Pollinator Pathway Bend announces the installation of a new native pollinator garden at the corner of Wall Street and Bond Street, including the adjacent roadside planting strip on Wall Street. This project will transform the space with over 100 drought-tolerant native plants that provide food and habitat for pollinators. It will also help expand the community-led network of connected native plant habitats, known as the Pollinator Pathway, through the heart of downtown Bend.
The garden builds on plantings established in 2022 and will replace non-native species with a vibrant mix of native plants carefully chosen to support local bees, butterflies, and other pollinators. This project marks the first collaboration in Bend between a dispensary and a nonprofit to create a garden. Oregrown, Inc., a local downtown business, has long supported Pollinator Pathway Bend by helping care for and maintain this site, and is generously funding this new garden installation.
“This latest Pollinator Pathway project brings life and color to our already vibrant downtown,” said Gwen Bartonek, president of Pollinator Pathway Bend. “We are so grateful for local small businesses such as Oregrown whose generosity and genuine commitment to our community help people and pollinators flourish.”
“As a dispensary and cannabis farmers ourselves, we’re deeply inspired by the natural world and the role pollinators play in sustaining it,” said Jonny Sischo, Trade Marketing manager at Oregrown, Inc. “Supporting gardens like this one allows us to give back to the environment, creating habitat for local bees, butterflies, and other pollinators, while fostering a healthier, more vibrant community.”
Work will begin at 9am on Saturday and Sunday, October 11 and 12. The community is welcome to join and help grow the Pollinator Pathway.
