Author to detail how to transform lawns into pollinator-friendly habitats

Staff Report

Published: 02-22-2023 7:57 PM

GREENFIELD — Would you like to find out what you can do to increase the beauty of your yard while making it a welcoming space for native birds and pollinators?

If so, Greening Greenfield invites you to attend a free presentation, hosted by the Pollinator Team.

Owen Wormser, author of “Lawns to Meadows,” will speak about his landscaping work and his book on March 2, at 6:30 p.m. at the Second Congregational Church, 16 Court Square. He will share stories from his experience creating meadows throughout New England over the past 20 years, with details on how to establish and maintain a thriving habitat for bees, other pollinators and birds.

“As we were working with the farmers at Just Roots community farm to establish a pollinator meadow there, it occurred to us that we have an author right here in our community who has written a book on just this topic,” Pollinator Team member Elizabeth Erickson said in a statement. “So we invited Owen to talk, thinking he could help us all learn how to create pollinator meadows and improve habitat wherever we garden.”

After Wormser’s talk, which will be followed by a question-and-answer session, Patty O’Neill, an ecological landscape designer, will present a draft of her design for the People’s Pollinator Meadow at Just Roots, and Erickson will introduce a new resource about pollinator gardens in Greenfield called “Building a Pollinator Corridor in Greenfield, Park by Park, and Yard by Yard.”

Members of Greening Greenfield hope the website, available at bit.ly/3y3yUi9, will inspire people to join in building Greenfield’s pollinator corridor in public spaces around the city, and in their home gardens and yards.

Wormser’s talk is the first in a series of talks about lawns inspired by scientist and author Doug Tallamy, who created the Homegrown National Park campaign, which aims to reduce lawns in North America by at least 50% by 2050.

“Tallamy refers to lawns as ‘food deserts’ in the eyes of bees and other pollinators,” Nancy Hazard, a Greening Greenfield member, explained in a statement. “Tallamy explains that pollinators are essential for life on Earth. They not only enable plants to reproduce but also move food made by plants and sunlight up into the food chain for birds and many other animals.”

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For links to Greening Greenfield’s pollinator campaigns, visit bit.ly/3KvwGPW.

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