Evening is a beautiful time on the prairie! Join us to collect seeds for future prairie plantings and learn a few plants each week. Wear long sleeved shirt and long pants, closed toe shoes and socks. We supply the collecting gear. Meet at the Arboretum office. Our meeting time changes over the summer based on sunset times. Cancelled if raining at or within two hours before the start time.

Even as tides rise against the shores, another great tide is rising – a tide of outrage against the pillage of the planet, a tide of commitment to justice and human rights, a swelling affirmation of moral responsibility to the future of the lovely, reeling planet. Kathleen Dean Moore takes on the essential questions: Why is it wrong to wreck the world? What is our obligation to the future? What is the transformative power of moral resolve? Her words are at once heartbreaking and motivating, terrifying and empowering, analytical and lyrical, hopeful and strategic.

Kathleen Dean Moore will sign books following the lecture.

Join the Cannon River Watershed Partnership’s 8th Annual Watershed Wide Cleanup at locations including Cannon Falls, Faribault, Medford, Morristown, Northfield, Owatonna, Red Wing, Shield’s Lake, Waterville and Welch. We’ll be cleaning up on foot and in canoes (water level permitting). Improve the health of our rivers, lakes and streams and enjoy a snack and/or lunch on us in one of the largest volunteer events in our area!

This year, to celebrate the arrival of the Smithsonian Traveling Exhibit Water/Ways at the Goodhue County Historical Society, a free concert will be held at Bay Point Park from 3-5 PM. All are invited to this community event! The Red Wing YMCA and Red Wing Community Recreation will provide children’s activities from 2:30-4:30 PM, and several organizations affiliated with the cleanup and Water/Ways will have informational booths. Local Red Wing restaurant Fiesta Mexicana will provide a food truck for the duration of the afternoon. Free music will be provided by Tin Can Gin, a high-energy, Lake Superior-influenced bluegrass band that combines elements of traditional Americana, modern folk, and flawless musicianship to form one of the most exciting sounds in Minnesota. More information on Tin Can Gin can be found at tincangin.com.

Details for each cleanup site, as well as pre-registration, are available at crwp.net. This helps us to determine how much food we need and how many supplies go to each location and helps our site leaders better prepare for the event.

Join in the fun and make a difference in your community. Sign up today! For more information and to sign up, go to www.crwp.net or contact Kristi@crwp.net or (507) 786-3916.

The Perlman Teaching Museum is facilitating a Free Store in the courtyard of the Weitz Center for Creativity on the first reading day of spring term. The Free Store concept was popularized in the 1960s by avant-garde performance and political activist group The Diggers in San Francisco. The aim of our free store and those of the historical counterculture movement is to call attention to consumer culture and promote reuse and recycling of commodities.

To participate, bring unwanted items — books, food, clothing, knickknacks — and take something you want or need in exchange. Any items that remain at the end of the event will be donated to the campus-wide garage sale Lighten Up, benefiting local non-profits.

In the highly unlikely case of rain (forecast for tomorrow is a perfect 75-degree sunny day), the store will be set up in the Weitz Common area

We will hear a presentation from Travis Hirman (Rice SWCD) on the new buffer rule, a presentation by Tom Coffman (USDA-NRCS) about soil and water conservation practices, learn from Heidi Keuler (USFWS) about how buffers work through a hands-on demonstration, view two buffer sites, and check out the new broadcast seeder for cover crops developed by the Cannon River Watershed Partnership.

The school year is ending. Time to clear out those desk drawers and closets.

The Perlman Teaching Museum is facilitating a Free Store in the courtyard of the Weitz Center for Creativity on the first reading day of spring term. The Free Store concept was popularized in the 1960s by avant-garde performance and political activist group The Diggers in San Francisco. The aim of our free store and those of the historical counterculture movement is to call attention to consumer culture and promote reuse and recycling of commodities.

To participate, bring unwanted items — books, food, clothing, knickknacks — and take something you want or need in exchange. Any items that remain at the end of the event will be donated to the campus-wide garage sale Lighten Up, benefiting local non-profits.

In the highly unlikely case of rain (forecast for tomorrow is a perfect 75-degree sunny day), the store will be set up in the Weitz Common area

The cities of Faribault, Northfield, Owatonna and Rice County invite the public to attend a free Raingarden Workshop: Planting for Pollinators on Saturday June 11, 2016. There will be an introductory presentation about rain gardens and pollinator-friendly native plants followed by personalized recommendations for each property owner with assistance from area landscape professionals.

Space is limited and pre-registration is required. Interested individuals may contact Faribault Public Works Department: pw@ci.faribault.mn.us or 507.333.0361

Cannon River Watershed Partnership invites you to attend one or both fun and informational evening tours of area stormwater practices to view and discuss rain gardens, rain barrels and more that help keep the Cannon River clean! We’re hoping to speak with community members at a few stops who are willing to share with us about their experience installing a rain garden and also with the city’s application to assist homeowners with rain garden costs.

Cannon River Watershed Partnership invites you to attend one or both fun and informational evening tours of area stormwater practices to view and discuss rain gardens, rain barrels and more that help keep the Cannon River clean! We’re hoping to speak with community members at a few stops who are willing to share with us about their experience installing a rain garden and also with the city’s application to assist homeowners with rain garden costs.

National Bike to Work & School Day is coming up on Friday, May 20! Whether you bike to work/school daily, or have never tried it out, now’s your chance.
So get those dusty bikes out of the garage, get ’em greased and pumped, and get ready for some beautiful Spring biking!
And as an added bonus, several local businesses have offered some goodies for Friday morning. Stop by Bridge Square between 6 and 8 AM for coffee and snacks distributed by volunteers from Bike Northfield and Carleton. Hope to see you out there!