Horticultural Happenings

PROJECT WILDFLOWER IN BLOOM ON THE TACONIC PARKWAY

Meadows of yellow, white and pink wildflowers are blooming along the Taconic State Parkway in Westchester between the Pleasantville/Pleasantville Road exit and the 134/Ossining exit. Six different meadows, planted exclusively with native flowering perennials, can be seen on either side of the parkway and the median. The flowers create beautiful vistas for local travelers and tourists, as well as provide birds, butterflies and other wildlife with additional food and habitat in Northern Westchester.

Project Wildflower was initiated several years ago by Westchester Assemblywoman Sandy Galef and jointly sponsored by The Native Plant Center at Westchester Community College, Valhalla, NY, and Teatown Lake Reservation, Ossining, NY. “It’s the result of community wishes, staff work of local environmental organizations and cooperation of the New York State Department of Transportation,” says Assemblywoman Galef.

Region 8 of the New York State Department of Transportation took the lead in planning and budgeting for this beautification and wildlife support project after attending the  “Managing Roadsides Naturally 2000” Conference at Westchester Community College sponsored by The Native Plant Center. Joan Dupont, regional director, put Al Agrasto, a landscape architect for the DOT, in charge of project design and execution.

When the DOT asked for technical help, The Native Plant Center and Teatown were ready to pitch in with advice for a consultant and funds to pay for the consultation. Larry Weaner, of Larry Weaner Landscape Designs, was contacted to create the seed list, as well as plant the seeds.

Native perennial wildflower seeds were sown in June 2002 alongside the Taconic State Parkway in Westchester, and they successfully germinated to form carpets of yellow tickseed (Coreopsis lanceolata) and black-eyed Susans (Rudbeckia hirta) in July 2003. Soon to bloom are purple coneflower (Echinacea purpurea), yellow coneflower (Ratibida pinnata), goldenrods (Solidago spp.) and asters (Aster spp.)

Taconic travelers are assured a lifetime of pleasure as they pass these meadows year after year and watch them change and develop.  Native birds, butterflies and other wildlife will also benefit from the food and shelter these meadows provide. Non-productive grassy areas have been changed into productive, life-enhancing and beautiful meadows thanks to the foresight of the NYS DOT with the help of The Native Plant Center and Teatown Lake Reservation.

The Native Plant Center at Westchester Community College is dedicated to educating people about the importance of wildflowers and native plants of the Northeast. As the first national affiliate of the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center in Austin, Texas, we are extending the educational and environmental concepts of the Texas Center to this region. We share information on choosing, growing, and maintaining native plants. Our mission is to educate people about the environmental necessity, economic value and natural beauty of native plants in the Northeast.

We have also created the Lady Bird Johnson Demonstration Garden and the Stone Cottage Garden on the WCC campus. Both contain native species which will thrive in the Northeast. There is no better way to learn about and understand these plants than by watching them grow, mature, flower and seed. In addition, we offer lectures by native plant experts at the college.

If you would like to support our mission or find out more about us or Project Wildflower, please call The Center at (914) 606-7870, fax us at (914) 606-7870, e-mail us at wcc.nativeplant@sunywcc.edu.  The Native Plant Center is a project of the Westchester Community College Foundation.

If you wish to comment on the Taconic Parkway wildflower meadows, you may write to Joan Dupont, Regional Director, Eleanor Roosevelt State Office Building, 4 Burnett Boulevard, Poughkeepsie, NY 12603. We recommend writing and requesting a response. His phone is (845) 431-5750. Mention "Project Wildflower," Assemblywoman Sandy Galef's project on the Taconic State Parkway in Westchester.

Or, you may go to www.dot.state.ny.us and e-mail from this site. There is a link to Governor Eliot Spitzer on this site, and it would be wise to copy him as well.

If you write, please send a copy to The Native Plant Center. We'd appreciate public support for this project.