Pollinator gardens to come to the Chaffee Art Center

Rutland County Audubon Society has received word of approval for its 2022 Collaborative Grant from National Audubon to help establish pollinator friendly gardens in the backyard of the Chaffee Art Center on South Main Street in Rutland, Vermont. Pollinator gardens are comprised of only native trees, plants, and shrubs which are most beneficial to sustaining pollinators, including bees, butterflies, and birds.

Sherri Birkheimer Rooker, director of the Chaffee, plans to expand the gardens on the grounds surrounding the Chaffee to reflect the grandeur of the 1890s mansion and create an outdoor space for people to enjoy on a visit or as a venue for a special event. The pollinator gardens will help re-establish healthy native plants which are in decline. Doing so will also bring back the loveliness of the grounds, the beauty and art lover feels.

This gardening project will involve many others of the larger Rutland community in its planting and maintenance and will be used to educate local school students as well as the general populace about the importance of native plants and pollinators. The Chaffee will serve as a hub of information for the city of Rutland and its surrounds in this regard. As author and naturalist, Doug Tallamy, states in his book, “Nature’s Best Hope,”Nature’s best hope is conservation that starts in your own yard. “