Above: Some of the native plants you might see if you tour gardens in Southborough this weekend. (images from host posts to Facebook)
This weekend, a group of residents interested in “Native Plant Gardens” are inviting the public to tour some in town. Here’s the invitation they asked me to share:
Native Plant Garden Tour
Sunday July 29 11AM
Meet at Senior Center (Cordaville Hall)
9 Cordaville Road Southborough MASee how you can have a beautiful garden using Native Plants while greatly benefiting our Native Bees and Butterflies.
There is a Growing Movement to use native plants in our landscapes. Come learn what the Buzz is all about.
We will first look at the new Native Plant Pollinator Garden at the Senior Center and then head out to see 3 additional local Native Plant Gardens. We will return to the Senior Center at 1:00.
The event is hosted by members of the the Native Plant Gardens of Southborough Facebook Group. They have over 160 members and are growing. (You can join them.) To check them out, click here.
At the Senior Center Gardens, you’ll hear about the installation process, see which plants were chosen and learn which pollinators they support.
The invite explained the garden’s origins:
Volunteer Carol Yozzo wanted to beautify the Senior Center and she became committed to using all native plants to benefit pollinators. The Council on Aging (COA) funded the purchase of plants and materials, while the Open Space Preservation Commission funded the Garden Design and helped source plants as part of their new Initiative: NATIVE POLLINATORS • NATIVE PLANTS.
However it was Carol Yozzo who did the majority of the work taking a piece of the lawn around the flagpole and turning it into a beautiful pollinator garden.
Below are more invites from the hosts of the private gardens featured in the tour:
Joyce Greenleaf
We established a native garden in 2016 after installing a new patio. And since then we have been trying to address invasives around the lawn and edge of the woods and added some native plants beyond the planned native garden. I have realized how little I know but how much fun learning and sharing has been! Come see and learn with us!
Pamela Saitta
Come visit a 1 1/2year old garden that incorporates natives in woodland and and sun settings and get ideas of how you can fold native plantings into your landscape
Jenny Peet
Welcome to the new perennial garden of Jenny Peet, a busy mom gardening for bumblebees, monarch butterflies, and any other pollinator that happens to stop by… coping with the challenges of shade, a dog, rabbits, woodchucks, and invasive plants. Learn how to reduce lawn area with a mix of seeds and plants. This is what you can expect after one year.
In the event of extreme rain, the rain date will be August 5th.
Updated (7/23/18 10:00 am): I just noticed that the headline referred to Saturday instead of Sunday. Sorry about that!
