News Release

Big Thicket to Host Volunteer Planting Event this Winter

All ages are invited to plant with us!

NPS Photo / Scott Sharaga

News Release Date: November 28, 2025

Contact: Megan Urban, 409-951-6700

KOUNTZE, Texas – Big Thicket National Preserve is excited to announce the winter planting event schedule. Volunteers can join park staff and partners to plant longleaf pine trees and native grasses on December 13th in the Big Sandy Creek Unit.

“Part of the longevity of Big Thicket is the continued work on restoring the longleaf pine savannah ecosystem, and the connection volunteers can get from seeing their work grow each year,” said Superintendent Wayne Prokopetz.

The public is invited to learn more about the preserve and stewardship with the National Park Service while planting longleaf pine trees and grasses to rejuvenate the understory of the ecosystem. The event will take place on Saturday, December 13, 2025 (originally scheduled for Dec. 6th).

Please check our website and social media accounts (@BigThicketNPS) through December 11 for further changes if necessary.

During the event, the area surrounding the planting area will be closed for hunting. Notices will be posted a week in advance in the planting area.

Big Thicket is excited to host these events with the help of partner and friends groups including Big Thicket Association, Texas Master Naturalists, Big Thicket Natural Heritage Trust, National Parks Conservation Association, and Texas Conservation Alliance.

To sign-up, go to volunteer.gov and search “Big Thicket.” Once registered, information about the event, including location and paperwork, will be sent out to the volunteers one week before the event. For more information, volunteers can call the Big Thicket Visitor Center at 409-951-6700.

-NPS-

Big Thicket National Preserve is in Southeast Texas, near the city of Beaumont and 75 miles northeast of Houston. The preserve consists of nine land units and six water corridors encompassing more than 113,000 acres. The Big Thicket, often referred to as a “biological crossroads,” is a transition zone between four distinct vegetation types – the moist eastern hardwood forest, the southwestern desert, the southeastern swamp, and the central prairies. Species from all these different vegetation types come together in the thicket, exhibiting a variety of vegetation and wildlife that has received global interest.