MILL CREEK METROPARKS | Happening in April

Wednesday-Thursday: 10 a.m. Beginner Birding Club. Learn how to identify birds around Yellow Creek Park and in your own backyard. Ages 6 and up are invited and adults are encouraged to share the experience. Meet at Yellow Creek Lodge.
Saturday: Lanterman's Mill will reopen on weekends starting today, from noon to 4 p.m. The mill's full summer schedule resumes May 1, from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Tuesday through Friday, and 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Saturday, Sunday and holidays. Group tours available May through October. Call (330) 740-7107 to arrange tours.
Saturday: 10 a.m. Prodigal Summer. Mill Creek MetroParks' discussion group changes gears with this look at a work of fiction by Barbara Kingsolver, who holds a graduate degree in biology. Kingsolver's fifth novel, "Prodigal Summer," is described as "a hymn to wildness that celebrates the prodigal spirit of human nature, and of nature itself." Meet at Ford Nature Center.
April 7: 1:30 p.m. Join Ran Lydell, horticulturist and hosta breeder from New York, for this slide lecture and learn about the different hosta species and how to grow better hosta. This program is provided by Midland Hosta Society, the Daffodil and Hosta Society of Western Pennsylvania, and Friends of Fellows Riverside Gardens. Call FRG to register.
April 7: 2 p.m. Springtime in the Gorge. Mill Creek and Lanterman's Falls played a critical role in the settlement of our area. Learn more about the cultural history of this area. Meet at Lanterman's Mill parking lot. Approximately 2 1/2 miles, moderate difficulty with boardwalk stairs and hills.
April 7: 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Baby Shower. Welcome the baby animals to the MetroParks Farm just in time for tour season. Visit with ducklings, chicks, piglets, calves, kids and lambs. Pet the new arrivals if they're not napping. Bring your camera to take a picture of your child with a baby calf or we will snap a Polaroid for you ($2). Refreshments provided.
April 10: 8:30 a.m. Rise and Bloom. Join in a morning walk around Fellows Riverside Gardens to enjoy the daffodils and narcissus. Savor a continental breakfast afterwards in the Garden Cafe while learning more about this spring flower. Call FRG to register. Fee: $5 residents, $7 nonresidents.
April 11: 10, 10:45 a.m. or 11:30 a.m. You and your 2-year-old are invited to celebrate Earth Day. We'll read a story and create a colorful craft. Call Ford Nature Center to register.
April 11 and 12: 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Volunteers who enjoy interacting with the public and schoolchildren are needed to give group tours through Fellows Riverside Gardens and the Davis Center. These training sessions will help familiarize guides with areas of the Gardens, its history and basic botanical concepts. Dress for outdoors walking. Call FRG to register.
April 12 to May 19: Flowers Close Up by Richard States, in the Weller Gallery at the Davis Center.
April 13 and 14: Noon to 5 p.m. Saturday and 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Sunday. Garden Forum Spring Show.
April 13: 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. Kite Festival. Check out the array of kites at the MetroParks Farm. The Ohio Society for the Elevation of Kites and kite clubs from Ohio and Pennsylvania will present demonstrations of stunt flying, fighter kites, aerial ballets and traction kiting (kite powered driving). Public kite flying and contests and games will be among the day's activities. Call (330) 740-7126 for details.
April 14: 1:30 p.m. Ikebana-The O'Hara School. The beauty and gracefulness of this style of Japanese flower design will be presented at this demonstration lecture by Bill Collins, Education Coordinator from Kingwood Center in Mansfield. Guests will learn about the symbolism used in the flowers and plants of the O'Hara School of Design. Ikebana Youngstown and Friends of Fellows Riverside Gardens present this demonstration lecture followed by an afternoon tea. $12. ($8 FFRG and Ikebana members).
April 14: 2 p.m. Walking Through Wildflowers. The strategy of spring wildflowers is to bloom before tree leaves cut off sunlight to the forest floor. They won't be out for long, so join our search for adder's tongue, squirrel corn, Dutchman's breeches and others along the Channels and Island Trails. Meet at Newport Wetlands parking lot. About 2 miles, easy rating.
April 14: 2 p.m. Color Your World. Children 6-10 years old are invited to join Denise Kellerman as she shows us the art of using watercolors to capture the world around us. Many art techniques will be shown along with shaping and journaling. Call Yellow Creek Park to register by April 10. Meet at Yellow Creek Lodge.
April 19 or 20: Friday, 10 to 11 a.m. or 1 to 2 p.m.; Saturday, 10 to 11 a.m. Tell Me Why? Why are seeds important, for both plant and people? Preschoolers 3-5 years old and their adult companions will ponder this important horticulture question during story time, and make a greeting card that can be planted. Call Fellows Riverside Gardens to register. Fee: $5.
April 19 or 20: With or without rain, we'll have fun with water! Preschoolers 3-5 years old and their parents are invited to an exploration of our important connections to water. Call Ford Nature Center to register. Fee: $2.
April 20 and 27: 8 a.m. Join volunteer naturalist Nancy Brundage to search for early spring migrants. Bring binoculars if possible. Meet at Newport Wetlands.
April 20 and 21: Noon to 5 p.m. Saturday, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Sunday. Fellows Riverside Gardens Daffodil Show. This show, highlighting the beautiful spring daffodils, will surprise visitors with the diversity found in this group of plants.
April 21: Noon to 4 p.m. Earth Day Celebration. Join us for an afternoon of fun and learning in celebration of Earth Day. We'll have a special presentation, "Mother Earth and Father Time," featuring Kim Lewis and Beth Hudach of the Green Team, along with hands-on papermaking. Enjoy an outdoor scavenger hunt, wildlife displays and children's activities. A free tree will be given to each group of family attending. Held at Ford Nature Center.
April 25: 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. The Right Tree in the Right Place. Trees enhance the livability and value of your home, but which is best for you? Learn how to analyze a planting location, select a tree that will thrive at that site, and properly prepare the planting hole. In honor of National Arbor Day, each participant will receive a tree. Call Fellows Riverside Gardens to register. Fee: $7.50 residents, $10.50 nonresidents.
April 25: 6:30 to 8 p.m. Tree Walk. Trees are budding in Fellows Riverside Gardens. On the Eve of National Arbor Day we will greet these old friends as they wake from dormancy. Children 6 years old and up will learn to identify various trees and what makes each special. Each child will receive a tree to take home. Call FRG to register. Fee: $5.
April 26: 10 a.m. Arbor Day. One million trees were planted in celebration of the first Arbor Day in 1872. Help continue this wonderful tradition by visiting Fellows Riverside Gardens for a leisurely walk to admire the unusual tree specimens and receive a tree seedling as a gift to each family from Friends of Fellows Riverside Gardens.
April 26: 8 p.m. Frogs Beneath the Full Moon. During spring, bird song fills the daytime air and frog song fills the nighttime. If conditions are right, we should be able to listen to the sounds of frogs. If we don't scare them, we might also see them. Join us as we explored one of the "froggiest" places in Mill Creek MetroParks. Bring a flashlight and boots. Meet at Vickers Nature Preserve. About 1 mile, easy rating.
April 28: 1:30 to 2:30. Library Anne's Story Garden. Enjoy listening to delightful stories selected from the collection of children's literature in Fellows Riverside Gardens Antonucci Library. This is a free program for children and for adults who are young at heart.
April 28: 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Horse-drawn Plow Day. Visit the MetroParks Farm as teams of draft horses plow the field in preparation for spring planting. Wagon rides will be available.
April 28: 2 p.m. Today we'll visit one of the premier places in our area for spring wildflowers, Poland Municipal Forest. Established in the 1930s through a bequest by the Butler family, this wet woodland features a blanket of bluebells, Mertensia virginica, and other short-blooming beauties. Meet at Poland Municipal Forest. About 2 miles, easy rating.