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Order online through May 1 and pick up your native plants on May 14 and 15 at the Sugar Creek Administration Center. To learn more about how to incorporate native species into your home turf and how these plants benefit the environment, sign up for the foundation's educational webinars. 

Bait, snacks and fishing licenses will be available for purchase when the Monee Reservoir Visitor Center and concessions stand reopen to the public. Boat rentals start in April and kayak and canoe rentals in May.

The Forest Preserve has lined up three St. Patrick's Day-themed programs starting with 'St. Paw-trick's Day' on March 13. Dress your dog in green and head over to the Lower Rock Run Dog Park for some fun. Or sign up to watch 'Irish in the Industries' and 'St. Pat's Charming Snakes' Zoom webinars online.

The event schedule offers a wide range of activities that are sprinkled throughout the year to inspire patrons to revisit sites they already love and to motivate others to discover a new place to enjoy the outdoors. Art, food, nature and fitness are all on tap as we get underway for some fun in '21.

Get a taste of the work and science behind maple syrup making during the 'Maple Syrup Magic' program set for March 6 at Plum Creek Nature Center. Participants will learn all about the history of this unique product and how to make it as they watch the process and taste the end result.

The site is closed to general access from March 1-August 15 to protect nesting birds. Visitors will be allowed only during bird-watching programs. The other two access areas for the preserve – Turtle Lake and Copley Nature Park – remain open from 8 a.m.-sunset year-round.

Thirty-eight sculptures have been accepted into the show and the pieces will be on display through April 3. Visitors can view the artwork and vote for their favorite to win the People's Choice Award. A jury will determine first, second and third place winners.

Find out why Forest Preserve staff spread prairie seeds on top of the snow and how many gallons of tree sap it takes to make a gallon of maple syrup. The show airs at 8:30 p.m. Wednesday, February 24, on Facebook and YouTube.

Coyote mating season is underway and pupping season is near, so it's important to take steps to prevent potential conflicts.

Crane Nuclear was selected for volunteer work accomplished by its employees along the DuPage River in Naperville. And Eagle Scout candidate Jaden Fehrenbacher was chosen for organizing a team to repair a trailside shelter at Hammel Woods in Shorewood. 

When the Monee Reservoir Visitor Center reopens for the season on March 2, plastic water bottles will no longer be an option and only boxed water will be sold. The switch to boxed water is part of the Forest Preserve's push to become more sustainable.

If you've visited the Joliet Iron Works Preserve in downtown Joliet or plan to in the future, a new indoor exhibit at Isle a la Cache Museum in Romeoville will enhance your knowledge of the site through copies of the company newsletter, photos, videos and artifacts. 

Region 7, which includes Will County, moved to a Phase 4 Restore Illinois pandemic plan on Monday, February 1. As a result, Forest Preserve indoor program capacity and Four Rivers Environmental Education Center rentals have expanded to a maximum of 50 people. 

The state grant will be used to enhance three southern Will County preserves that are home to 20 species considered endangered or threatened in Illinois and 43 species of greatest conservation need.

A 40-acre Homer Township purchase will expand Hadley Valley Preserve and provide a missing link for a Spring Creek Greenway Trail extension, and a 40-acre Washington Township donation will begin the establishment of a new eastern Will County preserve.