Lots of Earth Day and Arbor Day events serve up free trees, plants, cleanups and know-how
The next two weekends yield a range of ways to grab some free trees, plants and seeds and learn how to plant native gardens that serve our local ecology — so much better than the exotic species that garden centers have sold for decades.
It's also a chance to clean up beaches and parks and rededicate ourselves to be better stewards of the land, air and water that we need to be healthy and survive.
Officially, Earth Day is April 22, and Arbor Day is April 26. But many local organizations will host these events — all of them free — on weekends to meet our busy lives.
∎ Planting, biking from Clay park: An Arbor and Earth Day celebration will begin with a garden plant and seed exchange at 8:30 a.m. April 20 at Clay Township Park, 52007 Laurel Road, South Bend, along with how-to information on planting butterfly seeds and making catnip toys, birdfeeders and sachets from balsam. Bring pop tabs if you have them. Then, while a solar oven cooks, a bike ride will start at 9 a.m. down the LaSalle Trail to St. Patrick’s County Park to view the eagle’s nest, then come back, rest and ride the Riverside Trail to Angela Boulevard and back. If you need a bike, contact organizer Diana Mendelsohn at 574-310-9428 by text or greenearthbikerental@gmail.com.
∎ Unity Gardens: Join a neighborhood clean-up, tree planting, plant sale and demo of a solar panel to power a greenhouse dome from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. April 20 at Unity Gardens, 3701 Prast Blvd., South Bend. While you’re there, visit product and information booths, take garden tours and enjoy music and light refreshments.
∎ Rummage sale at St. Pat’s: The South Bend/Elkhart Audubon Society will hold it annual rummage sale from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. April 20 in the red barn at St. Patrick’s County Park, 50651 Laurel Road, South Bend. Donate items for the sale (no sofas or electronics) at the red barn from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. April 17-18 and from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. April 19. Park admission is free until 10 a.m. April 20.
∎ South Bend Bike Garage: This used-bike co-op at Angela Boulevard and Indiana 933 isn't normally open on Saturdays but will open from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. April 20 for quick bike tune-ups and cleanings and an open house. Meanwhile, just across the parking lot, volunteers from the large, neighboring Unity Gardens plot will be having a big work day.
∎ Elkhart Environmental Center: The Elkhart Environmental Center, 1717 E. Lusher Ave., Elkhart, will host a range of Earth Day activities from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. April 20, starting with a giveaway of 11 species of trees ranging from two to five feet tall — one per visitor. At 11 a.m., learn about a new group that's fighting invasive species in Elkhart County and help them to remove honeysuckle at the center and to plant native trees. At noon, join an exchange of seeds, bulbs and plants (must be non-invasive species; plants must be healthy and potted in soil). Throughout the event, there will be booths, kids activities and a taco food truck. The city’s aquatic biologist will show live fish from the Elkhart River.
∎ DeFries Garden cleanup: Clean up DeFries Gardens in New Paris at 10 a.m. April 20. Bring work gloves, your favorite tools and your own water. Registration is required at elkhartcountyparks.org.
∎ Fernwood: On April 20, you can join a cleanup of the riverside from 10 to 11:30 a.m., learn about spring woodland wildflowers on a guided tour from 12:30 to 1:30 p.m., or have your kids join a youth chalk art contest from noon to 3 p.m., all at Fernwood Botanical Garden, 13988 Range Line Road, Niles. For Arbor Day weekend, there will be a ceremonial tree planting at 11 a.m. April 26. And from 1 to 2 p.m. April 27, there will be a guided tour of noteworthy trees in Fernwood’s 45-acre arboretum, which was designed by Clarence Godshalk in 1967. All of these events are free after paying the admission fee.
∎ Weko Beach cleanup: Enjoy refreshments as you learn about efforts to protect the Lake Michigan shoreline and dunes and then volunteer to clean up Weko Beach in Bridgman from 10 a.m. to noon April 20. The featured speaker will be Anne Smith, a coastal project engineer at consulting firm Abonmarche who has many years of experience in shoreline evaluation and shore protection projects, including with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers in Chicago, where she monitored harbors and high waters of the 1980s and 1990s. She’ll offer insights on dealing with complex shoreline issues. Free parking. This is presented by Bridgman’s Shoreline Resiliency Committee.
∎ Buchanan Plow Day: It may not technically be an Earth Day event, but the annual Buchanan Plow Day celebrates churning the earth of our farms. Watch horses and antique tractors as they pull plows through fields from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. April 20 at the historical Buchanan School Farm, 3588 Andrews Road. From downtown Buchanan, follow Main Street north and turn left on Andrews. Pancake breakfasts will be sold from 8 to 11 a.m. and lunches from 11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. See ice cream making and wood carving and take hay rides. Learn about fishing tackle, archaeology and more.
∎ Izaak Walton tours and trees: On April 21, the Izaac Walton League (for its 100th anniversary) will lead guided tours of its grounds at 2:30 p.m. and give away trees to the public at 3:30 p.m., including serviceberry, arborvitae, eastern redbud, eastern white pine, pagoda dogwood, shagbark hickory, hazelnut and tulip poplar. Izaac Walton is at 20400 Darden Road, South Bend.
∎ Indiana Dunes cleanup: Spend the morning cleaning up a winter’s worth of trash and debris from roadsides, beaches, the Little Calumet River and trails around Indiana Dunes National Park from 9 a.m. to noon CDT April 22. Register at the Indiana Dunes Visitor Center, 1215 N. Indiana 49, Porter. You’ll be assigned a cleanup area. Equipment and protective gear will be provided.
∎ 35th Street wetland cleanup: Join a citizen-led effort to clean up a lesser-known wetland southeast of 35th Street and Washington Street, in South Bend’s River Park neighborhood, from 9 to 11 a.m. April 27. Seen as a potential park, access for the cleanup will be via the stub of South 36th Street north of Marshall Avenue. The city’s Code Enforcement department will provide backup support. For more information, contact Brian Will at 847-322-5029 or bvwill@att.net.
∎ Redbud tree giveaway: The Granger Lions Club will give out 300 redbud saplings from 9 to 11 a.m. April 27 at the Martin’s Super Market at Heritage Square in Granger.
∎ South Bend tree giveaways: The city of South Bend’s Venues, Parks & Arts forestry crew will give away 200 non-invasive species of trees from 9:30 to 11:30 a.m. April 27 at Rum Village Park and May 11 at Howard Park. This is sponsored with help from the AEP Foundation.
∎ Natural Landscaping Fair: The South Bend chapter of Wild Ones will host its first annual Spring Natural Landscaping Fair, a free event from 9 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. April 27 in the ballroom of the St. Joseph County Public Library’s Community Learning Center, 304 S. Main St., South Bend. Local landscape designers will share information and tips for using native plants in your landscapes and gardens of any size. Information on available grants for planting native gardens will also be available.
Find columnist Joseph Dits on Facebook at SBTOutdoorAdventures or 574-235-6158 or jdits@sbtinfo.com.
This article originally appeared on South Bend Tribune: Earth and Arbor Day Where to get free trees, clean up parks and learn
