LLCT installs new pollinator garden signs

The Lincoln Land Conservation Trust has installed five new signs at pocket pollinator gardens throughout town.

The signs (see photos below) were designed in 2023 by Amy Dorfman, a volunteer who worked with LLCT staff to create a template for permanent signage at LLCT’s pollinator sites. Dorfman had just finished a graduate certificate in environmental policy and international development from the Harvard Extension School and is now continuing with her master’s in environment and sustainability management at Georgetown University.

After visiting the pollinator sites in Lincoln, Amy created two sign templates that introduce passersby to the gardens and emphasize the importance of native plants, biodiversity, and connected habitat. She used photos to show different plant-insect interactions throughout the growing season and highlight nectar and pollen producing plants, as well as plants that serve as “hosts” for different insect species.

Once the signs were printed, Jane Layton, LLCT’s former stewardship coordinator, designed the sign posts and assisted LLCT seasonal interns Robert Killam and Joe Pariser with the installation process.

Although LLCT’s pollinator pathway lawn signs have served the gardens well and will continue to be used throughout Lincoln, they began to fade after a few years in the sun and don’t have any information on them about what the purpose of the gardens are. The new signs will be a permanent and informative way to welcome visitors to the gardens.

The project was funded in part with a grant from the Lincoln Cultural Council, a local agency which is supported by the Massachusetts Cultural Council, a state agency. The grant funds will help cover more than half of the printing costs of the signs, and LLCT is grateful for the council’s generosity.

The new signs are at:

• Lincoln Station near the Twisted Tree and Bank of America
• Codman Community Gardens
• Codman Road/Route 126 traffic island
• Stony Brook trailhead on Route 117 at the Lincoln/Weston town line
• LLCT Pollinator Meadow near the Smith School parking lot