Rebuilding native habitat
The heritage park’s sun and shade gardens were designed by Jocelyn Demuth of Checkerspot Farm, Colrain, MA. Information about the individual plants in the park is listed below. Upon completion of this project, the Checkerspot Farm website will host a page devoted to the project.
Discover the Plants in the Park Gardens
Sun garden plants (those nearest to the road down to the trail):
Seaside goldenrod
Cut-leaf coneflower
Ironweed
Wild Senna
Black Elderberry
Canada wild rye
New England aster
Rose milkweed
Boneset
Joe Pye Weed (maculatum variety)
Elm leaf goldenrod
Fowl manna grass
Inland Sea oats
Sneezeweed
Scarlet Bee balm
Hairy beardtongue
Fox sedge
Obedient plant
Cardinal flower
Golden Alexander
Marsh Marigold
Shade garden plants (planted in rows from West to East orientation)
Wingstem
Early sunflower
Joe Pye (purpureum)
Allegheny Monkey flower
Cardinal flower
Bottlebrush grass
Blue wood aster
Whorled aster
Bog Jacob’s Ladder
Wild Columbine
Nodding fescue
Blue flag Iris
Obedient Plant
Jocelyn Demuth of Checkerspot Farm, Colrain, MA, was a teacher for 20 years before turning her attention to building native habitats. Her website Five Hundred Yard Field Trip provides free curriculum about native plants for grades K-6. The featured curriculum is tied to the science standards for public schools in Massachusetts, Vermont and New Hampshire. Read more about Checkerspot Farm and Jocelyn’s curriculum, reported in the Recorder, March 2024.
Insects in the Gardens
Learn more about insects in the region at these resources: