Zinsser Wildflower Garden
Adopted by Marcus Gelman and Will Andrus
This garden was created with funding by a Bloomberg Philanthropies Youth Climate Action Fund Micro-Grant. By creating this pollinator-friendly space, we are contributing to the health of our environment and the well-being of pollinators, which in turn benefits our food systems and natural landscapes. We believe that this predominantly native, all pollinator-friendly plant garden will make an impact in our collective efforts to mitigate negative effects of climate change, invasive species, and habitat loss. We hope it will contribute to reversing the declining number of important pollinator species and birds in our area, and that our garden, however small, will encourage our neighbors and fellow village residents to welcome pollinators into their gardens by showing that native pollinator friendly gardens can be both environmentally beneficial and beautiful.
Before. We identified a suitable location at Zinsser Community Gardens. The allocated plot had full sun exposure and some challenges such as an old tree root, rock outcropping, and slanted grade. We gently leveled the site, removed construction debris, and repurposed the rocks in the allotment.
Marcus's dad helps put up the deer fencing.
We removed turf and weeds and then added donated compost to improve the soil's fertility and drainage.
We added rocks found on site for edging on the base of the fence.
We assembled two large raised beds.
We picked modular raised beds made from corrosion resistant recyclable material that came in compostable packaging.
We laid wood chips to create pathways and suppress weed growth between the raised beds.
We amended raised bed soil with compost to improve soil quality.
We filled the beds with many bags of topsoil.
We evened out the soil in the beds with rakes.
We planted our pollinator plants.
We wrote labels to identify each plant and put the labels in the soil.
We researched native wildflowers and other pollinator-friendly perennials suitable for our climate, designated for full sun exposure, and selected for their drought tolerance, disease resistance, and staggered bloom times.
We selected plants friendly to a large range of pollinators and that have been shown to be hardy in our area.
Going forward, we will water the garden regularly, especially during dry periods, to help nourish the plants, monitor for weeds and remove them promptly. We will also monitor the garden to track plant growth, flowering, pest damage and/or disease damage, sun/frost/ice/water damage, and adjust maintenance practices as needed to ensure the long-term health and success of our garden.
Our Thanks
We have finished our garden with the help of friends and family, unwavering enthusiastic support of Mayor Armacost, and generous compost donation by Hudson Compost Services. We planted over 20, mostly native, pollinator-friendly plants such as Vernonia (ironweed), Eutrochium purpureum (sweetscented joe pye weed), Echinacea (coneflower), Asclepias tuberosa (butterfly weed), Nepeta (catmint), Salvia yangii (Russian sage), Monarda (beebalm), and many more (please see attached list). The pollinator garden provides essential nectar and pollen to a diverse array of pollinators such as bees, butterflies, wasps, flies, moths, and hummingbirds contributing to biodiversity of our village.
Output by the Numbers
The plot is 169 square feet on land previously containing weeds, grass, and debris.
We built 52 linear feet of deer fence.
We assembled 2 large raised beds and filled them with 30 cubic feet of raised bed soil and 10 cubic feet of compost.
We researched, purchased, and planted over 20 native pollinator friendly plants.
We engaged 2 friends and 4 family members to help us with this project and share their gardening knowledge.
For complete list of plants, with pictures, see doc below:
Helpful References:
Leslie Bennett and Julie Chai.
Garden Wonderland: Create Life-Changing Outdoor Spaces for Beauty, Harvest, Meaning, and Joy.
New York, 10 Speed Press.
Andrew Keys.
Growing the Northeast Garden.
Portland, Timber Press.
Uli Lorimer.
The Northeast Native Plant Primer: 235 Plants for an Earth Friendly Garden.
Portland, Timber Press.