Hempstead, N.Y., U.S. April 18, 2022. L-R, student 'BADGER' and Prof. BRET BENNINGTON take quick break for photo at 'EARTH DAY: Help Plant a Native Pollinator Garden' at Student Garden at Stuyvesant Hall in Hofstra University.

Hofstra Earth Day 2022: getting down & a bit dirty

From LONG ISLAND – by Ann Parry (ann-parry.com)
April 22, 2022

Planting a native pollinator garden  (after a few years, it doesn’t need watering!)

Hempstead, N.Y., U.S. April 18, 2022. At Hofstra University, Professor BRET BENNINGTON, extreme right, poses with students during'EARTH DAY: Help Plant a Native Pollinator Garden.'(© 2022 Ann Parry/AnnParry.com)

Hempstead, N.Y., U.S. April 18, 2022. Professor BRET BENNINGTON, extreme right, poses with students during ‘EARTH DAY: Help Plant a Native Pollinator Garden’ at Hofstra University.(© 2022 Ann Parry/AnnParry.com)

PHOTO GALLERY | Also, click each photo to see it larger

Though I have bird feeders and don’t use pesticides in my yard, I want to make it more hospitable and inviting to birds, squirrels, butterflies… and help Long Island’s ecology.

So I was excited to cover the hands-on event “EARTH DAY: Help Plant a Native Pollinator Garden” that BRET BENNINGTON, Professor of Geology, Environment, and Sustainability, presented at the Student Garden at Stuyvesant Hall, Hofstra University.

Hempstead, N.Y., U.S. April 18, 2022. At Hofstra University, students shovel mulch to add to prepare garden beds during'EARTH DAY: Help Plant a Native Pollinator Garden.' (© 2022 Ann Parry/AnnParry.com)

Hempstead, N.Y., U.S. April 18, 2022. At Hofstra University, students shovel mulch to add to prepare garden beds during ‘EARTH DAY: Help Plant a Native Pollinator Garden.’ (© 2022 Ann Parry/AnnParry.com)

Hofstra undergrad and grad students planted the university’s first native pollinator garden with species grown from seed by Hofstra students in a greenhouse on the rooftop of Gittleson Hall.

Hofstra Earth Day

Hempstead, NY, U.S. April 18, 2022. During Prof. Bret Bennington’s ‘EARTH DAY: Help Plant a Native Pollinator Garden' at Hofstra University, students prepare garden beds by digging into soil to loosen it, and then covering it with newspapers and then mulch. (© 2022 Ann Parry/AnnParry.com)

Hempstead, NY, U.S. April 18, 2022. During Prof. Bret Bennington’s ‘EARTH DAY: Help Plant a Native Pollinator Garden’ at Hofstra University, students prepare garden beds by digging into soil to loosen it, and then covering it with newspapers and then mulch. (© 2022 Ann Parry/AnnParry.com)

Hofstra Earth Day

Hempstead, NY, U.S. April 18, 2022. During ‘EARTH DAY: Help Plant a Native Pollinator Garden' at Hofstra University, students prepare garden beds by digging soil to loosen it, and then covering it with newspapers and then mulch. (© 2022 Ann Parry/AnnParry.com)

Hempstead, New York, U.S. April 18, 2022. During ‘EARTH DAY: ‘Help Plant a Native Pollinator Garden’ at Hofstra University, students prepare garden beds by digging soil to loosen it, and then covering the soil with newspapers, and then mulch. (© 2022 Ann Parry/AnnParry.com)

Hofstra Earth Day

Hempstead, NY, U.S. April 18, 2022. During Prof. Bret Bennington’s ‘EARTH DAY: Help Plant a Native Pollinator Garden' at Hofstra University, students prepare garden beds by digging into soil to loosen it, and then covering it with newspapers and then mulch. (© 2022 Ann Parry/AnnParry.com)

Hempstead, NY, U.S. April 18, 2022. During Prof. Bret Bennington’s ‘EARTH DAY: Help Plant a Native Pollinator Garden’ at Hofstra University, students prepare garden beds by digging into soil to loosen it, and then covering it with newspapers and then covering the newspapers with mulch. (© 2022 Ann Parry/AnnParry.com)

Hofstra Earth Day

Hempstead, NY, U.S. April 18, 2022. During Prof. Bret Bennington’s ‘EARTH DAY: Help Plant a Native Pollinator Garden' at Hofstra University, students prepare garden beds by digging soil to loosen it, and then covering it with newspapers and then mulch. (© 2021 Ann Parry/AnnParry.com)

Hempstead, NY, U.S. April 18, 2022. During ‘EARTH DAY: Help Plant a Native Pollinator Garden’ at Hofstra University, students students plant native pollinator plants in prepared garden bed. (© 2022 Ann Parry/AnnParry.com)

Hofstra Earth Day

Hempstead, NY, U.S. April 18, 2022. During ‘EARTH DAY: Help Plant a Native Pollinator Garden' at Hofstra University, students prepare garden beds by digging soil to loosen it, and then covering it with newspapers, and then mulch. (© 2022 Ann Parry/AnnParry.com)

Hempstead, New York, U.S. April 18, 2022. During ‘EARTH DAY: Help Plant a Native Pollinator Garden’ at Hofstra University, students plant native pollinator plants in prepared garden bed. (© 2022 Ann Parry/AnnParry.com)

Hofstra Earth Day

Hempstead, NY, U.S. April 18, 2022. During Prof. Bret Bennington’s ‘EARTH DAY: Help Plant a Native Pollinator Garden' at Hofstra University, students prepare garden beds by digging into soil to loosen it, and then covering it with newspapers and then mulch.

Hempstead, N.Y., U.S. April 18, 2022. During Prof. Bret Bennington’s ‘EARTH DAY: Help Plant a Native Pollinator Garden’ at Hofstra University, students students plant native pollinator plants in prepared garden bed. (© 2022 Ann Parry/AnnParry.com)

Hofstra Earth Day

Hempstead, NY, U.S. April 18, 2022. At Hofstra University, Prof. BRET BENNINGTON has EARTH DAY: Help Plant a Native Pollinator Garden. (© 2021 Ann Parry/AnnParry.com)

Hempstead, N.Y., U.S. April 18, 2022. At Hofstra University, students and Prof. BRET BENNINGTON (in red and black vest) plant garden during EARTH DAY: ‘Help Plant a Native Pollinator Garden.’ (© 2022 Ann Parry/AnnParry.com)  related image

Hofstra Earth Day

Hempstead, N.Y., U.S. April 18, 2022. During Prof. Bret Bennington’s ‘EARTH DAY: Help Plant a Native Pollinator Garden,’ Nodding Pink Onions are among the perennials planted in Hofstra’s first native pollinator garden with species grown from seed by students in the greenhouse on rooftop of Gittleson Hall. (© 2021 Ann Parry/AnnParry.com)

Hempstead, N.Y., U.S. April 18, 2022. During ‘EARTH DAY: Help Plant a Native Pollinator Garden,’ Nodding Pink Onions are among the perennials planted in Hofstra’s first native pollinator garden. (© 2022 Ann Parry/AnnParry.com)

Rooftop Greenhouse at Gittleson Hall

Hempstead, New York, U.S. April 18, 2022. At Hofstra University, BRET BENNINGTON and GAIL BENNINGTON tend plants in the West Greenhouse on the rooftop of Gittleson Hall at Hofstra University.

Hempstead, N.Y., U.S. April 18, 2022. At Hofstra University, L-R, Prof. BRET BENNINGTON and instructor GAIL BENNINGTON tend plants in the West Greenhouse on rooftop of Gittleson Hall. (© 2022 Ann Parry)   greenhouse image

GAIL BENNINGTON, Adjunct Instructor of Geology, Environment, & Sustainability, assisted during the garden planting.

After the event, I went to GIttleson Hall where she showed me the rooftop greenhouse…  and a timeless pair of sneakers (see end of post).

Long Island Native Plant Initiative

Hempstead, New York, U.S. April 18, 2022. At Hofstra University, BRET BENNINGTON and GAIL BENNINGTON tend plants in the West Greenhouse on the rooftop of Gittleson Hall at Hofstra University.

Hempstead, N.Y., U.S. April 18, 2022. At Hofstra University, L-R, Professor BRET BENNINGTON and ANTHONY MARINELLO, Secretary of Long Island Native Plant Initiative, talk during ‘EARTH DAY: Help Plant a Native Pollinator Garden.’ (© 2022 Ann Parry)

ANTHONY MARINELLO, the Secretary of the Long Island Native Plant Initiative (LINPI) and owner of Dropseed Native Landscapes Native Plant Nursery, was at the planting.

At an Earth Day event earlier that afternoon, Marinello explained why planting native plants in gardens is so important for protecting the ecology of Long Island.” [from Hofstra site]

If you’re interested – like I am – in learning the benefits of planting a native plant garden, and how to do it, LINPI’s site is a helpful resource:

• Long Island Native Plant Initiative:  linpi.org  plant fact sheets


Feature Photo at top of post: Hempstead, N.Y., U.S. April 18, 2022. L-R, student ‘BADGER’ and Prof. BRET BENNINGTON take quick break from planting to pose during ‘EARTH DAY: Help Plant a Native Pollinator Garden’ at Student Garden at Hofstra University.


Hofstra Earth Day 2022: my PHOTO GALLERY

Hofstra University:  hofstra.edu •  Environment & Sustainability 

CONTACT ME

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Hempstead, N.Y., U.S. April 18, 2022. Hempstead, New York, U.S. April 18, 2022. GAIL BENNINGTON holds up sneaker, with illustration of Charles Darwin and a giant tortoise at the Galápagos archipelago, that Prof. Bret Bennington received as gift. (© 2021 Ann Parry/AnnParry.com)

Hempstead, New York, U.S. April 18, 2022. Adjunct Instructor GAIL BENNINGTON holds up a sneaker – with illustration of Charles Darwin and a giant tortoise at the Galápagos archipelago – from pair Prof. Bret Bennington received as a gift. (© 2022 Ann Parry/AnnParry.com)

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