As the effects of climate change are increasingly more apparent, St. John’s Eco Action Team takes steps to care for our environment. Native plants provide critical food and habitats to local pollinators, birds and other wildlife; and because native plants are adapted to our local environment, they require less care and fewer resources to maintain. At a time when insect populations have been declining globally and the iconic North American Monarch butterfly is listed as endangered, it has become even more important for ordinary citizens to step up and turn gardening passions into eco-actions.
St. John’s Eco Action team has advocated for native plant landscaping, organized spring native plants sales, given away oak tree seedlings and planted a sassafras tree off the SW corner of the church in honor of St John’s 150th anniversary. On October 5th, the team worked together to install a fully native plant garden at the base of this tree. Plants were selected for their value to wildlife, season of bloom and visual interest. See the full list of plants and their characteristics. We hope parishioners will be encouraged to create their own native plant gardens!
Many thanks to Lydia Liu and Liz Jones for leading the effort and developing the design, and to the Eco Action team members who dug in with Lydia and Liz to prepare the bed and plant the new shrubs and perennials: Lizzie Glidden-Boyle, Earle O’Donnell, Cathrien Alons, Jessica Banthin, and Carolyn Pierce. We had perfect fall weather for the garden installation. It was a wonderful team effort which got the job done in just over three hours. We look forward to the native blooms and berries next year and the opportunity to marvel at God’s wonderful creation at our doorstep!
- Lydia Liu and Liz Jones, Members of St. John’s Eco Action Team