ForestKeeper Workshops

Winter 2024 Opportunities

Upcoming Classes

Date: Wednesday February 5, 2025 2:00pm-3:30pm
Wednesday, February 12, 2025 10:00 am-11:30 am
Saturday February 15, 2025 10:00am-11:30am
Saturday February 15 2025 12:20pm-2:00pm
Location: Rockwood Reservation 2751 Glencoe rd
Wildwood, MO 63038
Learn the history of maple sugaring, about tree identification, and how to turn the sap into syrup. The entire program is outdoors, so please dress for the weather. A portion of the trail is not stroller/wheelchair accessible.
 
 
Date: Saturday, February 8th 9:00 am – 11:00 AM

Location: Cape Girardeau Nature Center

Whether it’s used for smothering waffles or dipping French toast sticks, maple syrup has found its way onto many Missouri breakfast tables. This lovely, sugary syrup is harvested from sugar maple trees. Participate in the process of transforming maple sap into syrup in this program. Participants will collect maple sap from trees and observe and learn about the boiling process. To complete this program, participants will sample some of the maple syrup harvested from trees on nature center grounds.

Date:  Saturday February 22 2025 1:30pm-3:00pm
Location: Burr Oak Woods Conservation Nature Center
In our culture of a supermarket in every neighborhood, it is almost magical and spectacular to be able to make something delicious to eat out of some liquid flowing out of a tree. Savor this wonder of nature by learning how to tap trees, collect sap, and make delicious syrup from native trees.
 
 
Date: Wednesday, February 26, 2025 6:30 pm –  7:30 pm
Location: Online only
Registration required by visiting https://www.mymcpl.org/events/101377/sap-syrup-zoom (adults) Winter is full of wonder including processing tree sap into syrup. Join Naturalist, Steve Jacobson, to learn the basics of tree selection, collection, processing and the equipment needed to turn watery sap into delicious syrup. This program will be held virtually using Zoom. This program is in partnership with the Mid-Continent Public Library.
Date: February 13, 2025 2:00pm-4:00pm
Location: Online event
This event will address crucial questions for equitable and sustainable urban forest management, including: What are the barriers facing urban tree planting initiatives from the perspectives of residents, community leaders, and practitioners?  How can these barriers be overcome, particularly in low-income and low-canopy areas? Each speaker will address solutions to address challenges, and there will be an open Q&A with all speakers.
 
 
Date: Wednesdays, starting February 26-April 2 6-8 pm

Location: Powder Valley Conservation Nature Center; 11715 Cragqold Road, Kirkwood, MO, United States

Forest ReLeaf of Missouri will be hosting a 6-week tree care course in which we will have presentations from local professionals teaching the basics of tree biology, identification, planting, and maintaining trees. This class is open to community members and professionals of any skill and knowledge level interested in learning about trees and creating a more resilient Missouri Tree Canopy.
 
Register at:https://www.eventbrite.com/e/treekeepers-introductory-tree-course-2025-tickets-1200364204649?aff=oddtdtcreator
 
Date: Saturday March 1, 2025 1:00 pm -3:00 pm

Location:  Cape Girardeau Nature Center

Join MDC Community Forester Jennifer Behnken to expand your skills beyond leaf identification and discover what other features may be used to identify tree species native to Missouri. Test your skills and learn forestry tidbits in this fun, interactive hike. This program will take place outside on Ridgetop Trail behind the nature center, so please dress accordingly.
 
 
Date: Thursday February 20th, 2025 9:00 am -10:30 am

Location:  Cape Girardeau Nature Center

Join a conversation led by Sustaining Ash Partners Network, an east coast focused organization focused on protecting and restoring ash trees in a post EAB environment.

This kick-off webinar will lay the foundation for exploring the importance and prioritization of ash seed preservation. Our speakers will:

  • Provide a regional status update on ash and emerald ash borer (EAB) infestations in the Northeast
  • Teach ash ID basics (i.e., bark, bud, leaf, seed)
  • Explore western scientific and Indigenous perspectives on ash preservation
  • Share diverse values on the importance of collecting ash seeds

Landowner Workshops

Date: February 15, 2025 10:00am-12:00pm
Location: Platte County COmmunity Center South/ YMCA 8875 Clark Ave Parkvile MO 64152

Pruning workshop designed to give participants the knowledge to prune their fruit and landscape trees to make them more productive and healthier. The program will begin with a classroom overview of pruning at the YMCA and then conclude with an onsite pruning demonstration at the Platte County Community Garden.

Participants should dress for being outdoors for approximately an hour.

There is no fee for this event.

For more information, contact the Platte County Extension Office at 816-270-2141.

 

Prescribed Burn Workshops

Locations (Click for registration):

 
 
 
 

March 1, 2025 9:00 am- 2:00 Pm Lost Valley Hatchery 28232 Hatchery Ave Warsaw MO 65355

March 1, 2025 9:30 am – 2:30 pm Land of the Osages Research Center 30118 Old 8 rd. Gravois Mills MO 65037

 
Prescribed burning can be a valuable tool for managing native plant diversity and controlling undesirable vegetation, but it can be dangerous and ineffective when not used properly. This workshop will provide basic information about how to plan and execute a prescribed burn for grassland management.

Upon registration, participants will be emailed a link to the virtual/online portion of the prescribed burn course. The online course is a mandatory prerequisite which requires a $25.00 fee to a third-party host (not MDC). Registrants will need to successfully complete the online course and quiz to attend the field day event. Please bring your certificate of completion and mileage record.

Other Opportunities: Take a Hike!

Date: Saturday, February 1, 2024 9:00 am – 12:00 pm

Location: Powder Valley Conservation Center 11715 Cragwold Rd, Kirkwood, MO 63122

Join a naturalist for a winter guided hike at Powder Valley! This hike will take place on our Hickory Ridge Trail, which winds through 1.2 miles of hilly, oak-hickory forest. Please note: The trail is paved, but can still be rough and is very steep. Bring water, dress for the weather, and wear sturdy, close-toed shoes! Please make sure to register all participants ahead of time, including children.
 
Date: Saturday, February 22nd, 2024 9:30 am – 11:00 am

Location: Valley View Glades Trailhead

Join a naturalist on a guided 2.6-mile hike through Valley View Glades Natural Area in Hillsboro, Missouri. Hikes will be held during all four seasons in 2025, and we will discuss the changes happening on this beautiful and diverse trail throughout the year! Keep an eye out for more dates to come! Please note: this is a rugged, natural-surface trail that may not be suitable for beginner hikers. For this reason, all participants should be 16 years old or older. Make sure to bring water, dress for the weather, and wear sturdy, close-toed shoes! Waterproof shoes are strongly recommended, as this trail does require you to cross multiple streams!
 
 
 
Date: Saturday, February 8th, 2025 10:00 am – 12:00 pm
Location: Audubon Trails Nature Center, 550 Meriweather Ct Rolla MO 65401
Join Women Owning Woodlands for a casual, women-focused hike to learn about identifying trees in the wintertime! This is event is free. It will take place outside and involve hiking, so please be prepared and dress appropriately for the weather. In the event of extreme weather, we will move indoors or reschedule.