Local Schools Receive Monarch Certifications
Submitted by:
Davie Sue Wallace, Vice President, Indiana Native Plant and Wildflower Society
Julie Smith, President, Southwest Chapter, Indiana Native Plant and Wildflower Society
www.Inpaws.org
This spring the Vanderburgh County Soil and Water Conservation District joined in a local partnership with the Southwest Indiana Native Plant and Wildflower Society (SWINPAWS), Wesselman Nature Society, Colonial Classic Landscape & Nursery Services, the South West Indiana Master Gardener Association (SWIGMA), Mesker Park Zoo & Botanical Garden, Burdette Park, and the University of Evansville to create pollinator gardens. This partnership enabled seven Vanderburgh County elementary schools and Burdette Park to installed wildlife and pollinator gardens on their properties.
These pollinator gardens will serve as an outdoor educational lab and will allow children to gain hands on experience with native plants and the pollinators that depend on them. The gardens will bring opportunities for children to experience natural wonders like the metamorphosis of a Monarch, from caterpillar, to chrysalis, to butterfly, and in the process, create an appreciation for wildlife habitats and the importance of native plants.
With some help of the Vanderburgh County Soil and Water Conservation Department, the schools will be able to certify their wildlife habitat gardens with the National Wildlife Foundation. This certification is available to properties that meet criteria to sustain wildlife: food, shelter, places to raise young, and water. The SWCD has provided signage identifying the gardens as wildlife habitats. This will reinforce the goal of the gardens and serve as a means of communication to passerby’s who may then be inspired to create something similar with their own homes and businesses.
The schools involved in making this a successful effort are Harper Elementary, Caze Elementary, Vogel Elementary, Lincoln Elementary, Delaware Elementary, Joshua Academy, and Holy Spirit Catholic School. The certification of these school habitat gardens will move Vanderburgh County towards its over-all goal of becoming a Certified Wildlife Friendly/Monarch Community.
Visit http://www.nwf.org/Garden-For-Wildlife/About.aspx to learn more about how to establish your own pollinator garden. Or email evansvillemonarchs@gmail.com.