Hopkinton Eagle Scout's pollinator garden project expands to townwide effort

HOPKINTON — An Eagle Scout project that brought a pollinator garden to the MetroWest YMCA Family Outdoor Center on East Street has blossomed into a townwide project.

After dozens of volunteers put in hundreds of hours of work over the summer to create and maintain two additional pollinator gardens, Hopkinton town officials are hosting a recognition event on Sunday at the Hughes Farm property , where one of the gardens is located.

The event, which starts at 11 a.m., is open to all. The Hughes Farm property is at 192 Hayden Rowe St. (Route 85). Parking is limited.

The pollinator garden project was led by Shaurya Patni and his sister, Suhani Patni, both high school students. They're expected to attend Sunday's gathering, along with U.S. Rep. Jim McGovern, D-Mass .

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Shaurya Patni has had an interest in spreading awareness about the connection between the ecosystem and human health.

"When we eat local foods, it increases our natural immune defenses and leads to better health,” he said in a prepared statement. "Similarly, native pollinator species rely on the plants they evolved to exist with. They need the proper environment to thrive."

A pollinator garden features plants that attract and support pollinators, including bees, butterflies or hummingbirds.

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Earlier, Shaurya Patni met with the late Wayne Mezitt and Trevor Smith, of Weston Nurseries , as well as Robert Gegear, an associate professor of biology at UMass Dartmouth , and decided pollinator gardens would be a good way to focus his efforts.

Mezitt died in July at age 81.

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The first pollinator garden was installed this past spring at the MetroWest YMCA facility. Patni created it for his Eagle Scout project, and benefited from the help of Scout families who volunteered for the planting.

Shaurya Patni then envisioned having additional gardens in public spaces. He teamed with the Hopkinton Sustainable Green Committee to help identify locations, secure funding and manage the project.

With help from the Open Space Preservation Commission and other trail and land organizations, two suitable locations were chosen: Hughes Farm and the Pratt Farm property on Fruit Street .

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Funding for the project was provided by the town through its participatory budget program at Town Meeting.

"More than 100 volunteers, including many youth in town, signed on for planting and watering," said Sustainable Green Committee member Linda Chuss, in a prepared statement. "All volunteers are now more aware of the importance of native pollinator plants and have a sense of ownership of the gardens."

The Hopkinton Public Library plans to add two gardens next year, one for pollinators and another with native plants that don't attract pollinators for people allergic to bees.

For more information, visit HopGreen.org .

This article originally appeared on MetroWest Daily News: Hopkinton Eagle Scout's pollinator garden project expands to townwide effort