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Committee: Environment
Cost: $75,000
Location: Aberdeen Ave. median strip
Short Description: Increase pollinator and bird life in Cambridge by planting native flowers and vegetation along this underused median strip, creating a beautiful habitat corridor linking Fresh Pond and Mt Auburn Cemetery—two major habitats crucial for biodiversity.
Long Description:
Pollinator and bird populations are declining, threatening ecosystems and food production worldwide. According to the nonprofits Pollinator Partnership and BirdLife International, habitat loss is one of the leading causes of falling population levels. Moreover, bird decline directly correlates with the loss of insects, among birds’ main food sources. A 2019 study published by the National Academy of Sciences found that even small, fragmented habitats significantly increase the biodiversity of a given area.
Cambridge can combat pollinator and bird decline by planting native vegetation along underused median strips, turning them into micro-habitat corridors. Aberdeen Ave., a wide, grassy space connecting the larger habitats of Fresh Pond and Mount Auburn Cemetery, offers a good opportunity. Cambridge residents have communicated a desire for this location to be cultivated and for native gardens to be planted throughout the city. Planting pollinator and bird-friendly micro-habitats on underused median strips would make a world of difference for both the wildlife and human populations who call Cambridge home.
Project Updates: Public Works has completed installation of native plantings along the divider on Aberdeen Avenue. Remaining funds were used to plant a pollinator garden on the divider at Massachusetts Avenue and Cedar Street, along with a pollinator garden of trees and native plantings at the Watson Street Lot (Brookline @ Watson Street). After completion of those projects, all leftover funds will be used to plant pollinator gardens at CRLS.
Blooming plantings along Aberdeen Avenue!
Massachusetts Avenue median plantings
Digging at the Watson Lot in the early stages of the project.
Early tree plantings in the Watson Lot.
Watson Lot blooming in June 2024!
Watson Lot blooming in June 2024!
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