Seedling Society
by Gia Levinson and Georgia Schmit
Embedded Files
Project Description
Project Description
Our project was to help encourage people to get started with planting native pollinator gardens by making seeds and bulbs available for free. By allowing interested participants to select the plants they were interested in, which included butterfly milkweed, bee balm, echinacea, alliums, and others, we were both educating them and improving their access to plants that will foster eco-friendly home gardens. We thought this would be a helpful project because there is a lot of emphasis in our town on establishing pollinator gardens in public green spaces, and we thought that channeling this interest into a project that helps residents achieve more eco-friendly gardens at home would build on existing interest in a way that can benefit the community. Unfortunately, due to time constraints, we were unable to mobilize an effort to plant along the Saw Mill River as intended, but we compensated for this by setting up secondary market dates and focusing our energy on handing out seeds.
Outputs
Outputs
76 participants received one or more seed packets/bulbs
718 total bulbs handed out (450 in Irvington, 268 in Hastings)
108 total seed packets handed out (30 in Irvington, 78 in Hastings)
5 different types of seeds and 8 different types of bulbs handed out to the public
Outcomes
Outcomes
As a result of handing out seeds and bulbs, access to pollinator-friendly plants has been increased for individuals interested in gardening
As a result of our booth, participants were made more aware of what they can do to help plant a more eco-friendly garden
Process
Process
Made a budgeted list of native, pollinator-friendly seeds and bulbs and other materials, as well as where to buy them; adjusted the list once the grant amount was awarded
Contacted the Hastings and Irvington Farmers' Markets to set up a booth
Designed posters and a website to provide information for those interested in the seeds
Purchased seeds and bulbs, gathered necessary materials (table, tablecloth, signage, etc.)
Set up a table at Hastings Farmers' Market (and later Irvington) and let participants take their choice of seeds and bulbs
We are discussing with the Hastings Farmers' Market about setting up a pollinator garden in their empty green space at the lot as a future project.
Lessons Learned
We learned how to improve our communication skills with both booth participants and when contacting others to initiate projects. We also learned how to organize a community project and how to successfully run an informational and participatory booth.
Students Involved
2 project leaders aged 15-24
0 project participants excluding leaders
0 project participants aged 15-24 excluding leaders
Our booths at the Hastings and Irvington Farmers’ Markets
Our poster with website QR
A couple of screenshots of our informational website
Thank You's
Thank You's
We would like to thank the many people who have helped our project make the impact that it did. First, we would like to thank Pascale Le Draoulec and everyone else from the Hastings and Irvington Farmers Markets who helped us set up our tables. We would also like to extend our gratitude to our parents, Bruce and Elana Levinson and Kerry Gould-Schmit, for their help in purchasing materials and transportation, and to Emma Boudrias for her help at our Hastings table. Finally, thank you to Bloomberg Philanthropies YCAF for funding our project.
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