Lincoln Memorial Gardens Blog

Seasons Newsletter - Winter 2026

Audra Walters — Thu, 22 Jan 2026 13:37:53 -0500

Season - Summer 2025

Audra Walters — Tue, 20 May 2025 11:21:50 -0500

Seasons - Summer 2025

2025 Photo Contest

Audra Walters — Tue, 29 Apr 2025 08:50:42 -0500

Calling all nature enthusiasts who happen to carry a camera or their phone when visiting Lincoln Memorial Garden, it is time we announce our annual photography contest. The rules are the same as last year and will be posted on our website soon. We have two age groups so don’t forget to have the youngsters in your life record photographic memories of the Garden.

Rules

Seasons - Spring 2025

Audra Walters — Tue, 22 Apr 2025 14:29:34 -0500

Spring Seasons 2025

Seasons - Fall 2024

Audra Walters — Mon, 26 Aug 2024 09:50:32 -0500

Seasons Newsletter Fall 2024

2024 Ecology Camp Dates

Audra Walters — Mon, 29 Jan 2024 15:58:51 -0500

Save the dates for this summer’s Ecology Camp.

Member registration will open at 9 am on Tuesday, March 12. General registration opens on Friday, March 15.

This summer, LMG will offer seven weeks of Ecology Camp in lovely Lincoln Memorial Garden for children from ages 4-15. For five fun filled days young campers will explore the Garden by hiking the shady trails and learning more about our native ecosystems. There will be time for making nature arts and crafts, fairy house building and designing your own camp tee shirt, and playing environmental games such as Predator Prey and Owls and Crows. We’ll have leisure time for capture the flag or watching the clouds drift by and time to play with friends in the great outdoors. The long summer days of Ecology Camp seem to go by so quickly!

You must have active FAMILY Membership to take advantage of discounted registration

Schedule & Cost

Session 3-AM (8:30am-11:30am) and 3-PM (12:30-3:30) for 4, 5, and 6 year olds is half day and will run Tuesday-Friday only. All other weeks are scheduled from 8:30 a.m. – 3:30 p.m, Monday-Friday. Cost for the half day is $80 per child for Garden members and $100 per child for nonmembers.

Full day Sessions 1,2,4-7 cost $175 per child for Garden members and $215 per child for nonmembers.

*Please check your summer vacations plans and other camp schedules carefully before registering. All refunds will incur a $30 processing fee.

Session	Dates	Time	Ages	Member/Non-Member
1	June 3-7	8:30am-3:30pm	6, 7, 8	$185/$225
2	June 10-14	8:30am-3:30pm	6, 7, 8	$185/$225
3* Morning	June 17-21	8:30-11:30am	4, 5, 6	$90/$110
3* Afternoon	June 17-21	12:30-3:30pm	4, 5, 6	$90/$110
4	June 24-28	8:30am-3:30pm	8, 9, 10	$185/$225
5	July 8-12	8:30am-3:30pm	9, 10, 11	$185/$225
6	July 15-19	8:30am-3:30pm	10, 11, 12	$185/$225
7	July 22-26	8:30am-3:30pm	12-15	$185/$225

*There will be no camp on Juneteenth, June 19

Become a Member

Seasons - Fall 2023

Lincoln Memorial Garden — Mon, 29 Jan 2024 15:36:19 -0500

Download the Autumn 2023 edition of Seasons

Seasons - Spring 2023

Lincoln Memorial Garden — Mon, 29 Jan 2024 15:30:27 -0500

Download the Spring 2023 edition of Seaons

Seasons - Summer 2022

Lincoln Memorial Garden — Mon, 29 Jan 2024 15:22:24 -0500

Download the Summer 2022 issue of Seasons

8K Trail Race 2022

Lincoln Memorial Garden — Mon, 29 Jan 2024 15:18:31 -0500

After taking two years off due to the COVID pandemic, Lincoln Memorial Garden’s 8K Trail Race + Kids Fun Run came back in a big way June 4th. Tom Skelly, 2022 Race Coordinator, reported that 147 runners in the 8K (78 men and 69 women), and about 15 kids “Fun Runners,” participated in this year’s event, along with a small army of enthusiastic volunteers.
It was a beautiful day with great temperatures. Several comments from experienced trail racers indicated that the course was one of the best marked courses they had ever run.
People seemed to really enjoy the “award photo” called “Foggy Path,” which the photographer, Janet Sanderfield, graciously allowed LMG to present to the top runners in each age group.
Kevin “Running Abe” Wood was an excellent runner and a really fun addition to the whole atmosphere. He handed out awards, ran with the kids, and paused for pictures.

Many thanks to the volunteer photographers who provided these inspiring photos: Craig Dahlquist, Marty Dahlquist, Karen McNaught, Larry Miller and Tom Skelly.

Download a pdf with more pictures from the 2022 race

Birds of the Garden

Kathy Andrews Wright — Mon, 29 Jan 2024 14:53:26 -0500

Birding is a great year-round activity for everyone—from solo hikers to families introducing youngsters to the great outdoors.

What birds will I see when I'm birding?

More than 450 species of birds have been sighted in Illinois, with just over 200 species documented as nesting in the state. Most of the other species are migrants, flying north through Illinois each spring to their nesting grounds, and passing through again each fall on their way to warm wintering grounds. According to eBird.org records, 219 species of birds have been sighted at the Garden.

How do I start birding?

A great place to start birding is the viewing station inside the Nature Center. Multiple bird feeders attract a variety of species to the window, and an indoor bench allows people to sit and watch the action while working out an identification. Wild Birds Unlimited generously donates seed all year for the various feeders.

New to the viewing station is a Lumatron Nature’s Window sound monitor, which allows visitors to hear birds at the feeders.

Contributions from participants in the 2022 LMG 8K trail race funded the sound monitor, and donations from the 2023 trail race are earmarked for the purchase of a spotting scope.

Annual Bird Hikes

Another excellent way to jump-start, or improve, birding knowledge is to participate in the Garden’s annual bird hikes lead by local birder Kevin Veara. Hikes typically occur in the spring and fall during the peaks of migration.

In 2023, hikes occured on on April 15, 22, and 29 and May 6, 13, and 20.

Bird Sampler

Here are a few of the birds you may see on your visits to the Garden, photographed by talented Garden visitors and volunteers.

Photos by Cindy Harris

Birds of the Woodland (clockwise from top left)

Full-time residents of cities and woodlands, male and female northern cardinals sing “cheer, cheer, cheer” or “birdie, birdie, birdie” throughout most of the year. Photo by Cindy Harris. Two woodpecker species, the showy red-bellied woodpecker and subdued black-and-white downy woodpecker, provide an opportunity for viewers to recognize quick identification points, including size, color, and pattern. Photo by Cindy Harris.

A raspy “mew” sound from the dense thickets and shrubby edges of a trail most likely is a gray catbird. Look for its black cap and a rusty patch under its tail. Photo by Anne Scrivner.

A bright-red head, black-and-white body, and chisel-like bill are key to identifying a red-headed woodpecker. Photo by Cindy Harris.

Blue jays make a variety of calls, but their raucous “jay, jay” call is one of the first bird calls many people learn. Photo by Cindy Harris.

Birds of the Prairie (clockwise from top left)

Male eastern bluebirds possess a brilliant royal blue back with red-brown on their breast. Females are not as vivid in color. Photo by Anne Scrivner.

Metallic blue-green tree swallows perch on nest boxes at Lincoln Memorial Garden, pausing after cruising over the prairie in their hunt for flying insects. Photo by Janet Pieper.

The brown thrasher is reddish-brown bird with a heavily streaked breast and a mastery of complex songs, often copying the songs of other species of bird. Photo by Matthew Ketter.

Listen for the “conk-a-ree” of the red-winged blackbird. Much less showy than their mates, females are heavily streaked, helping them to remain unseen on their nests. Photo by Anne Scrivner.

“Wichety-wichety-wichety” calls the common yellowthroat from perches in thickets and fields. True to its name, this bird has a yellow throat, with the male having a black mask topped with a white stripe.

Photo by Anne Scrivner

Photos by Cindy Harris & Philip Wheat

Birds of Aquatic Habitats (clockwise from top left)

The largest of the herons found in Illinois, the great blue heron hunts for fish along the shoreline of Lake Springfield. Photo by Cindy Harris.

The gray body, stark red eye, and white bill help in identifying the American coot. Its body is said to have a chicken-like shape. Photo by Cindy Harris.

Working as a group, white pelicans hunt for fish, scooping up their catch in a bill that can hold three gallons of water. Photo by Philip Wheat.

The iridescent, green-headed male mallard, and his mottledbrown mate, are common residents on lakes, ponds and rivers. Photo by Cindy Harris.

Perhaps because it is one of the smallest members of the heron family found in Illinois, one green heron presented a sassy attitude to the photographer. Photo by Cindy Harris.

Help grow the Lincoln Memorial Garden eBird list. Register with eBird and add your Garden
sightings to the list!

Download Birds of the Garden

Seasons - Summer 2023

Lincoln Memorial Garden — Wed, 10 Jan 2024 11:43:00 -0500

Download the Summer 2023 Seasons

Seasons - Spring 2022

Lincoln Memorial Garden — Wed, 10 Jan 2024 11:43:00 -0500

Download the Spring 2022 edition of Seasons

Annual Plant Sale 2023

Marissa Jones — Fri, 03 Mar 2023 11:42:00 -0500

Tis’ the season for LMG’s Woodland Wildflower and Sun Loving Plant Sale! We are proud to again offer some of our fan favorites as well as a selection of new species! Plants are pre-ordered online with plant pick-up at the Ostermeier Prairie Center two weeks later.

See the list of our Woodland and Sun Loving plants below. If you are just getting started and uncertain where to begin, consider purchasing plants from one of our suggested Starter Packs (please see website for full details). We believe these plants are beginner friendly, easy to manage, and grow well together. Beyond adding aesthetic colors and texture, most of our selection will offer additional wildlife benefits to your garden! Check out the Woodland and Sun Loving plants shopping list below, and pre-order your choices online at www.lincolnmemorialgarden.org.

Woodland Wildflower Plant Sale Sun Loving Plant Sale
March 31 Pre-Sale Online Orders opened
April 15 Pick-up Woodland Wildflowers
April 28 Pre-Sale Online Orders begin
May 13 Pick-up Sun Loving plants

Download the Plant List

2022 Photo Contest Results

Audra Walters — Sun, 30 Jan 2022 00:41:07 -0500

The results are in for Lincoln Memorial Garden’s 6th annual photography contest. Anne Scrivner’s “House Wren’s Breakfast” photograph was selected by Fall Harvest Festival attendees for the People’s Choice award.

Nearly 250 photographs were submitted, including 40 photographs by youth 15 years of age and under. Professional photographers Dannyln Dodder, Chris Young and Tom Handy reviewed the images and selected a first-place winner for each age group and category (Celebrating Life at Lincoln Memorial Garden, Creatures, Botanicals and Landscapes). Winning entries are listed below, as well as some images the judges recognized with an honorable mention.

FIRST PLACE

YOUTH

Botanical George Rother “Trail Mushrooms”
Creatures Jaxon Holdman “Bridge”
Landscape Jayla McMurray (lake with pontoon)
LMG Jaxon Holdman “Nana Birdwatching”

ADULT

Botanical Reinee Hildebrandt (pink dogwood flowers)
Creatures Anne Scrivner “House Wren’s Breakfast”
Landscape Cindy Harris “Leafless Tree Mirror Image”
LMG Traci Raper “Improved Aim”

HONORABLE MENTION

YOUTH

Botanical Emma Synder “Mayapples”
Creatures Shal Shen (spider on web)
Alice Lieberman “Fawn Friend”
Landscape Shal Shen (bridge)

ADULT

Botanical Reinee Hildebrant (oxeye daisy dew)
Anne Scrivner (insect shadow)
Creatures Kevin Coakley “Mallard Hen in Tree Cavity”
Kevin Coakley “Great Egret Fishing”
Landscape Amanda Castleman “LMG After a Spring Rain”
Lindsey Batten “Winter Lake Landscape”
LMG Abigail Rouse (tea party)