The woods, prairie and gardens at Marywood provide countless opportunities to watch the natural world.
Volunteer to become a land steward at Marywood in Grand Rapids.
The Dominican Sisters of Grand Rapids commitment to repairing this land is becoming more evident with every bloom and butterfly that we see. And in some cases that new habitat has only been realized or understood because of the helping hands of volunteers who have spent the time preparing the soil, weeding out invasive plants, adding native plants and documenting wildlife visitors.
Land stewardship activities during September and October include harvesting, cleaning and storing native seeds so that we can add more wildlife habitat by growing more plants. Some seed will go into the ground this fall, while others will be stored away to grow out into plants that will later be added to the ground. The effort to do this work is both tremendously enjoyable but takes many hours, the more hands participating, the more habitat can be grown.
If you’d like to learn more about the work being done and to see the large-scale ecological restoration effort to return areas of lawn to more natural conditions, consider joining us for one of the following land stewardship workdays:
SEPTEMBER & OCTOBER Land Stewardship and Gardening Workdays
We are seeking volunteers interested in building and fostering healthy habitats and beautiful native gardens.
- Wednesday, September 2 | 10:00 am – 12:00 pm Location: Prairie
Harvest and “clean” wildflower and grass seed that is ready. This activity will take place entirely within the prairie area, no experience necessary. Park in the main lot and meet down at the prairie. - Friday, September 11 | 10:00 am – 12:00 pm Location: Prairie
Invasive Plant Species Educational Workshop with community partner Kent Conservation District. This hands-on workshop will include a walk into the woods for an up-close look at invasive trees and shrubs and will finish in the prairie where participants will be shown how invasives impact that ecosystem. We will do some removal as well as spread native seed. Location: under tent, on south side of the Marywood building. - Friday, September 19 | 10:00 am – 12:00 pm Location: Mary’s Hope Garden
Weed out undesirable plants, then harvest and immediately spread native seed within garden. - Wednesday, September 23 | 10:00 am – 12:00 pm Location: Pond Bioswale
Weed out undesirable plants, add in wildflower transplants and seed that will thrive in this location. Park in main lot, meet at the pond to the west.
Contact landstewardship@grdominicans.org
