Working with the nonprofit Wilderness in the City, we’re installing six pollinator-friendly demonstration gardens in parks across the Twin Cities. We hope this will inspire park visitors to take home ideas for incorporating native plants into their outdoor spaces.

Each garden will feature all Minnesota-native plants and highlight their use in a variety of site conditions. Signs will provide information about the chosen plants and  direct visitors to additional online resources for installing their own native planting. The goal is to take an underutilized expanse of turf and reclaim it as part of a network of high-quality pollinator habitat within the metro. Reintroducing native plants here will not only benefit pollinators, birds, and other wildlife, but also have positive, long-lasting effects on soil and water quality within the parks.

Design and installation of these gardens will be ongoing from spring 2023 to spring 2024. We are very excited to be working with Blue Thumb Partners on the implementation of the gardens at each site. Future plans include planting events for community volunteers to help install the gardens and receive training on maintaining a mature native planting.

Thank you to the following partners working with us to install the gardens:

• Anoka County Parks – Bunker Hills Regional Park, design and installation by Trio Landscaping and MNL. 
• Dakota County Parks – Holland Lake Trailhead at Lebanon Hills Regional Park, design and installation by Metro Blooms Design+Build
• Minneapolis Parks and Recreation Board – Eloise Butler Wildflower Garden at Theodore Wirth Park, design and installation by MPRB, Metro Blooms Design+Build, Mississippi River Green Team
• Minneapolis Parks and Recreation Board – Minnehaha Regional Park
• Ramsey County Parks and Ramsey-Washington Metro Watershed District – Battle Creek Regional Park, design and installation by Metro Blooms Design+Build, Urban Roots
• Ramsey County Parks and Ramsey-Washington Metro Watershed District – Keller Regional Park, design and installation by b.e. landscape designs

This project is funded by the Minnesota Environment and Natural Resources Trust Fund (ENRTF) as recommended by the Legislative-Citizen Commission on Minnesota Resources (LCCMR).  Additional funding is being provided by Lawns to Legumes, St. Paul Audubon Society, and our parks partners.