With members of Newton’s Department of Parks, Recreation, & Culture (PRC) on hand, the Friends of Cold Spring Park celebrated the planting of their wonderful Pollinator Garden near the park’s Beacon Street entrance on June 27 with a ribbon cutting by Alan Nogee, the group’s Founder and President.
DoBi Wallober of Scout Troop 209 was acknowledged with gratitude for his Eagle Scout Pollinator Garden Project that he helped to design with the Friends of Cold Spring Park. Funding for the project was provided by the Friends of Cold Spring Park with grant donations from Green Newton and Newton Conservators. The planting of the garden was completed in the fall of 2022 by Dobi, his family, the scout troop, and Friends’ volunteers.
Also joining the celebration were several members of our community, including representatives of Newton Conservators, Newton Tree Conservancy, Green Newton, and Newton City Councilors Bill Humphrey and Andreae Downs.
Be sure to visit this pollinator garden of native wildflowers this summer. Located at the entrance to the park on the knoll between the driveway and tennis courts, the garden aims not only to welcome visitors but also help restore wildflowers, and save bees and butterflies indigenous to our region. This is the first public garden in Newton intended to help save two species of bees–the golden northern (Bombus fervidus) and half-black (Bombus vagans) bumblebees–that used to be common in eastern Massachusetts, but are now at risk of local extinction according to the research of UMass Dartmouth Professor Robert Gegear. It will also help support ten species of at-risk butterflies.
Learn more on the Cold Spring Park website.
The pollinator garden after the planting was completed last fall
Yoshi Futai, Bill Humphrey, Marcia Cooper, Alan Nogee, Bob Jampol, and Andreae Downs gather in front of the pollinator garden
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