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Caring for the Land
April 10 @ 12:00 pm – April 13 @ 12:00 pm CDT
Will you please join us at our next Caring for the Land weekend? The battle with invasives will be a long term effort of management and hard physical labor. It is also quite rewarding! Our next event will start Thursday, April 10 through Sunday April 13. Come and experience our beautiful landscape while pushing back on the spread of invasive species!
Consider spending a few days working to care for the beautiful property of the Hokyoji Zen Practice Community. Set in the bluff country of southeastern Minnesota near the Mississippi River, Hokyoji consists of 105 acres of heavily wooded bluffs, wetlands, and abandoned farmland. It has an abundance of wildlife habitats, old growth oaks and walnuts. However Hokyoji’s environment is challenged by an overgrowth of introduced, non-native species such as European buckthorn, Japanese honeysuckle, multi-floral rose, and others, which are choking out regrowth of the native species and inhibiting re-establishment of the original ecosystem.
We offer accommodations in the dormitory, meals, companionship, and the chance to do hard but satisfying work. And, at the end of the day, with tired muscles, perhaps a quiet period of meditation!
Hokyoji’s environment is challenged by an overgrowth of introduced, non-native species such as European buckthorn, Japanese honeysuckle, multi-floral rose, and others, which are choking out regrowth of the native species and inhibiting re-establishment of the original ecosystem.
The photo to the right is a hillside at Hokyoji. The tangle of undergrowth is full of young honeysuckles, buckthorn, plum, and various thorn bearing plants. Here and there a young walnut tries to pop through. Without some intervention, this area likely will become mostly honeysuckle and impenetrable.
Free
Please register so we know how many to expect.