San Diego County, California
Sunday, August 30 - Earth needs you! The Mission for Operation Thistle Take-Down is to search-and-destroy the invasive Bull Thistle growing at VMF's Volcan Mountain Nature Center in Julian. Gear up and sign up below! Together we will restore the forest to its healthy, natural ecosystem!
Date: Sunday, August 30
Time: 8:00 am - 11:00 am
Sunday, August 23: Learn to make your own soothing herbal salve and wild-crafted wreath from seasonal plants that we find at VMF's Volcan Mountain Nature Center.
VMF's Outdoor Naturalist Educator, Janice Smith, will lead a walk around the nature center to identify and collect plants and other botanical items for each project. Wreaths are a beautiful and natural way to celebrate the summer season and decorate your home.
Wednesday, July 1 - VMF needs your help! Join us for a morning removing non-native and highly invasive bull thistle and mustard at VMF's Volcan Mountain Nature Center. By removing this plant species, you will have the satisfaction knowing that you are restoring the forest to its healthy, natural ecosystem!
Date: Wednesday, July 1
Time: 9:00 am - 12:00 pm
Sunday, June 28 - VMF needs your help! Join us for a morning removing non-native and highly invasive bull thistle and mustard at VMF's Volcan Mountain Nature Center. By removing this plant species, you will have the satisfaction knowing that you are restoring the forest to its healthy, natural ecosystem!
Date: Sunday, June 28
Time: 9:00 am - 12:00 pm
June 23: Join the Volcan Mountain Foundation for its quarterly bird count on Volcan Mountain in Julian. This is a great opportunity to hone your bird ID skills with experts, learn about our local mountain bird species, and contribute valuable data to VMF and the Cornell Lab of Orinthology. We'll be focusing our attention on the areas near our Watershed and Sky Island trails as well as VMF's recently acquired pond. There is a combined two miles of walking during this survey. Hiking is easy to moderate.
Date: Turesday, June 23
Sunday, June 14 - VMF needs your help! Join us for a morning removing non-native and highly invasive bull thistle and mustard at VMF's Volcan Mountain Nature Center. By removing this plant species, you will have the satisfaction knowing that you are restoring the forest to its healthy, natural ecosystem!
Date: Sunday, June 14
Time: 9:00 am - 12:00 pm
Sunday, June 28: Join us for a relaxing and restorative day immersed in the beauty of nature in spring. We will gather beneath towering trees beside our peaceful pond for a unique wildcrafted wellness experience that blends herbal self-care, nature connection, creativity, and play.
We’ll begin with tea and a gentle arrival before wandering to the pond for quiet reflection and time to experience the sights, sounds, warmth, and renewal of spring. Afterward, we’ll gather seasonal plants such as horsetail, mugwort, plantain, and cattail and learn about their uses.
Saturday, June 13 - Join Terry Hunefeld, Professional Tracker, as you learn the basics of animal tracking, sign identification, and tracking in the field. You will also practice how to read the landscape and notice details you wouldn't have ordinarily seen that reveal signs of animal activity.
Date: Saturday, June 13
Time: 9:00 am - 11:30 pm
Cost: $15 per person
Sunday, May 3- Join us for a look into the little known yet truly fascinating world of plant reproduction. From mosses to ferns to pine trees, we’ll learn some of the complex ways these plants create the next generation. A more in-depth look at the extremely diverse group of flowering plants will reveal some remarkable and unbelievable ways some species use mimicry, trickery, and seduction just to attract pollinators and get their pollen transported to other flowers. You’ll never look at plants the same again!
Sunday, April 26: Join Janice Smith, VMF’s Education Coordinator and Certified Forest Therapy Guide, on a guided Forest Bathing walk at VMF's Volcan Mountain Nature Center. This is a new program of bi-monthly Forest Bathing walks offered through VMF.
What is Forest Bathing?