Meetings & Events
Orland Grassland volunteers and enthusiasts have plenty to do within each of the seasons on the grassland, each with its own natural splendor.
QUARTERLY VOLUNTEER MEETINGS
ALL ARE WELCOME!
7:00 to 9:30 p.m.
Orland Park Civic Center
14750 So. Ravinia Ave.
Orland Park, IL
01-29-19
04-30-19
07-30-19
10-29-30--Cancelled
2019 EVENTS
11-05 & 11-12--Seed Cleaning
6:30 p.m. at the Orland Park Civic Center. Time to clean all those seeds to ready them for distribution.
"I am only one, but still I am one. I cannot do everything, but I can do something. I will not refuse to do the something I can do."
— Edward Everett Hale
Author and clergyman
1822-1909
EVENTS
About "Autumn on the Grassland"
It's fall and time to begin our seed harvest. We wander the site under the guidance of the Orland Grassland Volunteers and collect seed from our native plants. We have 1,000 acres to seed, and every precious seed counts.
About seed cleaning
Volunteers gather to clean all the native seed that’s been collected. Sometimes we rub the seeds over hand-made screens; sometimes we pry them open with our fingers; and sometimes we use a hammer to split them open. Whatever it takes, we get the seeds ready and sorted for Grand Seeding Day, just a couple weeks later. After that, nature will work her winter magic on them: the seeds will be denched and dried, frozen and thawed, until the spring sun tells them it’s time to take their rightful place in the open air.
About Grand Seeding Day
On this day, volunteers distribute all of the seed we’ve harvested and cleaned. When we gather in the parking lot, teams are formed to spread out over the site. Once in position, long lines of volunteers hand-shake priceless native wildflower and grass seeds into areas that are ready to receive them. Equipment is provided.