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Pollinator Pathway Upcoming Events Do you have a Pollinator Pathway event coming up? Post your Pollinator Pathway Event

Inspiring, Educating And Supporting Diverse Communities Working Together To Restore And Connect Habitat For Pollinators Photo By Karalyn Lamb What is a Pollinator Pathway? Public and private pesticide-free corridors of native plants that provide nutrition and habitat for pollinating insects and birds. Even the smallest green spaces, like flower boxes and curb strips, can be part of a pathway. Donate Be Part Of The Pollinator Pathway Rethink your lawn Plant natives Remove invasives Avoid pesticides Join Now Contact us to receive quarterly newsletter Add your Pollinator Pathway property to map Order Pollinator Pathway yard sign Find my town Join our May Webinar: The Whole Story: Caterpillars, Connections and Why Biodiversity Matters with Sam Jaffe May 14th starting at 6:30 pm EST Register HERE Click on the map image above to view the Google Map (the Map will load very slowly, please have patience.....) News and Views VIEW ALL jaymesoyak 2 days ago Native Willows: Don't Overlook this Beautiful Pollinator "Superfood" 18 Post not marked as liked jaymesoyak Apr 22 No Mow May: Lessons Learned, From the Xerces Society 64 1 like. Post not marked as liked 1 jaymesoyak Apr 15 Newsflash: The Warblers are Coming! 18 Post not marked as liked

Welcome to the New Canaan Pollinator Pathway Register Here! About Us! In April 2019, town organizations partnered to initiate the Pollinator-Pathway in New Canaan. These organizations have pollinator-friendly pieces of property that laid the initial framework for the pathway in town. In June 2019, New Canaan officially launched the movement with a kickoff event at the New Canaan Library with presentations by Mary Ellen LeMay and Louise Washer. Our goal is to continue the corridors of pollinator-friendly properties with private and public land. Residents are encouraged to "bee" on the pathway and sign up their own pollinator-friendly property by clicking the purple button below. Need more information on how to make your property pollinator-friendly? Visit the Pollinator-Pathway home page here: www.pollinator-pathway.org . You'll find links to great resources on alternatives to pesticides, native plant lists, and more! Join the New Canaan Pollinator Pathway find us on Instagram -> By Joining the New Canaan Pollinator Pathway you are agree to: ​ (1) Reduce lawn size, provide predominantly native and pollinator-supporting plants and assure a sequence of blooms from early spring through fall (see www.pollinator-pathway.org for helpful lists); (2) Protect and enrich soil by using organic yard-care practices and avoid using pesticides and herbicides. When pesticides and/or herbicides are deemed absolutely necessary, consider hiring an Integrated Pest Management professional with knowledge of how to apply them with the least negative impact on the environment. ​ (3) Follow best practices for garden clean up: clean up in the spring, allow plant heads to remain through winter when possible, to provide food for wildlife, keep plant stalks standing and leave snags of dead wood for native bees to nest, leave the leaves on flower beds through fall and winter to provide habitat, soil nourishment and protection for overwintering pollinators; and ​ (4) Have a water feature, e.g., bird bath, fountain or natural water source. ​ Local References Mike Dinan interviews Grace Farms Nature Initiative Director, Mark Fowler about the Pollinator Pathway in New Canaan. Pollinator Pathway 0684-Radi0_New_Canaan Artist Name 00:00 / 14:06 New Canaan Land Trust video library contains videos from past speakers and events which can help inform you of the Pollinator Pathway movement, general conservation, and natural history. New Canaan Land Trust Video Library New Canaan Conservation Commission Community Partners Grace Farms Foundation New Canaan Beautification League New Canaan Garden Club New Canaan Land Trust New Canaan Nature Center New Canaan Library Planet New Canaan New Canaan Department of Public Works The Glass House Norwalk River Watershed Association Waveny Park Conservancy

Have you spotted any blooming willows yet this spring? As Keystone Plants, native willows are extremely valuable for wildlife. Entomologist Douglas Tallamy ranks native willows as the number two woody plant family – after oaks –  in their ability to support butterflies and moths. And according to Dr. Robert Gegear of the Beecology Project, early-blooming native willows are important nectar and pollen sources for at-risk bee and butterfly species. So how can we incorporate more of these beautiful and critically important native trees and shrubs into our landscapes? Naturalist Cathy Smith has the answers here. Photo of a Two-spotted Bumblebee on Pussy Willow Karalyn Lamb

No Mow May really took flight this past year! We have seen hundreds of news articles, many new towns creating their own No Mow April/May/Spring resolutions, and we have received so many thoughtful questions on this surprisingly complex issue. Not mowing for one month is not a magic fix, but studies have shown that reducing or eliminating mowing in the spring can increase bee abundance and species diversity when compared to more frequently mowed lawns. No one is in charge of No Mow May, No Mow April, or any of the other variations. There are no set rules. What you choose to do is up to you, and what your local ordinances allow. Do what you can now, make incremental changes over time, and learn as you go. Watch the native bees in your yard. When do they emerge? What native plants do they like? Add some height variation with spring-blooming native shrubs and trees, and see what visitors you attract to your yard.  More information from Xerces Society here:  “No Mow May and Low Mow Spring.” Watch this Xerces webinar about how to make No Mow May work for your own garden situation. Print out a Pollinator Pathway No Mow May yard sign here.

April for most of us means the exciting return of brightly colored warblers, “the butterflies of the bird world,” who undertake a perilous migration northward every spring from their wintering grounds in Central and South America. These small songbirds are following the “Green Wave” of spring tree leaf-out, which brings with it the insects they depend on as their food source. Planting insect-attracting keystone native plants can make your yard into a “re-fueling station" to help warblers and other migrating birds on their long journeys. Check out these simple steps you can take in your own yard. Photo of male Yellow Warbler by Karalyn Lamb