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    • Nature Trails >
      • 116th Street - Oak Leaf Trail - West Allis, WI
      • Bald Bluff Nature Trail - Palmyra, WI
      • Belle Reynolds Nature Trail - Oakfield, WI
      • Eagle Nature Trail - Eagle, WI
      • Emma Carlin Trail - Palmyra, WI
      • Glacial Drumlin State Trail - Lake Mills, WI
      • Ice Age Visitor Center Nature Trail - Campbellsport, WI
      • Kettle Moraine Low Prairie Natural Area - Eagle, WI
      • W. Kinnickinnic River Parkway - Milwaukee, WI
      • Kohl Park Hiking Trail - Milwaukee, WI
      • Paradise Springs Nature Trail - Eagle, WI
      • Rice Lake Nature Trail - Whitewater, WI
      • Scuppernong Springs Nature Trail - Eagle, WI
      • Seminary Woods - St. Francis, WI
      • Stony Ridge Nature Trail - Eagle, WI
      • Stute Springs Nature Trail - Eagle, WI
      • Washington Avenue Nature Trail - Sheboygan, WI
      • White River State Trail - Elkhorn to Dover, WI
      • Wisconsin Veteran's Memorial Riverwalk - Delafield, WI
    • Local Parks >
      • Astico County Park - Columbus, WI
      • Asylum Point Park & Lighthouse - Oshkosh, WI
      • Beckman Mill County Park - Beloit, WI
      • Big Hill Park - Beloit, WI
      • Bluhm Farm Park - Muskego, WI
      • Bratt Woods - Grafton, WI
      • Brown Deer Park - Brown Deer, WI
      • Calhoun Park - New Berlin, WI
      • Dorothy Carnes Park - Fort Atkinson, WI
      • Carver-Roehl County Park - Clinton, WI
      • Case Eagle Park - Burlington, WI
      • Cave Point County Park - Sturgeon Bay, WI
      • Cherney Maribel Caves County Park - Maribel, WI
      • Cliffside Park - Caledonia, WI
      • Copernicus Park - Milwaukee, WI
      • Creekwood Park - Greenfield, WI
      • Cudahy Woods - Cudahy, WI
      • Dousman Stagecoach Inn Museum - Brookfield, WI
      • Elm Grove Village Park - Elm Grove, WI
      • Endicott Park - Brookfield, WI
      • Estabrook Park - Milwaukee, WI
      • Euclid Park - Milwaukee, WI
      • Falk Park - Oak Creek, WI
      • Franklin Woods - Franklin, WI
      • Frontier Park - Butler, WI
      • Glacier Hills County Park - Hubertus, WI
      • Grant Park - South Milwaukee
      • Greenfield Park - West Allis
      • Grobschmidt Park - Milwaukee, WI
      • Hales Corners Park, Ben Hunt Prairie and Cabin, Seneca Hale Summer Kitchen, Cobb Park - Hales Corners, WI
      • Harnischfeger Park - Ixonia, WI
      • Hartung Park - Wauwatosa, WI
      • Hidden Lake Park - Brookfield, WI
      • High Grove Park - New Berlin, WI
      • Hobbs Woods Nature Area - Fond Du Lac, WI
      • Homestead Hollow County Park - Germantown, WI
      • Honey Creek Park - West Allis, WI
      • Hoyt Park - Wauwatosa, WI
      • Humboldt Park - Milwaukee, WI
      • Indian Mounds County Park - Lake Koshkonong Effigy Mounds and Trail - Fort Atkinson, WI
      • Jackson Park - Milwaukee, WI
      • Jacobus Park - Wauwatosa, WI
      • Kiekhaefer Park - Fond du Lac, WI
      • Kinsey Park - Brookfield, WI
      • Korth Park - Lake Mills, WI
      • Krueger Park - Brookfield, WI
      • Alan Kulwicki Park - Greenfield, WI
      • Ledge County Park - Horicon, WI
      • Lime Kiln Park - Grafton, WI
      • Lime Kiln Park - Menomonee Falls, WI
      • Lincoln Park - Glendale, WI
      • Lion's Park - New Berlin, WI
      • Lyons Park - Milwaukee, WI
      • Magnolia Bluff County Park - Evansville, WI
      • Malone Park - New Berlin, WI
      • Manchester Hill Park - Muskego, WI
      • Mangan Woods - Greendale, WI
      • Mary Knoll Park - Brookfield, WI
      • McCarty Park - West Allis, WI
      • Mitchell Park - Brookfield, WI
      • Monarch Trail / County Grounds Park - Milwaukee, WI
      • Mound Zion Park - Brookfield, WI
      • John Muir Memorial County Park - Town of Buffalo, WI
      • Mush Ko Se Day Park - Fort Atkinson, WI
      • Muskego Boardwalk Nature Trail - Muskego, WI
      • Muskego Park - Muskego, WI
      • Nashotah Park - Nashotah, WI
      • Natureland County Park - Whitewater, WI
      • New Berlin Historical Park - New Berlin, WI
      • Nitschke Mounds County Park - Burnett, WI
      • Petrifying Springs Park - Kenosha, WI
      • Pleasant Valley Parks & Trails - Town of Cedarburg, WI
      • Pondview Park - Greenfield, WI
      • Prairie Springs Park - Pleasant Prairie, WI
      • ProHealth Care Park - New Berlin, WI
      • Richfield Historical Park - Richfield, WI
      • Ridge Run Park - West Bend, WI
      • Rivers Edge Park - Menomonee Falls, WI
      • Rotary Park - Menomonee Falls, WI
      • Sandy Knoll County Park - Town of Trenton, WI
      • Saveland Park - Milwaukee, WI
      • Schoen Laufen Park - Germantown, WI
      • Schoetz Park - Village of Hales Corners, WI
      • Scout Lake Park - Greendale, WI
      • Sheboygan Indian Mound Park - Sheboygan, WI
      • Simmons Woods Park - Pewaukee, WI
      • South Shore Park - Bayview, WI
      • Three Bridges Park - Milwaukee, WI
      • Turtle Creek Parkway / Tiffany Bridge - Clinton, WI
      • Valley View Park - New Berlin, WI
      • Viking County Park - Stoughton, WI
      • Virmond Park - Mequon, WI
      • Warnimont Park - Cudahy, WI
      • Wilson Park - Milwaukee, WI
      • Washington Park - Milwaukee, WI
      • Weston Antique Apple Orchard & Isabelle Weston Memorial Trail - New Berlin, WI
      • White River County Park - Walworth County
      • Whitnall Park - Franklin, WI
      • Wind Point Lighthouse - Racine, WI
    • Nature Preserves >
      • Adam Birding Conservancy - Whitewater, WI
      • Badertscher Preserve - Muskego, WI
      • Joyce M. Baer & George J. Socha Conservancy - Marshall, WI
      • Bay Beach Wildlife Sanctuary - Green Bay, WI
      • Beulah Bog - East Troy, WI
      • Blue Heron Wildlife Sanctuary - Saukville, WI
      • Calhoun Creek Prairie - New Berlin, WI
      • Cedarburg Bog - Saukville, WI
      • Chiwaukee Prairie - Kenosha, WI
      • Conservancy For Healing And Heritage - Franklin, WI
      • Robert O Cook Arboretum - Janesville, WI
      • Crooked Creek Nature Preserve - East Troy, WI
      • Deer Creek Sanctuary - New Berlin, WI
      • Delavan Memorial Arboretum - Delavan, WI
      • Donges Bay Gorge - Mequon, WI
      • Emerald Preserve - Oak Creek, WI
      • Engel Conservation Area - Muskego, WI
      • Faville Grove Sanctuary - Lake Mills, WI
      • Fellenz Woods - West Bend, WI
      • Flowing Well - Whitewater, WI
      • Forest Beach Migratory Preserve - Port Washington, WI
      • Forest Exploration Center - Wauwatosa, WI
      • Fox River Sanctuary - Waukesha, WI
      • John S. Garman Nature Preserve - Waterloo, WI
      • Garrison's Glen - Mequon, WI
      • Genesee Oak Opening and Fen - Mukwonago, North Prairie WI
      • Gordon Tabor Memorial Woods - Caledonia, WI
      • Gottfried Prairie and Arboretum - Fond du Lac, WI
      • Grasslyn Nature Preserve - Mequon, WI
      • Greenway Arboretum - Fond du Lac, WI
      • Grootemaat Nature Preserve - Greendale, WI
      • Hartland Marsh Preserve - Village of Hartland, WI
      • Hawthorn Glen - Milwaukee, WI
      • Hawthorn Hollow Nature Sanctuary and Arboretum - Kenosha, WI
      • Horicon Marsh State Wildlife Area - Horicon, WI
      • Huiras Lake Natural Area - Fredonia, WI
      • Kishwauketoe Nature Conservancy - Williams Bay, WI
      • Kurtz Woods State Natural Area - Grafton, WI
      • Lac Lawrann Conservancy - West Bend, WI
      • Lakeshore Nature Preserve - Madison, WI
      • Ledge View Nature Center - Chilton, WI
      • Lion's Den Nature Preserve - Grafton, WI
      • Lois Jensen Nature Preserve - Delafield, WI
      • Lulu Lake Nature Preserve - East Troy, WI
      • Maywood Environmental Park - Sheboygan, WI
      • Jean McGraw Memorial Nature Preserve - Kenosha, WI
      • Mequon Nature Preserve - Mequon, WI
      • Moely Prairie - Prairie Du Sac, WI
      • Nature Hill Nature Center - Oconomowoc, WI
      • Ned Hollister Wetlands Conservancy - Delavan, WI
      • Newell and Ann Meyer Nature Preservel - Eagle, WI
      • Nicholson Wildlife Refuge - Franksville, WI
      • Oakfield Ledge State Natural Area - Oakfield, WI
      • Petersen Island Woods Preserve - Elkhorn, WI
      • Pheasant Branch Creek Conservancy - Middleton, WI
      • Pickerel Lake Fen Preserve - East Troy, WI
      • Pope Farm Conservancy - Verona, WI
      • Price Park Conservancy - Elkhorn, WI
      • Retzer Nature Center - Waukesha, WI
      • River Bend Nature Center - Racine, WI
      • Riveredge Nature Center - Saukville, WI
      • Saller Woods - Rochester, WI
      • Sanctuary Woods - Wauwatosa, WI
      • Sauk Creek Nature Preserve - Port Washington, WI
      • Schlitz Audubon Nature Center - Milwaukee, WI
      • Seno Woodland Center - Burlington, WI
      • Spirit Lake Nature Preserve - Mequon, WI
      • Spruce Lake Bog - Campbellsport, WI
      • Stigler Nature Preserve - New Berlin, WI
      • Trinity Creek Wetland Habitat - Mequon, WI
      • Van der Brohe Arboretum - Two Rivers, WI
      • Vernon Marsh Wildlife Area - Mukwonago, WI
      • Vernon Wildlife Area - Waterford, WI
      • Wadewitz Nature Camp - Village of Rochester, WI
      • Wehmhoff Woodland Preserve - Burlington, WI
      • Wehr Nature Center - Franklin, WI
      • Whitnall School Forest - Greenfield, WI
      • Woodland Dunes Nature Center & Preserve - Two Rivers, WI
      • Zeloski Marsh - Cambridge, WI
    • State Parks >
      • Aztalan State Park - Aztalan, WI
      • Baxter's Hollow State Natural Area - Sauk City, WI
      • Big Foot Beach State Park - Lake Geneva, WI
      • Bong State Recreation Area - Kansasville, WI
      • C. D. Besadny Fish and Wildlife Area - Kewaunee, WI
      • Cadiz Springs State Park - New Glarus, WI
      • Devil's Lake State Park - Baraboo, WI
      • Harrington Beach State Park - Belgium, WI
      • Havenwoods State Forest - Milwaukee, WI
      • High Cliff State Park - Sherwood, WI
      • Kohler-Andrae State Park - Sheboygan, WI
      • La Budde State Natural Area - Ice Age Trail Segment - Plymouth, WI
      • Lake Kegonsa State Park - Stoughton, WI
      • Lakeshore State Park - Milwaukee, WI
      • Lapham Peak State Park - Delafield, WI
      • Lizard Mound State Park - Farmington, WI
      • Mauthe Lake State Recreation Area - Campbellsport, WI
      • Mukwonago River Unit of the Kettle Moraine State Forest - Mukwonago, WI
      • Natural Bridge State Park - North Freedom, WI
      • Peninsula State Park - Fish Creek, WI
      • Pike Lake State Park - Hartford, WI
      • Point Beach State Forest - Two Rivers, WI
      • Potawatomi State Park - Sturgeon Bay, WI
    • Sculpture Gardens and Conservancies >
      • Bobrowitz Sculpture Garden - Colgate, WI
      • Boerner Botanical Gardens - Hales Corners, WI
      • Nick Engelbert's Grandview - Hollandale, WI
      • Franconia Sculpture Park - Shafer, MN
      • Labyrinth Garden Earth Sculpture - West Bend, WI
      • Margie's Garden - Hales Corners, WI
      • Mitchell Park Horticultural Conservancy - Milwaukee, WI
      • New Life Lavender & Cherry Farm - Baraboo, WI
      • Olbrich Botanical Gardens - Madison, WI
      • M. Schettl Sales - Sculpture and Oddities
      • James Tellen Woodland Sculpture Garden - Town of Wilson, WI
      • Rotary Botanical Gardens - Janesville, WI
      • Stevens Point Sculpture Park - Stevens Point, WI
      • West Of The Lake Gardens - Manitowoc, WI
    • Cemeteries >
      • Calvary Cemetery - Milwaukee, WI
      • Forest Home Cemetery - Milwaukee, WI
      • Highland Memorial Park Cemetery - New Berlin, WI
      • La Belle Cemetery - Oconomowoc, WI
      • Mount Olivet Cemetery - Milwaukee, WI
      • New Berlin Center Cemetery - New Berlin, WI
      • Oak Hill Cemetery - Lake Geneva, WI
      • Riverside Cemetery - Oshkosh, WI
      • St. Adalbert Cemetery - Milwaukee, WI
  • Gardening for Wildlife
    • The Eco-Friendly Lawn
    • Welcome to the Firefly Show
    • Birdbaths in the Habitat
  • Detours, Links & More
Picture

STAGES - life, death, grief & sunflowers

8/28/2022

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Picture
Blooming in all stages at Lannon Sunflower Farm

The answer was right in front of me, but it took a while to come into focus. My mother passed away 12 years ago, on August 27, 2010.  The anniversary of her death was coming again, and I was looking for a way to honor her. Or to connect with her, you might say.  Her wishes were that her remains be scattered in the St. Croix River, almost 6 hours away from here. And we honored those wishes. But since then, I have struggled to come up with a place to go when I'm missing her.
Over the years I have tried a few different things. More than once, when opportunity presented, I made the drive to the St. Croix and stood on the bridge we scattered her ashes from. I talked to her, took pictures. Cried. I've driven through the little town she lived in during the last decade or so of her life. Considered finding a church and a memorial service. Taken walks in nature, of course. Some years I just sat down with a photo book we made for her 70th birthday and paged through memory lane. 

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Picture
I've lamented this before. The lack of a physical space to go to in order to feel her presence. And, really, it shouldn't matter. Wherever I go, her memory goes, too. But some days it just seems like having that space would make a difference.

It's been more than a decade, and I miss her every day. And most days, that's fine. It's something you learn to live with. It becomes a part of you, the missing. Just as much as their memory is a part of you, too.  But as the anniversary of her death nears every year, I feel an obligation to find a way to honor her life, and her loss. 

I've been visiting sunflower farms over the past month or so.  I put together a list of Sunflower Farms as a feature on the website. The other day I was remembering how much my mom loved sunflowers. She had a couple large framed sunflower posters in her kitchen. She enjoyed the blooms, and the cheer they spread. And it occurred to me, finally, that I should honor her with a sunflower bouquet. ​

My husband and I took a drive to Lannon Sunflower Farm, and picked a bouquet of sunflowers. Then brought them home and made an arrangement that included some flowers from our garden, too.
​
I put it together with the invitation to, and memory book of, her memorial at the St. Croix. I took some time and read through the book again.

I took a photo of it all and sent it to my sisters, a way to share the day. Seems it was the right thing to do, this year. Next year, well, time will tell.
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Picture

Something struck me as we walked the flower farm. There were sunflowers in all stages of life. Barely a bud, ready to bloom, mid-bloom flower heads, wide open blooms bursting in all their glory, blooms missing a few petals, some missing seeds that have already been feeding the birds, drooping flowers, faded blooms in every fashion, some laying finished on the ground. All of these stages with their own beauty. Their own stories. Their own past, present, and future. 

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I'm reminded that every stage of life has its own allure. In spring we sow seeds and watch over them, wait anxiously for them to sprout and grow. We marvel at the magic of it all. Then the buds come, and the flowers, and we smile as we admire their colors blowing in the breeze, beneath a summer sky. We preen them, hoping for a second bloom, and on and on, until, as the summer fades, the petals fade, too. A little straggly, worn, crisp on the edges. But the seedheads, now, are teeming with potential. The birds know it and they will feast on them. 

Then autumn comes, and the leaves become the flowers, their colors bold and warm. Until they, too, fall, and decorate the ground. Leaving the trees to stand naked, branches making room for snow to settle.
​
Yes, then winter arrives. And we are enamored of the crisp white artistry of it. The way it sparkles over everything.  At least in the early days. Like the blooms of summer, the glory of winter fades, too. And our thoughts turn towards spring. Anticipating the melting of the snow, spring rains, the greening, again. 

Living here in Wisconsin, we are accustomed to these stages. We anticipate them. It's an innate feeling. Even though we long for summer to linger, we are drawn towards fall, and so on.  There's a reason writers liken the seasons of the year to the seasons of our lives.

​We are born, we grow, we bloom, we struggle, we love, we laugh, we lose, we start over again. And if we are lucky, we can recognize the beauty in all of these stages, though sometimes it takes looking back to do so. 
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I look through my mother's 70th birthday photo book, and find all the seasons there. Some more colorful than others. But all part of her story. Her final season was too short, if you ask me.

​But it was still beautiful. She was surrounded by the love of her daughters, family, and friends. Laughter was shared. Tears, too. But her impression was indelible, like the beauty and cheer of a sunflower in bloom.
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    A traveler, singer,  novice photographer, humane gardener, and nature lover.
    ​I've been keeping closer to home these days, and truly discovering the beauty that lies in The Park Next Door.

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  • Home
    • Contact
    • Sign up for Updates
  • Blog
  • Support The Park Next Door
  • Art for Your Walls & More
  • Special Features
    • What's New
    • Beauty On The Escarpment
    • Sacred Ground & Effigy Mounds Of Wisconsin
    • Hiking Safely During Hunting Season
    • Legacies Of Nature
    • Escape To The Woods
    • Sunflower Season
    • Dog Days In The Park
    • Migration Song - The Magic of Bird Migration
    • Winter in Wisconsin
  • Let's Explore
    • Nature Trails >
      • 116th Street - Oak Leaf Trail - West Allis, WI
      • Bald Bluff Nature Trail - Palmyra, WI
      • Belle Reynolds Nature Trail - Oakfield, WI
      • Eagle Nature Trail - Eagle, WI
      • Emma Carlin Trail - Palmyra, WI
      • Glacial Drumlin State Trail - Lake Mills, WI
      • Ice Age Visitor Center Nature Trail - Campbellsport, WI
      • Kettle Moraine Low Prairie Natural Area - Eagle, WI
      • W. Kinnickinnic River Parkway - Milwaukee, WI
      • Kohl Park Hiking Trail - Milwaukee, WI
      • Paradise Springs Nature Trail - Eagle, WI
      • Rice Lake Nature Trail - Whitewater, WI
      • Scuppernong Springs Nature Trail - Eagle, WI
      • Seminary Woods - St. Francis, WI
      • Stony Ridge Nature Trail - Eagle, WI
      • Stute Springs Nature Trail - Eagle, WI
      • Washington Avenue Nature Trail - Sheboygan, WI
      • White River State Trail - Elkhorn to Dover, WI
      • Wisconsin Veteran's Memorial Riverwalk - Delafield, WI
    • Local Parks >
      • Astico County Park - Columbus, WI
      • Asylum Point Park & Lighthouse - Oshkosh, WI
      • Beckman Mill County Park - Beloit, WI
      • Big Hill Park - Beloit, WI
      • Bluhm Farm Park - Muskego, WI
      • Bratt Woods - Grafton, WI
      • Brown Deer Park - Brown Deer, WI
      • Calhoun Park - New Berlin, WI
      • Dorothy Carnes Park - Fort Atkinson, WI
      • Carver-Roehl County Park - Clinton, WI
      • Case Eagle Park - Burlington, WI
      • Cave Point County Park - Sturgeon Bay, WI
      • Cherney Maribel Caves County Park - Maribel, WI
      • Cliffside Park - Caledonia, WI
      • Copernicus Park - Milwaukee, WI
      • Creekwood Park - Greenfield, WI
      • Cudahy Woods - Cudahy, WI
      • Dousman Stagecoach Inn Museum - Brookfield, WI
      • Elm Grove Village Park - Elm Grove, WI
      • Endicott Park - Brookfield, WI
      • Estabrook Park - Milwaukee, WI
      • Euclid Park - Milwaukee, WI
      • Falk Park - Oak Creek, WI
      • Franklin Woods - Franklin, WI
      • Frontier Park - Butler, WI
      • Glacier Hills County Park - Hubertus, WI
      • Grant Park - South Milwaukee
      • Greenfield Park - West Allis
      • Grobschmidt Park - Milwaukee, WI
      • Hales Corners Park, Ben Hunt Prairie and Cabin, Seneca Hale Summer Kitchen, Cobb Park - Hales Corners, WI
      • Harnischfeger Park - Ixonia, WI
      • Hartung Park - Wauwatosa, WI
      • Hidden Lake Park - Brookfield, WI
      • High Grove Park - New Berlin, WI
      • Hobbs Woods Nature Area - Fond Du Lac, WI
      • Homestead Hollow County Park - Germantown, WI
      • Honey Creek Park - West Allis, WI
      • Hoyt Park - Wauwatosa, WI
      • Humboldt Park - Milwaukee, WI
      • Indian Mounds County Park - Lake Koshkonong Effigy Mounds and Trail - Fort Atkinson, WI
      • Jackson Park - Milwaukee, WI
      • Jacobus Park - Wauwatosa, WI
      • Kiekhaefer Park - Fond du Lac, WI
      • Kinsey Park - Brookfield, WI
      • Korth Park - Lake Mills, WI
      • Krueger Park - Brookfield, WI
      • Alan Kulwicki Park - Greenfield, WI
      • Ledge County Park - Horicon, WI
      • Lime Kiln Park - Grafton, WI
      • Lime Kiln Park - Menomonee Falls, WI
      • Lincoln Park - Glendale, WI
      • Lion's Park - New Berlin, WI
      • Lyons Park - Milwaukee, WI
      • Magnolia Bluff County Park - Evansville, WI
      • Malone Park - New Berlin, WI
      • Manchester Hill Park - Muskego, WI
      • Mangan Woods - Greendale, WI
      • Mary Knoll Park - Brookfield, WI
      • McCarty Park - West Allis, WI
      • Mitchell Park - Brookfield, WI
      • Monarch Trail / County Grounds Park - Milwaukee, WI
      • Mound Zion Park - Brookfield, WI
      • John Muir Memorial County Park - Town of Buffalo, WI
      • Mush Ko Se Day Park - Fort Atkinson, WI
      • Muskego Boardwalk Nature Trail - Muskego, WI
      • Muskego Park - Muskego, WI
      • Nashotah Park - Nashotah, WI
      • Natureland County Park - Whitewater, WI
      • New Berlin Historical Park - New Berlin, WI
      • Nitschke Mounds County Park - Burnett, WI
      • Petrifying Springs Park - Kenosha, WI
      • Pleasant Valley Parks & Trails - Town of Cedarburg, WI
      • Pondview Park - Greenfield, WI
      • Prairie Springs Park - Pleasant Prairie, WI
      • ProHealth Care Park - New Berlin, WI
      • Richfield Historical Park - Richfield, WI
      • Ridge Run Park - West Bend, WI
      • Rivers Edge Park - Menomonee Falls, WI
      • Rotary Park - Menomonee Falls, WI
      • Sandy Knoll County Park - Town of Trenton, WI
      • Saveland Park - Milwaukee, WI
      • Schoen Laufen Park - Germantown, WI
      • Schoetz Park - Village of Hales Corners, WI
      • Scout Lake Park - Greendale, WI
      • Sheboygan Indian Mound Park - Sheboygan, WI
      • Simmons Woods Park - Pewaukee, WI
      • South Shore Park - Bayview, WI
      • Three Bridges Park - Milwaukee, WI
      • Turtle Creek Parkway / Tiffany Bridge - Clinton, WI
      • Valley View Park - New Berlin, WI
      • Viking County Park - Stoughton, WI
      • Virmond Park - Mequon, WI
      • Warnimont Park - Cudahy, WI
      • Wilson Park - Milwaukee, WI
      • Washington Park - Milwaukee, WI
      • Weston Antique Apple Orchard & Isabelle Weston Memorial Trail - New Berlin, WI
      • White River County Park - Walworth County
      • Whitnall Park - Franklin, WI
      • Wind Point Lighthouse - Racine, WI
    • Nature Preserves >
      • Adam Birding Conservancy - Whitewater, WI
      • Badertscher Preserve - Muskego, WI
      • Joyce M. Baer & George J. Socha Conservancy - Marshall, WI
      • Bay Beach Wildlife Sanctuary - Green Bay, WI
      • Beulah Bog - East Troy, WI
      • Blue Heron Wildlife Sanctuary - Saukville, WI
      • Calhoun Creek Prairie - New Berlin, WI
      • Cedarburg Bog - Saukville, WI
      • Chiwaukee Prairie - Kenosha, WI
      • Conservancy For Healing And Heritage - Franklin, WI
      • Robert O Cook Arboretum - Janesville, WI
      • Crooked Creek Nature Preserve - East Troy, WI
      • Deer Creek Sanctuary - New Berlin, WI
      • Delavan Memorial Arboretum - Delavan, WI
      • Donges Bay Gorge - Mequon, WI
      • Emerald Preserve - Oak Creek, WI
      • Engel Conservation Area - Muskego, WI
      • Faville Grove Sanctuary - Lake Mills, WI
      • Fellenz Woods - West Bend, WI
      • Flowing Well - Whitewater, WI
      • Forest Beach Migratory Preserve - Port Washington, WI
      • Forest Exploration Center - Wauwatosa, WI
      • Fox River Sanctuary - Waukesha, WI
      • John S. Garman Nature Preserve - Waterloo, WI
      • Garrison's Glen - Mequon, WI
      • Genesee Oak Opening and Fen - Mukwonago, North Prairie WI
      • Gordon Tabor Memorial Woods - Caledonia, WI
      • Gottfried Prairie and Arboretum - Fond du Lac, WI
      • Grasslyn Nature Preserve - Mequon, WI
      • Greenway Arboretum - Fond du Lac, WI
      • Grootemaat Nature Preserve - Greendale, WI
      • Hartland Marsh Preserve - Village of Hartland, WI
      • Hawthorn Glen - Milwaukee, WI
      • Hawthorn Hollow Nature Sanctuary and Arboretum - Kenosha, WI
      • Horicon Marsh State Wildlife Area - Horicon, WI
      • Huiras Lake Natural Area - Fredonia, WI
      • Kishwauketoe Nature Conservancy - Williams Bay, WI
      • Kurtz Woods State Natural Area - Grafton, WI
      • Lac Lawrann Conservancy - West Bend, WI
      • Lakeshore Nature Preserve - Madison, WI
      • Ledge View Nature Center - Chilton, WI
      • Lion's Den Nature Preserve - Grafton, WI
      • Lois Jensen Nature Preserve - Delafield, WI
      • Lulu Lake Nature Preserve - East Troy, WI
      • Maywood Environmental Park - Sheboygan, WI
      • Jean McGraw Memorial Nature Preserve - Kenosha, WI
      • Mequon Nature Preserve - Mequon, WI
      • Moely Prairie - Prairie Du Sac, WI
      • Nature Hill Nature Center - Oconomowoc, WI
      • Ned Hollister Wetlands Conservancy - Delavan, WI
      • Newell and Ann Meyer Nature Preservel - Eagle, WI
      • Nicholson Wildlife Refuge - Franksville, WI
      • Oakfield Ledge State Natural Area - Oakfield, WI
      • Petersen Island Woods Preserve - Elkhorn, WI
      • Pheasant Branch Creek Conservancy - Middleton, WI
      • Pickerel Lake Fen Preserve - East Troy, WI
      • Pope Farm Conservancy - Verona, WI
      • Price Park Conservancy - Elkhorn, WI
      • Retzer Nature Center - Waukesha, WI
      • River Bend Nature Center - Racine, WI
      • Riveredge Nature Center - Saukville, WI
      • Saller Woods - Rochester, WI
      • Sanctuary Woods - Wauwatosa, WI
      • Sauk Creek Nature Preserve - Port Washington, WI
      • Schlitz Audubon Nature Center - Milwaukee, WI
      • Seno Woodland Center - Burlington, WI
      • Spirit Lake Nature Preserve - Mequon, WI
      • Spruce Lake Bog - Campbellsport, WI
      • Stigler Nature Preserve - New Berlin, WI
      • Trinity Creek Wetland Habitat - Mequon, WI
      • Van der Brohe Arboretum - Two Rivers, WI
      • Vernon Marsh Wildlife Area - Mukwonago, WI
      • Vernon Wildlife Area - Waterford, WI
      • Wadewitz Nature Camp - Village of Rochester, WI
      • Wehmhoff Woodland Preserve - Burlington, WI
      • Wehr Nature Center - Franklin, WI
      • Whitnall School Forest - Greenfield, WI
      • Woodland Dunes Nature Center & Preserve - Two Rivers, WI
      • Zeloski Marsh - Cambridge, WI
    • State Parks >
      • Aztalan State Park - Aztalan, WI
      • Baxter's Hollow State Natural Area - Sauk City, WI
      • Big Foot Beach State Park - Lake Geneva, WI
      • Bong State Recreation Area - Kansasville, WI
      • C. D. Besadny Fish and Wildlife Area - Kewaunee, WI
      • Cadiz Springs State Park - New Glarus, WI
      • Devil's Lake State Park - Baraboo, WI
      • Harrington Beach State Park - Belgium, WI
      • Havenwoods State Forest - Milwaukee, WI
      • High Cliff State Park - Sherwood, WI
      • Kohler-Andrae State Park - Sheboygan, WI
      • La Budde State Natural Area - Ice Age Trail Segment - Plymouth, WI
      • Lake Kegonsa State Park - Stoughton, WI
      • Lakeshore State Park - Milwaukee, WI
      • Lapham Peak State Park - Delafield, WI
      • Lizard Mound State Park - Farmington, WI
      • Mauthe Lake State Recreation Area - Campbellsport, WI
      • Mukwonago River Unit of the Kettle Moraine State Forest - Mukwonago, WI
      • Natural Bridge State Park - North Freedom, WI
      • Peninsula State Park - Fish Creek, WI
      • Pike Lake State Park - Hartford, WI
      • Point Beach State Forest - Two Rivers, WI
      • Potawatomi State Park - Sturgeon Bay, WI
    • Sculpture Gardens and Conservancies >
      • Bobrowitz Sculpture Garden - Colgate, WI
      • Boerner Botanical Gardens - Hales Corners, WI
      • Nick Engelbert's Grandview - Hollandale, WI
      • Franconia Sculpture Park - Shafer, MN
      • Labyrinth Garden Earth Sculpture - West Bend, WI
      • Margie's Garden - Hales Corners, WI
      • Mitchell Park Horticultural Conservancy - Milwaukee, WI
      • New Life Lavender & Cherry Farm - Baraboo, WI
      • Olbrich Botanical Gardens - Madison, WI
      • M. Schettl Sales - Sculpture and Oddities
      • James Tellen Woodland Sculpture Garden - Town of Wilson, WI
      • Rotary Botanical Gardens - Janesville, WI
      • Stevens Point Sculpture Park - Stevens Point, WI
      • West Of The Lake Gardens - Manitowoc, WI
    • Cemeteries >
      • Calvary Cemetery - Milwaukee, WI
      • Forest Home Cemetery - Milwaukee, WI
      • Highland Memorial Park Cemetery - New Berlin, WI
      • La Belle Cemetery - Oconomowoc, WI
      • Mount Olivet Cemetery - Milwaukee, WI
      • New Berlin Center Cemetery - New Berlin, WI
      • Oak Hill Cemetery - Lake Geneva, WI
      • Riverside Cemetery - Oshkosh, WI
      • St. Adalbert Cemetery - Milwaukee, WI
  • Gardening for Wildlife
    • The Eco-Friendly Lawn
    • Welcome to the Firefly Show
    • Birdbaths in the Habitat
  • Detours, Links & More