Madrona Woods is a community resource for adults and children to learn about the beauty and interconnectedness of all life in nature.  We encourage our neighbors and Woods visitors to protect the city's  remaining urban green spaces like Madrona Woods. Your involvement in the Woods restoration gives you an opportunity to learn the skills needed to protect and restore such places

Two series of naturalist-led community walks, in 1997 and 2000, gave families the opportunity to learn about the plants and wildlife in Madrona Woods. Every work party and meeting offers new chances to learn about native plants and what is needed to restore the Woods to a more natural and sustainable condition. Our landscape architect, Peg Gaynor, has been a mighty educator.  She has taken us through the process of drawing up a Master Action Plan for approval by the community and the Seattle Department of Parks and Recreation. 

Between 1998 and 2005, students from St. Therese sixth grade came approximately every other week throughout the school year to help with the restoration as part of their environmental education program. Fifth grade students from Epiphany School also came for several years.

The classes were divided in September into groups of three or four. Each was assigned a plot to work in until June with a Madrona Woods volunteer to guide and learn with them. They tested and recorded soil conditions, light and water, removed invasives and ordered native plants, which they planted and mulched. They learned to observe and identify plants and to understand the restoration process. They also played games designed to help them understand the forest ecology.

The St. Therese sixth grade returned for the 2005-06 year with a slightly different format, concentrating on restoration work in the fall and early winter. Madrona K-8 sixth graders visited the Woods four times during the school year to learn about restoration and ethnobotany. The Seattle Girls School included a five week community service project in Madrona Woods as part of its fall internship program, clearing 1500 square feet of ivy and blackberries and planting over 60 native plants. This fall, a group from Seattle Girls School has already been clearing and planting weekly. We expect Madrona sixth graders, Epiphany third graders and Northwest School middle schoolers to participate in more limited ways during the academic year.