Free, self-guided tours of a native plant farm will be part of the next meeting of the Western New York Native Plants Collaborative. Anyone may attend.
The WNY Native Plants Collaborative will meet at 6 p.m. Wednesday, July 10 at the Gardens at Murder Creek and CW Native Plant Farm, 12288 Tonawanda Creek Rd., Akron. The hosts are Kathy Contrino and Ron Winkelman.
The event will include a potluck dinner (bringing food to share is optional).
Native plant farm and gardens
You may tour the gardens and farm. There is a bird trail along the creek with nesting birds as well as fish in the pond, which covers three-quarters of an acre. Stay until dusk to see the spectacular firefly display.
The CW Native Plant Farm is a family-owned farm focused on native plants for restoration, environmental sustainability and resiliency in a changing climate. The farm offers trees, bushes and perennials native to the WNY area. See more here.
Gardens at Murder Creek include 10 acres in Newstead where they are recreating the Great Lakes ecosystem on a parcel that previously served as a horse pasture. The property includes a mature forest, five meadows, a pond and Murder Creek that joins Tonawanda Creek just past the property. These habitats help to provide balance with nature while the restored native plants support pollinators, birds, insects and mammals.
As you walk the demonstration gardens you will find biodiversity not found in other communities.
WNY Native Plants Collaborative/Wild Ones
The mission of the WNY Native Plants Collaborative is to increase the use of plants native to our region. The group aims to facilitate production of local native plants, to increase demand for native plants through education, and to influence policymakers.
The collaborative recently became a chapter of Wild Ones, a group that promotes native landscapes through education, advocacy and collaborative action.
You can join the chapter now or get more information by emailing wildones.wny@gmail.com.
August meeting of WNY Wild Ones/Native Plant Collaborative
WNY Wild Ones/Native Plant Collaborative will meet from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday, Aug. 23 to learn about private property conservation with George Klemens and Mary Carol Dearing.
Klemens and Dearing will lead a guided tour of their property that has both exceptional natural communities and serves as a stellar example of private land stewardship.
This event is open to members and non-members.
Please sign up with Joshua Konovitz at jkonovitz@gmail.com by Wednesday, Aug. 21.
There will be an after party at Mystic Hills Brewing.
George Klemens and Mary Carol Dearing are located on just over 100 acres of land in the Town of Concord, just north of Springville. George purchased the property about 20 years ago. An early goal of repairing existing wetlands led him to the National Resources Conservation Services. He purchased a 30-year conservation easement on 50 acres of wetland and riparian areas.
Klemens has spent more than two decades engaging in a variety of habitat restoration projects. The result is nothing short of remarkable—a former farm (used mostly for grazing cattle) is now an incredibly rich and diverse ecosystem. The property includes woods, wetlands and meadows. Thousands of trees have been planted on the property; the majority of them oaks. The restoration work is ongoing. Klemens and Dearing now live in the home they built on the property.
They offer an example for private landowners of the benefits of habitat restoration and responsible land stewardship. They have connected with local resources such as Western New York Prism, the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation and New York Forest Owners Association. The property is identified as a “linkage area” for the Western New York Wildway. The fisher, beaver, otter, fox, mink, coyote and bear—whether living there or traveling through—is evidence of the accuracy of the designation.
Hi Nancy, I hope you enjoy this event! It’s a nice group of people who are energetic and knowledgeable.
That all sounds wonderful, thank you!!