plans: www.chikamingopenlands.org/storywalk

05/18/2026

🌱Berrien County Conservation District native plant sale is this week at the youth fair, offering pickup of pre-orders as well as browse-and-buy for those who didn't place orders in advance!

🌿 Don’t forget — our Native Plant Sale is this Wednesday, May 20th from 1–4 PM at the Berrien County Fairgrounds!

Whether you preordered or just want to browse, we’ll have plenty of browse-and-buy native plant options available while supplies last. 🌸🐝

And be sure to stick around for our special book reading at 2 PM with local authors Tera and Violet Baker as they read their new children’s book, “A Rainbow Striped Field for Fuzz.” 📚🌈

We can’t wait to see everyone for an afternoon celebrating native plants, pollinators, and community! 💚

05/16/2026

🌿 𝗙𝗜𝗘𝗟𝗗 𝗡𝗢𝗧𝗘𝗦 🌱 5/16/26
𝘍𝘪𝘦𝘭𝘥 𝘕𝘰𝘵𝘦𝘴 𝘪𝘴 𝘺𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘨𝘭𝘪𝘮𝘱𝘴𝘦 𝘪𝘯𝘵𝘰 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘸𝘰𝘳𝘭𝘥 𝘰𝘧 𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘱𝘳𝘦𝘴𝘦𝘳𝘷𝘦𝘴, 𝘢𝘴 𝘸𝘦 𝘴𝘩𝘢𝘳𝘦 𝘴𝘯𝘢𝘱𝘴𝘩𝘰𝘵𝘴 𝘧𝘳𝘰𝘮 𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘴𝘵𝘦𝘸𝘢𝘳𝘥𝘴𝘩𝘪𝘱 𝘵𝘦𝘢𝘮 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘴𝘵𝘢𝘧𝘧.

☘️ 1: A cluster of Toadshade (Trillium sessile), captured by Jane Lohmar, COL preserve steward and board member.

💪🏼2-3: Last Saturday’s May Stewardship Day also included our quarterly Stewardship Task Force meeting. The group met at Trillium Woodlands Preserve, where volunteers tackled garlic mustard, filling countless trash bags of the pesky invasive!

👎🚫 4-5: Now is a good time to check your yard and property for invasive garlic mustard! Make sure to bag it and throw it out with your garbage disposal o prevent seeds spreading.

1st year garlic mustard forms a rosette of heart-shaped leaves. 2nd year garlic mustard sends up a stalk with small white flowers and long seed pods, which can release thousands of seeds.