Planting Party: District awarded Planet Stewards Grant from NOAA to create butterfly garden on main campus

A district-wide science project is taking place on the main campus where more than 40 teachers and hundreds students from all over our school buildings are busy working on the creation of a butterfly garden. 

The B’ville Butterfly Garden, which will be located between the athletic stadium and Albert Palmer Lane near our outdoor classroom, will focus on restoring native habitat while also creating an educational site that will be used to inspire future stewards. Durgee Science Teacher Kyle O’Sullivan, with support of Durgee Administrative Intern Eric Ziegler and many others, is leading the project, after being awarded the Planet Stewards Grant from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

The $5,000 grant is being used to develop a native pollinator garden. Native plants will be used to restore 0.4 acres of habitat while mitigating runoff to a neighboring stream. 

“This educational garden will create a sense of connection and empower through knowledge and learning,” Mrs. O’Sullivan said. “Students throughout the district are playing different roles to help with design, research, habitat creation, cultivation and maintenance of the garden.”

Here are some highlights of the progress: 

• Carla Senecal at Durgee and her graphics design class hosted an Environmental Educator from the Rosamond Gifford Zoo, Mary Hillebrand, whose specialty is in interpretive signage. They designed interpretive signage to educate garden visitors about the different types of plants in the garden and ways we can support pollinators.
• Joanna McCaffrey at Durgee and her ceramics class is currently making pollinator watering bowls to add to the garden.
• Katie Corbishly and the entire 3rd grade class at McNamara Elementary School received a program from Environmental Educators at Beaver Lake to learn more about the butterfly life cycle and gardening for pollinators
• Dan Hyland and the entire 3rd grade class at Elden Elementary School received a program from Environmental Educators at Beaver Lake to learn more about the butterfly life cycle and gardening for pollinators
• The Growing Green Club at Durgee Junior High School met with Stephanie Reeves, a gardener who owns Wild Meadow Greenhouses. Ms. Reeves is supplying the district with 2,000 plugs of native wildflowers to plant in the garden. Register for Planting Party.