connecting people to nature
Our purpose is to share and celebrate the natural heritage of North Mississippi with our community and the world. We do this through activities, events and projects at Lee Tartt Nature Preserve.
Watch our celebration of 2023 featuring music from Swamp Songs!
What an amazing year of growth and connections. We can’t wait to see what’s in store for 2024.
We hope you are a part of our year - hike our new trail, paddle in Chakchiuma Swamp (when it fills back up!), get creative at one of our classes, learn about bottomland species on a guided walk, volunteer for conservation work, or just sit on a bench in the shade and breath.
““The earth is full of thresholds where beauty awaits the wonder of our gaze.”
”
Bottomland south trail head during recent arctic blast
Looking for some fun and adventure to kick off 2024? This Historic Grenada ESCAPE ROOM is back! So grab some friends and find the gold!
Travel around 1913 Grenada using real maps and clues found in the most surprising ways. Can your team solve the puzzles, decode the clues and use old maps to discover the location of Uncle Eugene’s hidden gold?
NEW ART for next POWER OF TEN prize bundle!!
Cypress Knees / Chakchiuma Swamp
by Shirley Hamilton
POWER OF TEN drawing January 13, 2024 4pm
All POWER OF TEN participants are eligible with (1) name per $10 per month pledged.
Example: $20 per month = 2 names in drawing
Winner will be contacted by email.
PRIZE BUNDLE includes:
16 x 20 framed cypress painting by Shirley Hamilton, Cicada Mug by Miranda Goss Piefke, LTNP T-Shirt, Swamp Songs by Sally Vee, Sticker
Friends of Chakchiuma Swamp volunteers have been working hard beside our contractor, Kevin Baker, and landscape architect, Robert Poore, to create a trail for everyone. This path has been thoughtfully designed, curated and crafted with a guiding vision of meaningful experiences for diverse users, low impact for the surrounding habitats and low maintenance into the future.
NATURE AT NIGHT Friday 8 / 18 from 7:30 - 9:30
PIPEVINE SWALLOWTAIL
All participants signing up for the POWER OF TEN before the Summer Solstice will be put in a drawing for a chance to win this 12 x 12 watercolor painting by Robin Whitfield. The drawing will be on June 21 at 9:57 am and the winner will be contacted by email.
Sally Vee, Artist In Residence
I am extremely excited to be working as an Artist-in-Residence with 501(c)(3) non-profit organization
Friends of Chakchiuma Swamp on my latest project!
A full-length album of songs based on my trips to Chakchiuma Swamp in the heart of
Lee Tartt Nature Preserve in Grenada, Mississippi
is completed and has an official release date set for April 22nd, 2023.
All proceeds from album sales will go directly to Friends of Chakchiuma Swamp to support projects at Lee Tartt Nature Preserve
SWAMP SONGS
The album includes a full-color 28-page booklet that features song lyrics, pictures, short stories,
and information about LTNP Chakchiuma Swamp.
The album was recorded, mixed, and mastered by David Moore at Merriam Shoals Studio
and features guest musicians Wendy Jean Garrison, Megan Hurt, Jamie Lee, and Bill Baethke.
To purchase the cd with accompanying booklet and digital downlaod, Visit Sally Vee’s website here:
TAKE A HIKE!
We are nearing completion of a 1 mile trail project located on the west side of Lee Tartt Nature Preserve. This trail tells the story of Chakchiuma Swamp as it follows the Yalobusha River west then heads north into floodplain habitats featuring meadows, bottomland forest and an oxbow lake.
adopt a tree
FOREST FRIENDS Program
support
Donations, Merchandise & Creative Workshop Registration
Swamp quilt project
Artist, Yolande VanHeerden, quilting squares made by many hands.
Thanks to the Mississippi Arts Commission, Grenada Area contributors & volunteers!
Four amazing quilts will soon be ready for action! The quilts are composed of colors and textures representing 26 plants and animals found at Chakchiuma Swamp.
Can you guess which animal inspired this quilt square?
connect & create
Cooped up inside? Why not try something new? Collect wild pigments & see nature in a new light.
Take Action
Ready to take the next step? Volunteer for conservation projects, trail maintenance and creative installations