A group of native plant enthusiasts transformed a wasted space at a local park into a gorgeous multipurpose garden. It’s ornamental, it’s educational, and it supports local pollinators.
Andrew the Arborist (@andrew_the_arborist) shares his experience in a TikTok video that includes before-and-after shots of the round bed sandwiched between a parking lot and a walking path in a Pennsylvania park.
“Our nonprofit asked if we could replace some of this turf with a lot of native wildflowers,” he explains. “We got a grant from the Pennsylvania Native Plant Society, and we dug out the turf and put in a whole bunch of native plant plugs.”
In an establishing shot, Andrew shows what the plot looked like before — flat, dying, mostly brown turfgrass.
“Honestly, what purpose does this little grass island at my local park serve?” he asks. “I mean, really, it does nothing.”
It’s true. The area is too small for children or athletes to want to play on when there are larger fields nearby, and it lacks benches, playground equipment, or other features that would give it a purpose.
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Indeed, plain grass is often the worst choice to fill a space like this. It’s boring to look at, and it needs more water than most climates naturally provide. Rewilding with native plants is a better choice because they look beautiful and require less water and maintenance — not to mention how they support pollinators.
In the video, volunteers dig up the grass and replace it with a gorgeous array of wildflowers, including native penstemons, butterfly milkweed, common milkweed, goldenrod, asters, and sedges.
They are rewarded for their efforts with visits from rare golden northern bumblebees, which are native pollinators, as well as other bees and butterflies. A nearby educational sign points out the pollinators to visitors and directs them to a website to learn more.
“Overall, I’m so thrilled with how this garden has done, and I hope you guys can do something similar in your community,” Andrew says.
Commenters loved it too.
“Beautiful!” said one user.
“We need this everywhere,” said another.
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