Seasons & Serendipity: Our Parks in June

From Mangroves to spiders, from Shamrock Park to Lemon Bay, Sarasota County has it all going on in its parks, recreational facilities, and nature reserves. Check out the family-friendly archaeological event at Phillippi of yore, or search for flowers at Curry Creek!
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Demonstration Garden Tour at Shamrock Park
 
Join the master gardener volunteers as they provide free demonstration garden tours and advice on Florida gardening.
Meet at the central garden area near the Nature Center.

Thursday, June 2, 9 a.m.
Demonstration Garden area
3900 Shamrock Dr., Venice
 
No registrations necessary.
All welcome! For more information call 941-861-5000. 
Seasons and Serendipity at Shamrock Park

Florida does have seasons, not just for hurricanes and warm vs. hotter weather.

Join Sarasota County Volunteer Master Naturalists and Shamrock Park Staff to stroll the trails, relying on changing seasons to bring us new flowers and birds’ nests, insects and animal activity. A little serendipity will find things in unexpected places!
Friday, June 10, and Friday, June 24,
9 – 11 a.m.
3900 Shamrock Dr., Venice
Space limited to 20.
Guide: Sarasota County Volunteer Master Naturalists and Sarasota County Staff
Registration info here for this event. 
Join the Lemon Bay F.I.S.H. Project

 

Calling all F.I.S.H. – Folks Interested in Submerged Habitats!
Get a little wet, have a little fun and learn a lot!
Join American Littoral Society Biologist, Chuck Idelberger, on a search for marine life in Lemon Bay. Using hand and seine nets, you will search shallow waters and seagrass beds, observing, collecting, and discussing the natural history of some of the many interesting fishes and other animals that inhabit the bay.
Saturday, June 11, 9:30 – 11:30 a.m.    
570 Bay Park Blvd., Englewood
Space is unlimited.
Guide:  Chuck Idelberger, American
Littoral Society Biologist
For registration, please Call Chuck Idelberger directly at 941-488-8998.
Native Plants for Wildlife: Walk and Talk

 

Join local experts at Lemon Bay Park for a free walk and talk about our native plants in our Florida ecosystem. At the end of this walk-and-talk you will learn about the importance of incorporating native plants in your urban landscape, how to identify some native plants and their food/shelter value for wildlife and be able to make informed decisions about native plants in your urban landscape. Be prepared to walk for the majority of the time.
Saturday, June 11, 9 – 12 p.m.    
570 Bay Park Blvd., Englewood
 

To register for this free class go to Eventbrite or contact UF/IFAS Extension Sarasota County at 941-861-9900 or sarasota@ifas.ufl.edu.  
All You Wanted To Know About Mangroves and More!

 

Join Sarasota County volunteer guide, Tina Sebastian, on an informative walk and talk to learn about our area’s mangroves. Tina will teach a short class about the mangroves and then take you on a 45 min. educational walk around the park discussing mangroves and their importance to Florida coastlines.
Tuesday, June 14, 9 – 11 a.m.    
570 Bay Park Blvd., Englewood
Space limited to 20.
Guide:  Tina Sebastian, Sarasota County Volunteer Guide

 Registration info here for this event.  
Summer Spiders at the Carlton Reserve
Hike along with Sarasota County Environmental Specialist David Cavanaugh and Parks Naturalist Ray Vinson at the T. Mabry Carlton, Jr. Memorial Reserve (Carlton Reserve) as you look for the fascinating diversity of arachnids and their webs. Learn about the many types of spiders in Florida’s Oak Hammocks and Pine Flatwoods.
Wednesday, June 15, 9-10 a.m.           
1800 Mabry Carlton Parkway, Venice
Space limited to 20.
Guides: David Cavanaugh, Sarasota County Environmental Specialist and Ray Vinson, Parks Naturalist
Registration info here for this event.  
Flower Search at Curry Creek Preserve

 

Explore with Sarasota County volunteer guides, amateur botanists and Florida Native Plant Society members, Denny Girard and Al Squires, as you walk to the creek at Curry Creek Preserve. Along the way, your search will find many blooming native plants to delight your eyes. The search may just lead to other discoveries about the botany found along Curry Creek.
Wednesday, June 15, 9 – 11 a.m. 
Curry Creek Preserve (East entrance)
1500 Pinebrook Rd., Venice
Space limited to 20.
Guides: Denny Girard and Al Squires, Sarasota County Volunteer Guides
Registration info here for this event.
Mangroves and Coastal Landscapes: ID Walk and Talk

 

Join Sarasota County Environmental Specialist, Alyssa Vinson at Lemon Bay Park for a discussion about our native mangrove ecosystems. You will learn how to identify the three mangroves in Florida, discussidentification, ecological significance and trimming regulations. Be prepared to walk for the majority of the time.
Friday, June 17, 9 – 11 a.m.    
570 Bay Park Blvd., Englewood
Guide:  Alyssa Vinson, Sarasota County Environmental Specialist

To register for this free class go to Eventbrite or contact UF/IFAS Extension Sarasota County at 941-861-9900 orsarasota@ifas.ufl.edu.  

Monthly Rain Barrel Workshop and Sales

 

Learn how the use of rain barrels can conserve water, save money by reducing the use of potable water in landscapes (lower utility bills), and reduce stormwater runoff by storing and diverting runoff from impervious surfaces (roofs). Practical tips on the construction and installation will be provided. Rain barrels for sale for $37 each, includes tax and spigot assembly. Cash or check accepted.

Saturday, June 18, 10 – 11 a.m.
1300 South River Road, Englewood
Contact: David Pouso, Sarasota CountyEnvironmental Specialist, 941-861-5000

 

To register for this free class go to Eventbrite.

Explore Life in 500 B.C. at Phillippi Estate Park

 

Phillippi Estate Park will turn the clock back to 500 B.C., when it hosts a free family-friendly archaeological event, showcasing what the property was like in from 500 B.C. to 500 A.D.

Archaeologists and other experts will be present as visitors get a special opportunity to see the results of the January 2016 excavations. You will learn about artifacts used by the Manasota Indians, who lived by Phillippi Creek approximately 2,500 to 1,500 years ago, and have a chance to use replicas of Manasota artifacts. There will be hands-on demos of ‘atlatls,’ tools used to increase velocity when throwing a dart or a spear.

Saturday, June 25, 9 – 11 a.m.
5500 South Tamiami Trail, Sarasota
Space unlimited.
Contact: Priscilla Brown, Sarasota County Parks and Recreation Specialist at 941-316-1309

 

No registrations necessary.
For more nature based events for you and your family, please be sure to visit the links on the right column of this newsletter.Go outsideand play!
Registration Process for Nature Events

Look for ‘View Activities’ (if you already have an account), orSIGN UP HERE (if you need to open up a

new household account).

 

Attached here are directions to help you set up an account to sign up for a free nature event.
Please remember the 3 R’s.
Reuse, Reduce, and Recycle, when visiting your parks and environmental lands!

 

Please use appropriate containers for recycles and trash.

When visiting a preserve or environmental land where there are limited trash receptacles, please remember to ‘Pack it in. Pack it out.’  Leave nothing but your footprints. Thank you for caring.

 

For more information on the three R’s for your home and business, visitSarasota County Solid Waste for useful information.
About Us
Sarasota County
Parks, Recreation and Natural Resources
1660 Ringling Boulevard
Sarasota, Florida 34236
 
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