Community Calendar

Citizen Science: Sandhill Crane Nesting

The annual Sandhill Crane nesting cycle has begun! After arriving, crane pairs paint their feathers, perform elaborate courtship dances, chose a nest, mate, and then lay their eggs. Since pairs arrive at their territories on different dates, eggs will be laid over several weeks and will start hatching during late May into several weeks of June. Help Kachemak Crane Watch gather accurate information for its Nesting Ecology Study by reporting your nesting crane pair. You will know your pair is nesting when only one crane starts showing up. The pair trades nesting duties so one is off the nest feeding, preening, and resting while the other is incubating the eggs.

Please report nesting Sandhill Crane pairs to Kachemak Crane Watch at reports@cranewatch.org or by calling 907-235-6262. Leave your name, phone number, and the location and date when nesting started. KCW does not share nesting site locations with the public for the safety of the cranes and privacy of their human neighbors. Thank you for participating in this Citizen Science effort.

For more information contact: Nina Faust at 907-235-6262 or reports@cranewatch.org

Kachemak Crane Watch is a project of the Center for Alaskan Coastal Studies.

Citizen Science: Sandhill Crane Nesting

The annual Sandhill Crane nesting cycle has begun! After arriving, crane pairs paint their feathers, perform elaborate courtship dances, chose a nest, mate, and then lay their eggs. Since pairs arrive at their territories on different dates, eggs will be laid over several weeks and will start hatching during late May into several weeks of June. Help Kachemak Crane Watch gather accurate information for its Nesting Ecology Study by reporting your nesting crane pair. You will know your pair is nesting when only one crane starts showing up. The pair trades nesting duties so one is off the nest feeding, preening, and resting while the other is incubating the eggs.

Please report nesting Sandhill Crane pairs to Kachemak Crane Watch at reports@cranewatch.org or by calling 907-235-6262. Leave your name, phone number, and the location and date when nesting started. KCW does not share nesting site locations with the public for the safety of the cranes and privacy of their human neighbors. Thank you for participating in this Citizen Science effort.

For more information contact: Nina Faust at 907-235-6262 or reports@cranewatch.org

Kachemak Crane Watch is a project of the Center for Alaskan Coastal Studies.

Please come to the Kachemak Bay State Park Citizen Advisory Board meeting. It meets monthly on the 2nd Wednesday of the month at the Islands and Oceans Visitor Center in Homer, at 530 pm. We need your ideas and input regarding all that is happening with Kachemak Bay State Park.

Join our Curator of Botanical Collections, Yarrow Hinnant, and Head Gardener, Shawn Jackinsky, to learn and explore the variety of wild edible plants available in the Kachemak Bay area in the spring. This year the workshop will consist of two parts: a Friday evening lecture & plant walk at the Museum and a Saturday morning hike and wild-harvesting session at a local trail. Hiking location may be weather dependent.

This workshop is outdoors and designed for adults, older teens are welcome too! Online registration required at https://www.prattmuseum.org/event/wild-spring-edibles-a-two-part-series/

Wild Spring Edibles

A Two Day Workshop: Plant Talk & Wild Harvesting Walk

Friday, May 15 (5:30-7:30pm) & Saturday, May 16 2026 (10am – noon) | Pratt Museum

Registration Fee: $40

Member registration Fee: $35

Pay it forward Fee: $50

Join our Curator of Botanical Collections, Yarrow Hinnant, and Head Gardener, Shawn Jackinsky, to learn and explore the variety of wild edible plants available in the Kachemak Bay area in the spring. This year the workshop will consist of two parts: a Friday evening lecture & plant walk at the Museum and a Saturday morning hike and wild-harvesting session at a local trail. Hiking location may be weather dependent.

This workshop is outdoors and designed for adults, older teens are welcome too! Online registration required at https://www.prattmuseum.org/event/wild-spring-edibles-a-two-part-series/

Wild Spring Edibles

A Two Day Workshop: Plant Talk & Wild Harvesting Walk

Friday, May 15 (5:30-7:30pm) & Saturday, May 16 2026 (10am – noon) | Pratt Museum

Registration Fee: $40

Member registration Fee: $35

Pay it forward Fee: $50

Join the Friends of Kachemak Bay State Park and the Kachemak Bay Water Trail Committee for our annual pre-season gathering! Featuring local oysters and great conversation about all things paddling and boating on Kachemak Bay. Say hi, buy a brew, and chat about your summer adventure plans on the water.

www.friendsofkachemakbay.org/
www.kachemakbaywatertrail.org/

Stop by to shop native plants and other lovely perennials at the Pratt Museum. We will also have a generous selection of several iconic Pratt plants, including rhubarb and black currants from the Homestead Garden. The Garden Crew will be at the sale to answer any and all questions about where these native plants will thrive in your gardens and how to care for them. The sale benefits the Pratt’s Botanical Garden improvements and programming.

Are you a Museum Member? Shop the Plant Sale early during the Members Only Hour on Fri. May 29 from 4-6pm.

Just like last year, the Plant Sale will be on the same day as the Homer Garden Club’s Plant Sale. Shop at both and stock up for expanding your gardens!

Be sure to check out the Pratt Museum Fundraiser Yard Sale at the Yellow House that will be happening at the same time, just steps away.

Annual Pratt Plant Sale

Saturday, May 30 | 10am to 2pm

BOTANICAL GARDEN, HOMESTEAD GARDEN, AND FOREST TRAIL TOURS

FREE // May 30 – August 30 // Thursdays and Saturdays , 11am – Noon

Join the Pratt Museum Garden Crew for guided tours of the Botanical Gardens, Homestead Garden, and Forest Trails.

We will offer an interpretive introduction to the broader ecology of the Kachemak Bay region and describe the ways that we incorporate the plant communities of the region into the Botanical Garden at the Museum. Botany experts and novices alike can find delightful insights as we explore the interactions and dynamics of our local ecosystem.

The Homestead Garden is an ever-evolving exhibit featuring many classic fruits and vegetables and a few specific local varieties that have been treasured by the local community for generations. We will explore some of the basics of plant propagation, discuss the benefits of perennial food crops and talk about food preservation and storage. Snacking is encouraged! Throughout the season, something is always worth sampling from the garden, though the real delight is black currant season in late autumn.

The Forest Trails showcase the ecological context in which the Museum is embedded. These trails wind through one of the larger remaining wild spaces in downtown Homer, and have some of the largest remaining trees in the area. Wildlife is abundant and the plant communities are diverse. There are several loops of varying distance that wind through the nearly 10 acre forest. A meander through these woods with one of our guides will offer an opportunity for wildlife sightings, listening to songbirds, and discussing the ethnobotanical and historical uses of plants that live in our region.

Taking place on the first Saturday in June, National Trails Day® is a day of public events aimed at advocacy and trail service. This held as a one-day or weekend event where the Friends of Kachemak Bay State Park and Alaska State Parks Rangers will lead groups of volunteers to repair and improve trails and facilities within Kachemak Bay State Park. This nationally recognized day is just one opportunity to help and serves as the main kickoff event for the volunteer trail work season here in Kachemak Bay.

If you want to participate in Trails Day, we need your Volunteer Application well in advance of the event. We will continue to need volunteers throughout the summer, so whether or not you are available for Trails Day, we could use your help throughout the summer! Once we receive your application, you will be added to our contact list for future volunteer opportunities.

BOTANICAL GARDEN, HOMESTEAD GARDEN, AND FOREST TRAIL TOURS

FREE // May 30 – August 30 // Thursdays and Saturdays , 11am – Noon

Join the Pratt Museum Garden Crew for guided tours of the Botanical Gardens, Homestead Garden, and Forest Trails.

We will offer an interpretive introduction to the broader ecology of the Kachemak Bay region and describe the ways that we incorporate the plant communities of the region into the Botanical Garden at the Museum. Botany experts and novices alike can find delightful insights as we explore the interactions and dynamics of our local ecosystem.

The Homestead Garden is an ever-evolving exhibit featuring many classic fruits and vegetables and a few specific local varieties that have been treasured by the local community for generations. We will explore some of the basics of plant propagation, discuss the benefits of perennial food crops and talk about food preservation and storage. Snacking is encouraged! Throughout the season, something is always worth sampling from the garden, though the real delight is black currant season in late autumn.

The Forest Trails showcase the ecological context in which the Museum is embedded. These trails wind through one of the larger remaining wild spaces in downtown Homer, and have some of the largest remaining trees in the area. Wildlife is abundant and the plant communities are diverse. There are several loops of varying distance that wind through the nearly 10 acre forest. A meander through these woods with one of our guides will offer an opportunity for wildlife sightings, listening to songbirds, and discussing the ethnobotanical and historical uses of plants that live in our region.