City plants pollinator habitat at Memory Triangle

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Mountain Brook Parks & Recreations Department, the Environmental Sustainability Committee and citizen volunteers have come together to create a pollinator garden at Memory Triangle.

The groups began the planting process in May, building off of the city's In February 2023 designation as the first Bee City USA in Alabama.

The city earned the designation after efforts to make Mountain Brook a haven for native pollinator species. In 2023 and 2024, efforts included the installation of a native plant pollinator garden at City Hall, the formation of the Environmental Sustainability committee, the creation of a native habitat educational component of the City’s website and the hosting of several educational events to raise awareness about the importance of native plant habitats for native pollinators. Events included Nix Nandina for National invasive Species Awareness week, and several activities for National Pollinator Week. 

One of the first projects the city is tackling in its second year as a Bee City USA affiliate is transforming the formal gateway to Crestline Village into a haven for pollinators.

If you've traveled to Crestline Village via the Memory Triangle gateway in the last couple of months you’ve likely been met with vehicular detours in the vicinity of the Triangle. Jefferson County has been engaged in an extensive sewer repair project along the perimeter of Crestline Village.

In the midst of all the work in and around iconic Memory Triangle, the city decided to take advantage of this blank-slate opportunity to invest in the ecological diversity of Mountain Brook by planting a native habitat meadow and convert the previous lawn into a nature-lover's green oasis.

The proposed landscape design will be less formal and will have a more relaxed, natural feel.  The seed mix used contains various native grasses and flowers that will help support native bees, butterflies, moths and birds. It will also sequester carbon into the ground and stabilize the soil in Memory Triangle. 

With the ongoing project continuing to push forward, the community is buzzing with ideas for reviving the Memory Triangle.

Framework for Memory Triangle in late 2024 and early 2025:

  1. Top soil added. The first month or two may involve soil conditioning and preparation to minimize the weed seedbank, promoting the long-term success of the meadow.
  2. A native seed mix of millet, purple lovegrass, and side oats gramma will go in (late summer/early fall).
  3. A seed mix of 14 native wildflowers will be broadcast in November to take advantage of the cold stratification process.
  4. A 10 ft-wide strip of native Buffalo grass will serve as the border for the Triangle, lending a somewhat formal, intentional “edge” to the more relaxed look in the center of the Triangle. 

"The habitat will provide nectar, pollen and shelter for a variety of native insects and birds, and will support the pollinators through their entire reproductive lifecycle with a mixture of of native plants that will bloom from early spring through late fall.  I'm very excited about the opportunity to use the Triangle to raise awareness in the community about the importance of native habitats to our ecosystem," said the city's Director of Planning, Building and Sustainability, Dana Hazen. "Also, to set an example that may promote an interest in and appreciation for a more relaxed feel in our individual landscape design choices.  The city acknowledges that the conversion of a grassy area to a meadow is a new, experimental project for us.  The departments of Parks/Recreation and of Planning/Sustainability are learning the in’s and out’s of this type of landscape installation as they go.  It is exciting that the city would go out on a limb to do something new, in this very visible location, to support pollinators.”

16 species of native grasses and wildflowers will be introduced to the Triangle.

Here is a sampling, along with a mention of some ecological benefits:

  • Blackeyed Susan: Several species of birds feast on mature flower heads + host plant butterflies
  • Butterfly Milkweed: a source of nectar for butterflies (especially the Monarch), hummingbirds and bees
  • Gray Goldenrod: Supports 115 butterfly species, 11 native bee species + various pollinating moths
  • Indian Blanket: a larval host for Buckeye + Checkerspot butterflies
  • Maryland Golden Aster: Late fall blooms support fall migrating Monarchs 

For a full list of the proposed plants and their benefits to the local ecosystem, visit https://www.mtnbrook.org/mbee/page/memory-triangle-conversion-native-habitat.