I have noticed a lot of activity along the Burke Gillman trail on the north shore of Lake Union. Many mornings l have seen a group wearing orange safety vests digging, sawing or shoveling mulch. Then I found a few new signs highlighting a pollinator garden and that this project is supported by the Green Seattle Partnership.
I was able to speak with Eric Sterner, a Plant Ecologist who works for Seattle Parks and Recreation, who described the project as a collaboration between the City of Seattle, community groups, non-profits, businesses, schools, and thousands of volunteers, who work together to restore and actively maintain the City’s forested parklands.
The volunteer group managing the Wallingford project is called The Friends of the Burke-Gilman Trail (FOBGT) at Sand Point. They took over this area from EarthCorps a few years ago when that groups’ funding ran out. Jim Corson and Jonathan King provided me with more information about the FOBGT, and this project specifically.
FOBGT is a nonprofit group founded nearly two decades ago that is dedicated to restoring native habitat along the Burke-Gilman. Years ago, when work began on this part of the trail, these areas often contained a thicket of invasive plants like Himalayan blackberries, ivy and bindweed which choke out native plants that would be habitats that support local bees, birds and other animals.
The Pollinator Patch near Gas Works Park is a major new area of work for the group. The section along N. Pacific St on the north side of the trail between N. 34th and N. 36th Streets has grown longer and wider because of this work. FOBGT have cleared blackberries, fennel, and other invasives and mulched the area. On Green Seattle Day last fall, they began to plant the newly cleared area with native shrubs and native flowers. Some of the flowers planted are California Poppy, Lupine, Camas, Ookow, Nodding Onion, Pearly Everlasting, Goldenrod, and Clarkia.
Work to clear out the tenacious non-native plants along this sunny stretch is ongoing, but is more contained in the areas where a thick layer of woodchip mulch coverage has been placed around the plantings. So far they have planted 5000 flowers and many more seeds and will continue to add to this area in the next planting season, which starts in November 2024. It is really amazing to see these native flowers bloom in this area – take a walk and check them out. And the pollinator population is already thriving!
The FOBGT’s core group of forest stewards have been joined on this project by many individual volunteers, as well as organized work parties from high schools, the UW, and local corporations. In 2024, there is still plenty more to do! They are currently managing 5-1/2 miles of the Burke-Gilman Trail and are always looking for help. They typically work Monday, Wednesday and Friday from 9AM-12:30PM.
My burning question is… how do they water it? Seedlings and new plants need lots of water to get established!