Project 1: Tree Square 2024
Resources and Inspiration
Moved and inspired by Nicholas Anderson's articles about "Improvised Landscapes" in "Arnoldia," the Arnold Arboretum's quarterly journal!
In mid-July, I attended his talk and group walk around Arnold Arboretum. He explained his practice of "Ecological Maximalism:" creating new, beneficial meadows using free wild native plants and "weeds" he finds in abandoned spaces.
Click on the link below to one of his articles.
Below illustration shows my "Existing Condition" city tree square.
July 2024: Began my own "Improvised Landscape" in the tree square. I started by foraging for beneficial "charismatic weeds"and wildflowers in Boston sidewalks and streetscapes.
July 26: Planted first round of roots and bare stems: seaside goldenrod, Queen Anne's lace, knapweed, fleabane
Bare goldenrod stems sprouting leaves after 1 week and leaves getting longer and longer into late August!
Bouquets of foraged weeds and wildflowers
Foraging Black-eyed Susan roots and flowers along Somerville Community Path
Aug. 12: Planted second set of roots, this time from roadside Cambridge: Queen Anne's lace, high goldenrod, sweet clover; bouquets of weeds and wildflowers
Toadflax bouquets from a traffic island in Boston
August 22: New signage lets people know what's planted in the tree square and what I'm planning for Fall
Very late August: foraging for seeds of purple coneflowers, Black-eyed Susans, common milkweed, native sunflowers in Boston's wild streetside landscapes; building seed collections for winter planting
Foraging in the "green smear" (Nicholas Anderson's name for all the vigorous roadside plant life we see but don't see) alongside MassPike; bouquets of goldenrod, soapwort, common evening primrose, bittersweet nightshade, smartweed
Below: UGH! Labor Day weekend
Tree square (and gingko) under siege for 10 days for masonry repair next door. These are the vicissitudes of urban gardening! ☹️
Luckily the gingko, milkweed, goldenrod, and my Gardening Experiment sign all seem to be holding on.
Fall 2024: Scaffolding down; repaired and replaced garden edging; added soil. Goldenrod flourishing! Morning glory transplants flowering! New sign! Ready to plant seeds after frost
Fall foraging in Somerville sidewalks and along MassPike
Project 2:
Wild Native Cactus on the MassPike
Walking home from Back Bay train station on August 20, some odd plant shapes caught my eye. They were growing alongside a parking lot, in a desolate stretch overlooking traffic and trains in the steep and rocky MassPike embankment.
My sister identified above photo as a native Eastern prickly pear cactus!
In the spirit of "Ecological Maximalism," I came back to forage a few pads. Maybe it was a candidate for the tree square!
My plant research found that the Eastern prickly pear cactus is "endangered in the wild" in Massachusetts, per the Division of Fisheries and Wildlife!
Is this bleak urban transit rockscape "the wild?" I emailed an inquiry and photos but never heard back!
Research for my cactus signage
Planted up two abandoned, hot, and sunny barrels--with signs--near my house; after the pads rooted, I replanted.
Three months later in November: Still flourishing as we head into winter!
