Friday, August 21, 2015

Healing the Earth - One Meadow at a Time





Last summer, Waltham students and Meadowscaping staff replaced a tough turf lawn at 750 Main Street, Waltham MA with a sunny native plant meadow to: a) attract pollinators and provide wildlife habitat, b) educate youth about biodiversity and the seven other pillars of meadowscaping, and c) heal the Earth one meadow at a time.  Since then, we have been photo-documenting the seasonal evolution of our urban meadow. Notice that the native perennials in this 500 sq. ft. plot are already twice as tall as last year!
August 2014
February 2015
July 2015
We are pleasantly surprised by the beauty and scale of this year-old meadow bursting with variety and color—Aster, Bee balm, Boltonia, Coreopsis, False Indigo, Joe Pye Weed, Swamp Milkweed, and 20 other flowers, shrubs, and grasses! And while most plants grew larger in the areas where we placed them last year, the progeny of several varieties, particularly the Echinacea, Black-eyed Susan, and Vervain have popped up all over the place! Passersbys are pleased by the aesthetics and allure of this place, while wildlife, including insects, pollinators, birds, and bunnies are thrilled by its function!
A Living Laboratory






 This meadow is a living lab that is changing all the time. Each week, we observe and record site conditions, measure plant changes, and identify and record visiting pollinators, noting which flower appeals to which pollinator, and for how long. To date, we have tracked at least five types of bee/wasp pollinators: Bumblebee; Honey Bee; Black and Yellow Mud Dauber; Yellow Jacket; and Paper Wasp. We have seen several flies other than the house variety: Deer Fly, Bee Fly, Hover Fly. We have overturned several soil lovers: earthworms, wireworms, wood lice, centipedes. And we have discovered beetles, fireflies, and caterpillars. Of all the visitors, my current favorites are the butterflies! A few types started to arrive in the third week of July: Cabbage Butterfly, Red Admiral Butterfly and, yes, an Eastern Tiger Swallowtail! Have a look! Enjoy!
Bumblebee on Echinacea
Paper wasp
Baby Yellow Jacket on Vervain Leaf
Earth worm
Wood Lice
Caterpillar. Winter Moth?
Robin bathing
Eastern Tiger Swallowtail on Blue Gian Hyssop


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