Ardsley Pollinator Pathway
Making significant change, one yard at a time.
The May Cross Pollination Newsletter can be accessed here.
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New Public Pollinator Gardens Installed at Hart's Brook Park and Preserve on May 4!
A good time was had by all on May 4 while creating two beautiful new garden spaces at Hart’s Brook Park and Preserve. What a work team we had – more was accomplished than we had ever hoped for by these energetic teams.
The results were both astounding and beautiful. We can’t thank these teams enough for all they did – and did with such good humor and energy.
We want to extend our deep appreciation and gratitude to Greenburgh Parks and Recreation, and in particular to Bobby Breen, Sav DeGiorgio and Steve Stolarski. Their support and enthusiasm for these new gardens has been unwavering. Thank you for providing the new garden areas, for bulldozing them, for supplying all the preparation materials for sheet mulching and, finally, for the critical items that make it all possible: water, tools, wheelbarrows, and the native plants for the larger new garden. Thank you so much! This ongoing partnership produces beautiful results.
We also wish to express our continued gratitude to Bronx River/Sound Shore Audubon for the grants to make these projects happen on this scale. This year they facilitated the purchase of hundreds of plugs from our native plant vendor. The birds sang their appreciation all day.
Thank you all. The results speak for themselves. Without you it could not have happened. Enjoy the gardens!
Before pictures as well as installation pictures can be found by clicking here.
Upcoming Events
Join Our Public Garden Maintenance Team!
Three wonderful native plant pollinator gardens were created in the spring of 2022. One at the Ardsley Public Library, one at AFV Park and one at Hart's Brook Park and Preserve. These gardens are fueled by volunteers to create, install and maintain the gardens. They will not be maintained in any way by Greenburgh or Ardsley. So, we need YOU for the 2024 season! It is a fun team and many friendships were made 2022 - 2023.
Please click here to fill out the survey concerning your willingness and preferences. Thank you so much!
News:
The recording of our recent presentation, "Selecting and Caring for Native Tree and Shrub Saplings," is now available. Whether you missed the live session or wish to revisit the valuable insights shared by our experts, you can access the recording at https://vimeo.com/channels/greenburghlibrary/941297555.
Keystone Species of Native Plants. Thanks to everyone who attended the webinar on April 10. The presentation and other documents can be accessed here.
Ardsley Spring Gardening Festival Presentations and Other Documents. Thanks to everyone who attended the Spring Gardening Festival on March 10. The presentations can be accessed below for your reference. Click here to enter the folder of presentations.
Going Wild With Hedgerows, Meadows and Plants with Kathy Evers. The video recording can be found here. The audio recording can be found here. Kathy's reference sheet of the plants she used in her various beds can be accessed here.
Ardsley again achieves Leadership Circle Achievement from National Wildlife Federations (NWF) Mayors' Monarch Pledge
Ardsley is one of a few municipalities in North America in 2023 and 2022 that earned the Leadership Circle Achievement for the National Wildlife Federation's Mayors Monarch Pledge. Cities and municipalities in the program commit each year to support endangered monarch butterflies by creating habitat and educating residents on how to make a difference at home or in their community.
Ardsley is proud to support our beloved monarch butterflies and to have again earned the Leadership Circle honor. Ardsley is now part of an expanding North American network of cities working to create habitat in public parks, public landscaping, vacant lots, roadsides, medians, green roofs, backyard gardens and open spaces throughout the entire community.
For easy steps you can take to help monarch butterflies in your yard see the November Cross Pollination News - The Monarch Edition.
Pollinate Now! Bioregional Strategy for Habitat Restoration in the Hudson River Estuary Watershed with Evan Abramson, Principal of Landscape Interactions. The recording of the presentation can be accessed here. The audio of the presentation can be accessed here. Evan has kindly offered the online version of his book, Pollinate Now! on his website and it can be downloaded here.
Sustaining Wildlife in Fall and Winter with Deb Ellis. The video recording can be accessed here; The audio recording can be accessed here; The chat can be accessed here. Deb's slides can be accessed here, and her list of favorite fall plants can be found here..
Garden Visit: Kathy Ever's Rewilded Yard. Click here to see Kathy's diagrams and plant lists for her garden beds.
The recording for Mushrooms in Your Yard with Taro Ietaka can be accessed here.
This documentary is a feast for the eyes and soul. Check out A Ghost in the Making: Searching for the Rusty-Patched Bumblebee. This award winning short documentary inspires us to protect and provide habitat for all creatures and to prevent the extinction of the most vulnerable. Plant away!! We make the difference.
Introducing Our New Mailbox Gardens How-To Guides
You asked for it and we created it - a step- by- step guide to create a pollinator garden. We give you the design, the materials and quantities you'll need, and the list of plants. Four different garden sizes in each guide. You buy the plants, dig them in, and watch them grow. Check them out - it's easy!
Full-Part Sun Pollinator Wildflower Mailbox Gardens
Full to Part Sun Pollinator Grass and Sedge Mailbox Gardens
Part Shade Pollinator Mailbox Gardens
Full to Part Sun Monarch Butterfly Mailbox Garden
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Resources:
Previous Get Together Presentations and Reference materials available here.
View the new DEC documentary on invasive plants, Uninvited: The Spread of Invasive Species
Join the Ardsley Pollinator Pathway
We're making substantial change, one yard at a time. Join our distribution list.
Our Mission
The Ardsley Pollinator Pathway Project's mission is to raise awareness, educate, and encourage the participation of Ardsley’s residents, businesses, government, and other organizations in the creation and maintenance of healthy pollinator habitats in the Village of Ardsley.
The world’s community of pollinators is in crisis.
One in four native bee species are facing extinction.
There are significant declines in other pollinator populations as well, which include beetles, ants, birds, moths, butterflies, flies, gnats, and small mammals, such as bats.
Pollinators are responsible for the reproduction of 80-95% of plant species on earth.
There are numerous causes for this decline, with habitat loss and pesticide use at the top.
Conservation techniques work! When homeowners, governmental agencies and private businesses commit to expanding pollinator-friendly, pesticide-free habitats, we will change the future for pollinators and secure our own. We encourage your home to become a node on a path through Ardsley!
No effort is too small! We need your help. They need your help.
Ardsley Pollinator Pathway Map
View our growing pathway that will connect us with other communities. Add your own pollinator garden to the map. Click on the purple flower pins to learn more about each steppingstone in our pathway.
Visit the Ardsley CAN by 2030! website to learn more about how you can easily reduce your carbon footprint and make small changes to act sustainably.
