Freedom to Grow: Celebrating 250 Years of America’s Native Landscapes

Meets at Banning Regional Park Playground. This guided nature walk honors the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence by exploring the enduring role of native plants in shaping the American landscape environmentally, culturally, and historically. Highlights include the area’s native plant species; how Indigenous peoples, such as the Lenape, used and continue to use these plants for food and medicine; and how early colonists relied on these same native species for survival and independence. Participants will receive a seed packet of native species. Walk led by Partnership for the Delaware Estuary.

This event is part of the communitywide NEA Big Read program featuring the novel, The Seed Keeper by Diane Wilson. To learn more, visit our NEA page.

NEA Big Read is a program of the National Endowment for the Arts in partnership with Arts Midwest.