Category Archives: Local Events

Late summer color at the Wohlwend Elementary native plant garden, established with an MPF Prairie Garden Grant in 2023, by Dave Meschke.

The Missouri Prairie Foundation Prairie Garden Grants Program is accepting applications for 2025 grant awards through January 24, 2025. We invite you to share this opportunity widely to your networks.

Gardening and other conservation groups, parks, schools, and other entities in Missouri and immediately surrounding states are invited to submit proposals to MPF’s Prairie Garden Grants Program. In 2025, MPF would like to award several grants to help fund the establishment or improvement of prairie gardens or plantings using Midwest native plants. Grants will not exceed $800 each. Those with smaller projects are encouraged to apply as well. Matching funds are not required, but proposals with secured matching funds may be evaluated higher than others.Funding will be dispersed in February.

To read guidelines and apply, visit MPF’s Prairie Garden Grants page at https://moprairie.org/mission/grants/ 

The Missouri Prairie Foundation is a 59-year-old prairie conservation organization and land trust. In addition to its prairie conservation work, the Missouri Prairie Foundation also runs Grow Native!, a 23-year-old native plant marketing and education program, and administers the Missouri Invasive Plant Council. To learn more, visit www.moprairie.org or www.grownative.org, or call 636-303-7418.

Photo: Courtesy Missouri Department of Conservation

Bird buffs, falcon fanciers, and anyone enraptured by raptors is invited to meet the objects of their admiration during this year’s An Evening with Raptors event.

The annual An Evening with Raptors hosted by the Missouri Department of Conservation’s (MDC) Powder Valley Conservation Nature Center will be held again this year on Friday, Jan. 24 from 7 – 9 p.m.  The event is free, open to all ages, and offers both in-person and virtual participation options.

Falconry is the art of training raptors—birds of prey like hawks and falcons—to capture wild game, so that bird and trainer essentially become hunting partners.  It’s an ancient sport that goes back thousands of years, and you can learn about it at An Evening with Raptors event.

“Several area falconers will gather to offer the rare chance to observe and learn about these fascinating feathered hunters,” said MDC Assistant Nature Center Manager, Robyn Parker.  “They will also explain how those interested can get started in this age-old sport themselves,” she added.

Powder Valley will open at 6 p.m. for this event.  Visitors can tour the exhibits and explore educational stations, including a biofacts table to learn about Missouri’s birds of prey. They can create a take-home bird of prey craft and also meet members of the Powder Valley naturalist team.

The main presentation will take place at 7 p.m. in the nature center’s auditorium.  Afterward, visitors can meet the falconers and see their live hunting partner birds up-close in the classrooms.  The falconers will display their falconry tools, hoods, and other equipment, and visitors will also have the chance to ask them questions.

Alternatively, participants may opt to attend just the main auditorium presentation virtually.

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Powder Valley Nature Center presents a special concert by the band Shortleaf, featuring Mike and Tenley Fraser, on Friday, Sept. 6 at 7 p.m. The evening of music and storytelling offers a unique connection to nature and the Missouri Ozarks. Photo: MDC

The Missouri Department of Conservation’s (MDC) Powder Valley Conservation Nature Center invites you to discover nature through music.  The nature center will present a special concert by the band Shortleaf, featuring Mike and Tenley Fraser on Friday, Sept. 6 at 7 p.m.  The performance promises an enjoyable mix of entertainment and education suitable for the whole family.

Mike, an accomplished Ozark fiddler, and partner, Tenley, are a husband-wife duo who specialize in performing traditional music of the Ozarks.  Honoring a long-time heritage of music and storytelling, the two use tales of Ozark history and Scots-Irish culture to create an engaging blend of songs and spoken word.  The Scots-Irish people settled in the hardscrabble Ozarks after migrating west from the Appalachian country and gave the region much of its unique character.

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Calling all junior explorers! Join us for outdoor learning and fun on Saturday, Aug. 24, at 10 a.m.! In this free, interpreter-led program, participants will engage in hands-on activities to explore the great outdoors.

This program is designed for families with young children, and the event will take place entirely outdoors. Participants are encouraged to wear weather-appropriate clothing that they are comfortable after getting dirty or wet.

Explorers should meet at the playground in the picnic area located at 1800 Seckman Road in Imperial.

Coopers Landing invites the community to experience, learn and enjoy Conservation EXPO 2024, a weekend educational event dedicated to showcasing a variety of non-profit organizations and initiatives with the mission to advance Missouri conservation education and stewardship of the environment.

The event is admission-free and open to the public and is scheduled for Saturday, September 7, 9am till 4pm, and Sunday, September 8, 10am till 3pm at Coopers Landing, 11505 Smith Hatchery Road, located on the Katy Trail and the shore of the Missouri River.  Parking is available along Smith Hatchery Road in addition to off-site parking supported by shuttle service.

The EXPO features informative exhibits by over 25 organizations and community initiatives including local and state agencies, education institutions, and other conservation supportive non-profits.  Conservation EXPO welcomes rural and urban landowners, citizens engaged with community conservation initiatives and projects searching for resource information and participation opportunities.

In addition to the educational exhibits, Saturday features boat rides on the Missouri River hosted by Missouri River Relief as well as morning children’s crafts hosted by Adrienne.  Sunday features pony rides for the children hosted by Blair’s Barn of Ashland.

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Discover Nature with MDC at the Missouri State Fair Aug. 8 – 18. Visit MDC’s Conservation Building and enjoy special programs such as the Raptors of Missouri presentation with Dickerson Park Zoo on Aug. 8. Photo: MDC

Discover nature with the Missouri Department of Conservation (MDC) at the Missouri State Fair in Sedalia Aug. 8 – 18. Visit the MDC Conservation Building from 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. and the MDC Xplor Zone for kids from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. to see live fish and other native animals such as snakes, turtles, and amphibians.

Learn about and see displays of native plants that help butterflies and other important pollinators. Ask MDC staff conservation-related questions, get educational materials, and have fun.

Join MDC on Friday, Aug. 9, for Missouri Department of Conservation Day — a full day of fun and excitement sponsored by MDC!

For more information, visit mostatefair.com.

Enjoy these free conservation-related programs at MDC’s outdoor pavilion: See schedule below.

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Photo: MDC

The Missouri Department of Conservation’s (MDC) George O. White Tree Nursery in Licking is currently purchasing seed from the public for a variety of tree and shrub species within southeast Missouri.

“The nursery conducts seed collections annually, and collected seeds are grown into bare root seedlings,” said MDC Community Forester Jennifer Behnken. “The nursery will stop accepting seed once the quota has been reached for that tree or shrub, so please contact us beforehand if you have questions.”

In southeast Missouri, collected seeds can be brought to MDC’s Southeast Regional Office (Monday – Friday, 8 a.m. – 4:30 p.m.) and the Cape Girardeau Conservation Nature Center (Tuesday – Saturday, 8 a.m. – 4:30 p.m.)

Seeds currently being accepted are below (prices are by the pound of fruit):

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by Don Corrigan

You can deepen your understanding of pollinators and their pivotal role in our ecosystem when Nicole Miller-Struttmann showcases community efforts to assist our buzzing bee friends at Webster Groves Public Library.

Her program is scheduled for Tuesday, June 4, at 7 p.m. at the library. Miller-Struttmann is an associate professor of biology at Webster University and has a special interest in pollinators.

She will explain how you can support pollinators in your own back yard. Whether you’re a nature lover or looking to make a positive ecological impact, this talk will offer practical tips on the work of or pollinator friends in Webster Groves and beyond.

Miller-Struttmann grew up in Webster Groves and became interested in nature at an early age. Her parents were gardeners and were also very interested in being “green” and protecting the environment.

She said her parents’ influence led her to becoming an ecologist, and as a graduate student she won a student scholarship from the Webster Groves Nature Study Society. She went on to receive a doctorate at Washington University.

“I am very pleased to report that one of my own students, Esha Vij, has received a scholarship from the Webster Groves Nature Study Society,” said Miller-Struttmann. “It’s wonderful to have that local resource.”

After receiving her advanced degrees, Miller-Struttmann did her post-doctorate work on wild bees. She realized that the flighty critters could become her life’s work.
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