The Pacific Rim Institute for Environmental Stewardship will soon host two weekends of local nature-themed events for Whidbey residents who want to celebrate the island’s bucolic splendor — and learn how to do their part in preserving it.
Aptly scheduled shortly after Earth Day, the institute’s Prairie Days on April 29-30 and May 13-14 will feature experience tours, an informational booth and a native plant sale. The nonprofit institution, which promotes sustainability, is located near Coupeville on Parker Road.
The experience tours will cover a varied array of subjects. Early morning birding tours will take place at 7:30 a.m. April 29 and May 13. Led by Whidbey Audubon experts, the birding hike is about 1.5 miles of mild terrain. Participants are encouraged to bring binoculars to help them sight the birds that make their home on the Central Whidbey prairie.
Prairie tours will also lead participants around 1.5 miles of prairie, savanna and forest land, with a focus on the institute’s restoration work. These tours will take place at 10 a.m. and 6 p.m. April 29 and May 13, and at 4 p.m. April 30 and May 14.
Participants looking for minimal-walking events may enjoy the native plant center walk at 11:30 a.m. May 13. This tour will lead visitors through the institute’s production greenhouse, shaded area and nursery beds where it grows around 50 species of rare native plants to be used in habitat restoration initiatives throughout the Puget Sound region.
Combined prairie and native plant center tours will take place at 10 a.m. April 30 and May 14.
The weekends will also feature other unique special events. At 1 p.m. April 30 only, Dr. Ioana Popescu, a botanist, herbalist and Pacific Rim Institute Trustee, will teach about edible and medicinal native and invasive plants on Whidbey Island in a 1.5-mile walking tour.
From 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. May 13, a state Department of Agriculture expert will be manning an information and display booth on Asian giant hornets, also known as murder hornets, at the institute. Visitors can learn about the status of the insects in Washington state and pick up trapping kits to participate in the department’s efforts to prevent the hornets from establishing themselves here.
The institute will also be selling native plants. The sale begins April 29 and is ongoing during the Prairie Days, as well as all weekdays in between. Institute CEO Robert Pelant said by adding native plant species to their existing gardens or yards, Whidbey residents can support the institute’s habitat restoration efforts.
Native plants have a number of benefits on the local environment; they help native pollinators and other native wildlife, they encourage crop production on large and small scales and they help prevent noxious invasive plants from establishing a foothold on the island. They are also easy to care for because they are already adapted to local soil quality and weather patterns.
“Our main focus is to help restore our habitat and environment for people, wildlife and all living things,” Pelant said.
More information about Prairie Days can be found at pacificriminstitute.org. Individuals with physical disabilities interested in participating in a tour may reach out to the Pacific Rim Institute at 360-678-5586 for more information about accessibility arrangements.
