# Event Details - **Event Name**: Community Food Forest Tour and Workdays - **Event Start and End Date**: Wed, 08 Jul, 2026 at 05:30 pm – Wed, 08 Jul, 2026 at 07:30 pm - **Event Description**: Nick Frillman, Local Food Systems & Small Farms Educator with Illinois Extension, will host two Community Food Forest “Tour and Workdays” at the Refuge Food Forest in Normal, IL, on Wednesday, July 8th, and Wednesday, July 22nd, from 5:30 to 7:30PM. This summer, members of the public can come see and learn about a real-life example of an 11-year-old, productive, edible landscape at the Refuge Food Forest in Normal. While there, help Illinois Extension staff to give the site the facelift it needs to remain a productive fruit and nut-bearing oasis for the community into the next 11 years. Each event will begin with a 30–45-minute walking tour of the site where Frillman will briefly discuss the cultivation of 15 + species of fruit and nut-bearing trees, canes, vines, shrubs, and plants at the Refuge Food Forest, featuring well-known as well as lesser-known species. There will be time for Q & A. After the tour, the work begins. After each tour, community member attendees will be invited to join the Weeding, Mulching, or Watering teams, and may bring personal wheelbarrows and shovels for spreading mulch; dandelion forks, gloves, pruners or related implements for removing weeds and unwanted spreading plants; or buckets for transporting water to newly planted blackberries, fruit trees, or other plants that need a drink. NOTE: Illinois Extension staff have some – but limited – tools and supplies for work that will be first-come, first-served, so plan to bring the relevant tools if you have them. After 1 hour of Refuge Food Forest assistance, participants will be invited to look for fruit that may be in season for picking, as a rewarding treat after an hour’s work. Frillman will guide participants to any fruit or nuts on site that is ripe at that time. Note that produce availability at the Refuge Food Forest – a public park owned by the Town of Normal with dawn to dusk access – changes rapidly, even in a single day, and is not guaranteed to be available or ripe. Come learn about Central Illinois’s only mature food forest, take home some edible landscaping ideas that might be a good fit for your property, do a little community service, and perhaps take home a sweet fruit treat. Registration is required to attend, so staff can adequately prepare. Workshop details: Where: 701 E. Lincoln St., Normal IL, 61761 – Meet at the Grape Arbor on the gravel road connecting Pine St. and Lincoln St. What to Bring/Wear: relevant tools, sun protection if desired (hat, sunscreen), and clothes that can get dirty. - **Event URL**: https://allevents.in/normal/community-food-forest-tour-and-workdays/200030244479858 - **Event Categories**: workshops - **Interested Audience**: - total_interested_count: 9 ## Ticket Details ## Event venue details - **city**: Normal - **state**: IL - **country**: United States - **location**: 701 E Lincoln St, Normal, IL 61761-6404, United States - **lat**: 40.52033 - **long**: -88.97621 - **full address**: 701 E Lincoln St, Normal, IL 61761-6404, United States ## Event gallery - **Alt text**: Community Food Forest Tour and Workdays - **Image URL**: https://cdn-az.allevents.in/events9/banners/b8a78cd0c54e874cf304d8056e55780eb44f33cee71db00e2c7bd531975ade88-rimg-w1200-h675-dc2d302f-gmir?v=1783478324 ## FAQs - **Q**: When and where is Community Food Forest Tour and Workdays being held? - **A:** Community Food Forest Tour and Workdays takes place on Wed, 08 Jul, 2026 at 05:30 pm to Wed, 08 Jul, 2026 at 07:30 pm at 701 E Lincoln St, Normal, IL 61761-6404, United States. - **Q**: Who is organizing Community Food Forest Tour and Workdays? - **A:** Community Food Forest Tour and Workdays is organized by U of I Extension-Livingston, McLean, Woodford Counties. - **Q**: Who is this event for? Is it right for me? - **A:** Community Food Forest Tour and Workdays is ideal for curious learners, students, and skill-builders looking to gain hands-on knowledge and practical expertise in a focused, interactive setting. Whether you're a first-time attendee or a longtime enthusiast in Normal, this event is thoughtfully curated to deliver a standout experience worth every moment. If Community Food Forest Tour and Workdays sounds like your kind of event, don't wait - spots fill up fast. ## Structured Data (JSON-LD) ```json [ { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@type": "Event", "name": "Community Food Forest Tour and Workdays", "image": "https://cdn-az.allevents.in/events9/banners/b8a78cd0c54e874cf304d8056e55780eb44f33cee71db00e2c7bd531975ade88-rimg-w1200-h675-dc2d302f-gmir?v=1783478324", "startDate": "2026-07-08", "endDate": "2026-07-08", "url": "https://allevents.in/normal/community-food-forest-tour-and-workdays/200030244479858", "location": { "@type": "Place", "name": "701 E Lincoln St, Normal, IL 61761-6404, United States", "address": { "@type": "PostalAddress", "streetAddress": "701 E Lincoln St, Normal, IL 61761-6404, United States", "addressLocality": "Normal", "addressRegion": "IL", "addressCountry": "US" }, "geo": { "@type": "GeoCoordinates", "latitude": "40.52033", "longitude": "-88.97621" } }, "eventAttendanceMode": "https://schema.org/OfflineEventAttendanceMode", "description": "Nick Frillman, Local Food Systems & Small Farms Educator with Illinois Extension, will host two Community Food Forest “Tour and Workdays” at the Refuge Food Forest in Normal, IL, on Wednesday, July 8th, and Wednesday, July 22nd, from 5:30 to 7:30PM.\n\nThis summer, members of the public can come see a", "organizer": [ { "@type": "Organization", "name": "U of I Extension-Livingston McLean Woodford Counties", "url": "https://allevents.in/org/u-of-i-extension-livingston-mclean-woodford-counties/13443959", "description": "University of Illinois Extension is proud to serve Livingston, McLean and Woodford counties. Our programs are research-based, practical, and have local impact on our families, homes, environment, work, and communities. " } ] } ] ```