Native plants provide food for adult and larval pollinators.
Pollinators provide critical connections in our food web.
Growing native nectar-bearing plants is a great way to attract pollinators
Habitat loss and climate change threaten Monarch butterfly populations.
Proclaim your commitment with this attractive yard sign.
Our yards and landscapes can provide habitat for pollinators.
Putnam Pollinator Pathway
Launched to encourage and support habitat for native pollinators, the PUTNAM POLLINATOR PATHWAY is an initiative of Cornell Cooperative Extension of Putnam County. Individuals, groups, clubs, parks, libraries, care facilities, golf courses, schools, commercial and retail entities, municipalities, and others, are joining together to establish a corridor for pollinators spanning the County and connecting with other Pathways across the Northeast.
Why
Insects form a critical link in the food web that sustains all life. A whopping 80-90 percent of all flowering plants depend on insect pollination, and insect pollination accounts for one in three bites of the food we eat. Yet native insect populations are in peril due to declining native plant populations, improper pesticide use, and climate change. The pollinators need help!
How
People on the Pathway are planting native trees, shrubs and flowers to provide pollinators with healthy habitat (food, water, shelter) throughout the growing season and nesting places through the winter. They are also eliminating pesticides that harm pollinators, birds, other wildlife, and even our own water supplies.
Creating a pesticide-free corridor of public and private properties forges links between our communities, provides the diversity of plant species all nature needs, and makes our landscape more healthy and beautiful.
If you have more questions, email us at PutnamPollinatorPathway@gmail.com
Or Join the Pathway
Interactive Virtual Tour of a Real Pollinator Garden:
Contact
Jennifer Lerner
Senior Resource Educator
jjs95@cornell.edu
845-278-6738 ext. 216
Last updated December 20, 2024
How to Join
Take the Pathway Pledge and join the Putnam Pollinator Pathway. Proclaim your support for pollinators, buy a sign. It's 7" x 9" sturdy, made of coated aluminum, and pre-drilled; ready to proudly display. Not ready to join and would like more info? Putnam Pollinator Pathway volunteers are here to help.
Meet the Pollinators: The Night Shift
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by Jill Eisenstein, Master Gardener Volunteer
Daytime pollinators – butterflies, hummingbirds, bees – underpin whole ecosystems with their colorful and sometimes noisy lives. So easy to observe and study, we could almost forget that even in the world of pollinators, when night falls, stars appear.
In the Northeast, the stars of the night stage are mostly moths, with one stunning beetle stealing the midsummer show. Why do we know so little about them? Well, we are usually not out when they are. And except for the big or bright ones -- such as the giant cecropia - largest moth in North America, the luminescent luna – alluring and palest green, and the puzzling polyphemus – with eyespots on the back of its wings -- they aren’t that easy to photograph. Besides, some night pollinators are decidedly not photogenic. They are also silent.