A walk at Greiner Preserve is like taking a tour of the diverse natural communities that make northwestern Indiana so special: open sandy dune, oak savanna, fen, wet woods, swamp, prairie. Each ecosystem features its own collection of plants and animals. There is something new at every step in this transitional landscape.

The southern portion of the property was formerly used for agriculture and is currently being restored to prairie. Fens – wetlands fed year-round by groundwater – occur in the north end of the property and support a rich plant community that includes sedges, wildflowers, and rare plants like poison sumac.