By Michelle Moskowitz
Sentinel Correspondent
On a brisk Saturday morning, there were plenty of Greenwich green thumbs eager to get to work at the Greenwich Land Trust Greenhouse and Garden Volunteer Session at 370 Round Hill Road last weekend.
Steve Conaway, conservation and outreach director for GLT, and Dean Fausel, conservation educator for GLT, led a group of about 20 enthusiastic volunteers through the tasks of pruning, syringing, re-potting, and soiling and watering the native plants in the greenhouse space.
Conaway diligently walked participants through every facet of the greenhouse operation, and discussed the importance of protecting the environmental health and well-being of our community.
Fausel showed volunteers how to properly care for a plant and how those efforts can revive a plant into the beautiful specimen it once was.
“The most important thing you can do for a plant is to bring out the dead,” said Fausel with a chuckle.
“If there is any disease involved, it can be spread to the leaves and branches, so you need to get rid of it.”
“Also, plants need a great deal of water, so be sure to check for coolness and dampness so you know it’s hydrated and you should even see water pooling at the bottom,” added Fausel.
The GLT greenhouse space was restored last year and serves the community in a variety of ways.
First, it provides vegetable seedlings and transplants for its Youth Corps vegetable garden.
The Youth Corps is a group of local teens employed by the GLT over the summer months to work on conservation land projects and learn valuable environmental skills.
Part of a student’s job is to tend to the vegetable garden, whose produce is then donated to Neighbor to Neighbor, a local food bank serving the poor. Over 300 pounds of produce was donated last year.
The greenhouse space is also used for growing native plants for ecological restoration and habitat improvement projects, as the GLT protects over 750 acres of open space and stewards nature preserves for ecosystem health and wildlife habitat.
Lastly, the greenhouse provides education and community programs throughout the year with a sharp focus on the myriad ways to connect people to the conservation of land, such as through native plant propagation and bringing ecological principals to home landscapes.
In effort to maximize the usage of the greenhouse, the organization has formed alliances with local entities such as the Audubon Greenwich and Westchester Land Trust to grow native plants.
The GLT also partners with Greenwich Community Gardens, a local non-profit dedicated to creating and supporting sustainable gardens in Greenwich.
Greenwich Community Gardens founder Patty Sechi was an active volunteer in the group that morning, and seemed delighted to offer whatever help she could with a cheerful smile.
When asked what inspired her to start the organization she replied, “When I learned how many people in the community don’t have the opportunity to get healthy food on their tables, I felt compelled to change that.
“I love seeing how gardening changes people’s lives and has made their lives better in so many ways.”
Founded in 1976, the GLT is a member-based, non-profit organization dedicated to protecting local natural resources through open space preservation and environmental education.
The GLT received national accreditation in 2012 from the Land Trust Accreditation Commission for meeting national standards for excellence, ensuring that their conservation efforts are permanent.
To get involved with the GLT and their volunteer opportunities, please check GLT’s online events calendar at gltrust.org/events or call (203) 629-2151.
Upcoming events include a Mushroom Cultivation Workshop on Feb. 9 from 3:30 to 5:30 p.m. and Winter Walk: Forest & Ponds on Feb. 22 from 12:30 to 2 p.m. at the Lapham Preserve, between 95 and 85 Richmond Hill Road.
