LaPorte County Soil and Water Conservation District

09/03/2026

Be sure to join us for our Local Working Group meeting on Tuesday, Sept. 8 at 2:30 pm at the SWCD office. This meeting is a great opportunity to share any local natural resource concerns with our NRCS District Conservationist!

09/01/2026

📣LAST SPONSOR SHOUTOUT 📣

We’d like to recognize these local businesses for being sponsors of Kankakee River Days! Thanks to their generous support, we’re able to offer this amazing event to our local 4th graders FOR FREE! We are proud to have each and every one of them as a partner as we continue to educate our next generation about the environment around them.

Please join us in gratitude as we say THANK YOU for helping us serve our community!

DeMotte State Bank
myrunnings
jbwestroofing
firstfarmers

08/27/2026

Indiana used to be home to the “Everglades of the North”. The Grand Kankakee Marsh rivaled the size of the Florida Everglades.

Indiana used to be 25% wetlands & wet prairies and 75% forest.

👉🏼Now we have less than 3% of our land dedicated to wetlands.

WHY ARE WETLANDS IMPORTANT?
On top of being home to lots of wildlife, marshes can absorb, hold, and release water as needed. They are nature’s sponge.

Without them we are more prone to flooding. We have flood controls and reservoirs that are effective, but they aren’t everywhere and they aren’t perfect.

In the 1800s steam dredges helped to drain our wetlands to make room for more farmland.

We also had a lake called Beaver Lake that covered most of Newton County.

WOULD OUR AUGUST FLOODING BEEN AS BAD?
This is a tricky question, but more wetlands would have likely helped the flooding in north-central Indiana. In eastern Indiana we were originally more forest, not as much wetland. Fewer urban areas would probably have helped. But a lot of those original forests would flood without the flood controls and the reservoirs.

These were historic rains, hopefully we don’t have that level of flooding again in those same areas in our lifetime, but we will have more floods.

Extra…
MARSH, SWAMP, OR BOG?
Marshes, swamps, and bogs are all wetlands, but they differ by their plant life and water source. Marshes are wet, treeless areas dominated by grasses and reeds. Swamps are wet forested areas dominated by trees and woody plants. Bogs are spongy, acidic areas fed mostly by rain that accumulate dead plant material called peat.

08/24/2026

📣SPONSOR SHOUTOUT 📣

We’d like to recognize the Northern Indiana Community Foundation for being a new sponsor of Kankakee River Days! Thanks to their generous support, we’re able to offer this amazing event to our local 4th graders FOR FREE! We are proud to have the Northern Indiana Community Foundation as a partner as we continue to educate our next generation about the environment around them.

Please join us in gratitude as we say THANK YOU for helping us serve our community!

08/24/2026

Make sure to RSVP for this free event hosted by the Porter County SWCD!!

Last days to register for the Soil to Supper Field Day on September 2nd from 5 to 7 pm. New free event for farmers and landowners to learn more about soil health and conservation and enjoy a country buffet supper. All reservations due by August 26th to [email protected] or call the Soil and Water office at 219-462-7515 ext. 3

08/23/2026

Through our partnership with Hitachi Global Air Power Sullair and LaPorte County Soil and Water Conservation District we’re bringing new life to 8.5 acres of native oak woodland.

Invasive species were removed, and now we work together to restore the canopy and the diverse understory beneath with native plants.

As you walk the forest, you’ll find flags that mark each newly planted seedling, and tags with each new trees “name.”

After The Wintek Family joined us for this weekend’s family gardening workshop, they set out on a walk through the forest to find a special tree named “Hitachi” because that’s “where Daddy works.”

Later this week, we’ll welcome volunteers from Hitachi to walk every acre together, seeding the new understory of native plants, and experiencing the beauty and peace of forest we all work together to restore and protect.

08/17/2026

📣SPONSOR SHOUTOUT 📣

We’d like to recognize LaPorte County Stormwater MS4 for being a sponsor of Kankakee River Days! Thanks to their generous support, we’re able to offer this amazing event to our local 4th graders FOR FREE! We are proud to have the LaPorte County MS4 as a partner as we continue to educate our next generation about the environment around them.

Please join us in gratitude as we say THANK YOU for helping us serve our community!

08/13/2026

📣SPONSOR SHOUTOUT 📣

We’d like to recognize Cargill for being a new sponsor of Kankakee River Days! Thanks to their generous support, we’re able to offer this amazing event to our local 4th graders FOR FREE! We are proud to have Cargill as a partner as we continue to educate our next generation about the environment around them.

Please join us in gratitude as we say THANK YOU for helping us serve our community!

08/12/2026

Introducing our first Farmer of the Quarter…
Dr. Dominique Edwards with the Walker Street Park Community Garden!

Located in Michigan City’s Eastport Neighborhood, the community garden grows a large variety of produce to keep the community fed, such as tomatoes, peppers, collards, corn, beans, squash, herbs, berries and grapes.

Over the years, they have adapted their growing techniques to focus on sustainable and regenerative agriculture. The garden minimizes soil disruption, utilizes compost, saves seeds, allows for most plants to come back, and they develop crop plans to be strategic about what and where they are growing. Volunteers started transforming the garden floor from grass to mulch in order to keep moisture in the ground and reduce weeds. They educated themselves on different soil types, soil amendments, how water flows under the ground, natural pest management, and more.

When asked what she would like people to know about agriculture, Dr. Edwards said this:
“Growing food isn't easy, so start small and think big! Now more than ever is a good time to connect with your local farmers and gardeners.”

Please help us congratulate Dr. Edwards on being chosen as Farmer of the Quarter!

[Volunteers in picture: Doug Moon (Community Market Manager), Anastasia Gumns (Resident Bed Manager), Colin McConnell (Youth Volunteer)
Not pictured: Marchele Rogers (Gardener)]

08/10/2026

📣SPONSOR SHOUTOUT 📣

We’d like to recognize RWE for being a new sponsor of Kankakee River Days! Thanks to their generous support, we’re able to offer this amazing event for our local 4th graders FOR FREE! We are proud to have RWE as a partner as we continue to educate our next generation about the environment around them.

Please join us in gratitude as we say THANK YOU for helping us serve our community!