A Walk through the Greenway

 By Selby Vaughn

 

“How much of beauty – of color, as well as form – on which our eyes daily rest goes unperceived by us?” Henry David Thoreau in his Journal.

 

This past summer, I had the opportunity to complete an internship in horticulture with the Rose Kennedy Greenway Conservancy in Boston. I learned a lot about native and nonnative plants, as well as urban park management.

Figure 1: The author posing with a bunch of lilies.

 

This past week, Professor Richard Primack visited the Greenway and we had a chance to walk through the park, exchange ideas with the horticulture team, and see all that the Greenway has to offer in terms of plants, public art, and community engagement.

Figure 2: Richard Primack poses with Lead Horticulturist, Julia Lloyd (left), and Ecological Healthcare Horticulturist, Valerie Stiles.

Figure 3: We learned from each other and observed pollinators throughout the park.

 During my internship, I have also been able to complete a pollinator monitoring project in the park to determine if honey bees seem to be outcompeting native pollinators. So far, honeybees seem to be greatly outnumbering native pollinators, especially in the more ornamental areas of the park.

Figure 4: A wildflower meadow planted on the Greenway includes habitats and other resources for native pollinators.

Figure 5: Honeybees are overly abundant in the park, and seem to be outcompeting native pollinators.

 

The Greenway is a wonderful example of sustainable horticulture, along with all that an urban park has to offer. I’ve learned a myriad of things working here this summer, and recommend visiting if you have the chance!

 

Figure 6: Maria Moleteni’s ‘Anti-monument’ is one of many interactive public art pieces throughout the park.

Figure 7: Professor Richard Primack and the author had a great time wandering the 17 acres of the Rose Kennedy Greenway.