The Florida Department of Environmental Protection’s Dagny Johnson Key Largo Hammock Botanical State Park and John Pennekamp Coral Reef State Park are holding the annual Native Plant Day on Saturday, Jan. 27 (light rain or shine). The event will be held at Pennekamp State Park in Key Largo.
Nursery volunteers from Dagny Johnson Key Largo Hammock will have an information booth where visitors can learn about native plants, how to propagate and care for native plants and how to plant butterfly gardens. Native plants, raised by the nursery volunteers, will be given away for planting at Keys residences. By giving residents native plants, this event aims to increase awareness regarding the importance of growing natives in the delicate environment of Key Largo and the Florida Keys.
The event will concentrate on education about plants that grow in the Keys and will include a speaker on planting natives. Keys residents who attend the 9 a.m. talk will be given a chance in a drawing to receive an extra native plant.
There will be two 45-minute-long nature trail walks through the tropical hardwood hammock at 10 a.m. and 11 a.m., as well as two half-hour butterfly garden tours at 10:15 a.m. and 11 a.m. The walks are limited to 15 participants each, on a first-come, first-served, basis.
A heavy rainout date will be Saturday, Feb. 10. For more information or for accessibility needs, call Elena Muratori at 305-676-3786. For more information, visit floridastateparks.org.
