Rotary Pollinators Garden
Rotary Member Allison Laws proposed the project, having set up a large native meadow on her own previously, to support pollinators and the local ecosystem. She was astonished at the scope and depth of the results and wanted to spread the benefits, joy, and beauty. Her passion and expertise inspired her fellow Rotarians to support her project and bring it to fruition.
The total cost for the project was just over $100. for the topsoil. A Rotary member donated some bulbs so that there would be visual interest in the spring, drawing the eye to the project. Volunteers brought cardboard and tools and provided the labor. Our club intends to give $200 to purchase additional plants, bringing the total to about $300 for a huge benefit!
A pollinator bed was installed in the fall of 2023 to be planted in April 2024, to boost the local ecosystem, teaching people about supporting pollinators and engaging the community on the Keuka Lake Outlet Trail and the local ecosystem it comprises. The goal was to enlist volunteers from the schools and community to continue to support and maintain this garden and similar garden projects along the trail. In detail, we arranged logs around the desired bed area, and layered brown cardboard, topsoil, and mulch in order to best prepare the bed to overwinter ahead of planting. Later in the fall, we planted some bulbs
Rotarian Laws and Caroline Boutard-Hunt from the Cornel Co-op plan to procure plants in April. Once the weather turns, a future date will be set for planting the additional plants and we will need volunteers to assist and encourage everyone to come out and learn about pollinator gardens. We will also need assistance to set up a QR code. Additionally, any donations for materials including bulbs, plants, cardboard, and topsoil are welcomed.
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The project was supported and approved by the Board of the Friends of the Outlet, and several members of this organization participated in setting up the bed, including the maintenance crew, who donated a huge pile of wood chips and cut logs for the edges. A local Eagle Scout also participated, to learn how to put in a pollinator bed for her Eagle Scout project. She is now putting a bed in further along the Trail. A representative of the Cornell Cooperative in Penn Yan also provided expertise and assistance, in addition to Rotary club members.