Presented by Will Barnett, Professor of History at North Central College in Naperville, Illinois May Theilgaard Watts was a beloved naturalist at Chicago’s Morton Arboretum and her grassroots campaign established the Illinois Prairie Path in three years. She represented a distinctly Midwestern set of ideas, linking earlier conservationists and 1960s environmentalism with a strong focus […]

                                                        Join the Friends of the Arboretum for an adventure to the world-renowned Horicon Marsh.  The northern two-thirds of the marsh is managed by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service as the 22,000 acre Horicon National Wildlife […]

Presented by Douglas Hill, Emeritus Professor of Music, UW-Madison Douglas Hill will present and discuss excerpts from four of his original compositions, inspired by the wilderness writings of Leopold, Olson, Derleth or Thoreau...the setting of word rhythms and subtle inferences from the selected language, the application of vocal qualities and instrumental tone colors to suggest […]

                                          Presented by:  Craig Thompson, Chief of Program Integration, Bureau of Natural Heritage Conservation, Wisconsin DNR Climate change and the extinction crisis are the greatest challenges of our time. Both phenomena pose existential threats to […]

  The Lost City area of the Arboretum is an area rich in history as well as nature.  Guided by Michael Hansen, Arboretum Land Care Manager, and Mark Fuka, UW PhD student, Department of Integrative Biology, we will see the restoration work that the Land Care crew has been doing for the past year and […]

                                                    Presented by:  Mark E. Cupp, Executive Director of the Lower Wisconsin State Riverway Board Mr. Cupp will provide information on the types of earthworks found in Wisconsin and will […]

                              Presented by:  Michael Mucha, Chief Engineer and Director, Madison Metropolitan Sewerage District Water is our world’s most precious resource and essential to everything we do. No matter who we are, where we live, or what we do, water connects all […]

                                              Presented by:  Shaili Pfeiffer, Natural Resources Staff Specialist, Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources The 2005 landmark agreement, the Great Lakes-St. Lawrence River Basin Sustainable Water Resources Agreement, was signed by the eight […]

                                            Presented by:  Amy Alstad, Director of Land Management and Environmental Education Why is it that one of the nicest prairie restorations in Dane County is found at a Benedictine Monastery? Caring for the […]

  The “Badger State’s” history is embedded in the many geologic formations across the landscape. From deposits of galena to the impressive cliffs of quartzite, Wisconsin has many riches that have shaped our state’s society and economy.  To explore these natural wonders, we invite you to join the Friends of the Arboretum for a visit […]