CLINTON — The community is invited to learn how to grow native plants that support at-risk pollinators — using recycled milk jugs and winter weather — during a hands-on workshop.
Experienced native pollinator garden installers Freddie Gillespie and Giancarla Kalpas — of Rauscher Farm — will lead the program titled “Native Plants: A Winter Sow Workshop”.
The workshop, which will be held from 11 a.m. until 1 p.m. Saturday, Jan. 24, at the Bigelow Free Public Library, 54 Walnut St., is hosted by Rauscher Farm in partnership with the library.
Participants will turn translucent gallon milk jugs into outdoor seed planters to take home and place outside during winter. As temperatures naturally alternate between freezing and thawing, the seeds break dormancy and germinate in spring – resulting in thriving native plants by summer.
“Most native plant seeds have co-evolved with New England weather patterns and require winter conditions to grow,” said Gillespie. “Winter sowing is an easy, affordable way to create beautiful gardens while helping our most vulnerable pollinators.”
Seeds provided at the workshop are selected from the research of Dr. Robert Gegear, associate professor at UMass Dartmouth and a recognized expert on the relationship between native plants and pollinators. Dr. Gegear advises the Rauscher Farm Pollinator Meadow Nursery Garden, which features only plants from his research-based list.
Gillespie oversees a native plant research site at Breakneck Hill in Southborough, while Kalpas manages an independent pollinator site in Chelmsford.
“No gardening experience is necessary,” Kalpas said. “Participants will receive seeds and step-by-step instruction and often leave with extra seedlings to share.”
Participants should bring: 2 to 4 clean, translucent gallon milk jugs (caps removed); scissors, box cutter or X-Acto knife; small towels for cleanup; and an empty yogurt containers for labels. Optional items you could bring are an apron and a cordless drill with a ¼-inch bit.
Please note that space is limited to 20 participants, and registration is required. Volunteers to assist with cleanup are welcome.
Rauscher Farm is a 62-acre stretch of open fields and woodlands with frontage on Clamshell Pond, located at 29 Clamshell Road, off Wilson Street, in the Clinton neighborhood known as The Acre.
For generations, the property operated as a family farm and remained one of the last large open spaces in the town.
In June 2008, the town of Clinton purchased the property, preserving nearly 60 acres of scenic open space for the community to enjoy.
“Today, visitors can experience the farm’s natural beauty and serenity across a range of landscapes, including grasslands, wetlands, woodlands, and shoreline access to Clamshell Pond,” said Gloria Parkinson, chair of the volunteer Rauscher Farm Management Subcommittee. “Each landscape offers rich ecological diversity.”
For registration details, or more information, please visit the library’s website at bigelowlibrary.org or call 978-365-4160. For more information on Rauscher Farm and a direct link to workshop registration, please visit their website at rauscherfarm.org.
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