|  |  | Mute Swans on Cayuga Lake as seen from the shore of Stewart Park yesterday. | Earth Month on Ithaca’s WaterfrontApril 5 eNewsletter | Earth Day 2024 is Monday, April 22nd. FSP will be observing Earth Day throughout April with a series of volunteer spring cleaning events, an informative Pollinator Pathway presentation, a bird walk, and more. The fun begins tomorrow at our annual Waterfront Cleanup and continues on Sunday the 7th, also from 10 am to 12 pm, when the Ithaca High School lacrosse team and their parents will tackle trimming the vegetation along the edge of Cayuga Lake. On Saturday, the 13th Ithaca’s Dragon Boat Club will be picking up litter and gardening in Cass Park - also from 10 to 12 noon. And on Wednesday evening, April 17th, FSP will host a presentation about the Tompkins County Pollinator Pathway that features some of our pollinator gardens along the Waterfront Trail. Please join us at any or all of these events. Details on these and other events along the waterfront are provided below.
NOTE ON THE WEATHER AND OUR ANNUAL CLEANUP FSP ANTICIPATES GOING AHEAD WITH THE WATERFRONT CLEANUP AS PLANNED - RAIN OR SHINE. HOWEVER SNOW COULD BE GAME CHANGER. WE WILL SEND AN ENEWS AT 9 AM SATURDAY IF THE WATERFRONT CLEANUP IS TO BE POSTPONED UNTIL SUNDAY MORNING. | |  | Tomorrow morning join Friends of Stewart Park for its annual waterfront cleanup, on Saturday, April 6 from 10 am to noon! Dress for the weather, wear boots, and bring gloves, litter grabbers or any other of your favorite tools. Bags will be provided. Thanks to Zero Waste Ithaca for partnering with FSP on this cleanup. Meet at the Picnic “Large” Pavilion in Stewart Park. The weather looks cold but manageable with no April showers in sight! Help spread the word! Like and Share the event on Facebook. |  | Gardeners….bring along your gloves, boots and hand tools - hand pruners, hedge trimmers and loppers. We will be working along the lake edge cutting back False Indigo Bush and other invasives and also trimming last year’s growth at the Playground pollinator planting bed, adjacent to the Carousel. | |  | Join FSP and Brandon Hoak, the Native Plant Specialist and Outreach Communicator for the Tompkins Pollinator Pathway for a virtual Pollinator Pathway presentation Wednesday, April 17 at 7pm. Register below to get a zoom link for the presentation.
Brandon will introduce the Tompkins Pollinator Pathway Project which aims to connect local gardens, parks, trails and landscapes to improve habitat corridors for pollinators in the county. His talk will look at Stewart Park and Waterfront Trail gardens and how they contribute to the local pathway. He will also share tips on how to find the right native plants; how to create a successful pollinator garden; and how to join the local pathway map. Like and share the event on Facebook.
Outside of his work the Tompkins Pollinator Pathway, Brandon is the founder of Busy Bee Ecological Designs, an endeavor dedicated to providing native gardening and sustainable landscape design to individuals. He is also one of the co-founders of Marshy Garden, a small-scale ecological restoration project connected with The Soil Factory, and a proud participant in the Tompkins Pollinator Pathway. | | |  | SAVE THE DATE: On Saturday, June 8th Join Us for the First iNaturalist Waterfront Trail BioBlitz! Frank Muller, FSP Landscape Gardener and avid photographer/naturalist, will be leading our first BioBlitz event on the Cayuga Waterfront Trail. You can download the iNaturalist App from the iPhone App Store or the Google Play Store on Android devices.
iNaturalist is an online social network of people sharing biodiveristy information to help each other learn about nature. The free iNaturalist App helps you identify the plants and animals around you while generating data for science and conservation. By recording and sharing your observations, you’ll create research-quality data for local scientists working to better understand and protect nature in your region.
A BioBlitz is a communal citizen-science effort to record as many species within a designated location and time-period. They are a way for naturalists, scientists, and curious members of the public to meet in person in the great outdoors and, are a lot of fun! There are several tutorials to get you started with iNaturalist at https://www.inaturalist.org. Stay tuned for more info coming soon! | |  | Daffodils Are Dazzling Along the Waterfront Trail in Cass Park In October 2020, the Ithaca Garden Club made an extraordinary gift to the City of Ithaca, with the planting of 12,000 narcissus bulbs and over 5,000 Grape Hyacinth and crocus bulbs. In 2022, the Garden Club celebrated their 100th year with a focus on continuing the mass planting of daffodils. Located along Taughannock Boulevard, just north of the Ithaca Children’s Garden, this daffodil planting creates a beautiful naturalizing splash of color for all to enjoy for many springs to come. 40,000 more bulbs were planted on October 4, 2023 brings the grand total to an impressive 130,000 daffodil bulbs now on full display along the Cass Park Trail!
Friends of Stewart Park sends a big thank you to the Ithaca Garden Club and Dr. Bill Miller, Cornell University Professor of Horticulture and Research Director of Horticulture Section, School of Integrative Plant Science, who guided this daffodil project using a unique planting machine given to Cornell’s College of Agriculture by the Dutch bulb company A. Geerlings. City Forester Jeanne Grace and her Parks and Forestry crews have also assisted in this impactful beautification effort.
You can support the effort by mailing a check to the Ithaca Garden Club, P.O. Box 4962, Ithaca, NY 14852 or make an online donation at www.ithacagardenclub.org/daff-a-dazzle.html. |  | FSP invites you to join Meena Haribal for a guided spring bird walk in Stewart Park! Dress for the weather, bring your binoculars, and meet at the Cascadilla Boathouse at 8:30 am. Rain Date Sunday May 5. Click her for more Info. Like and share the event on Facebook. | | | SPONSOR THE CAROUSEL Did you know you can provide thousands of free Carousel rides while supporting Friends of Stewart Park with a tax-deductible gift?
As a Carousel Sponsor, your organization or business will be recognized with:
*Your name and/or logo featured on a prominent sign at the Carousel.
*Acknowledgements through social media such as Facebook, Instagram and the FSP newsletter.
*As many as 2,500 smiles daily from children who appreciate your gift!
Click here to learn more! |
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| | MORE PARK AND TRAIL NEWS | | | DAFFODIL DASH RETURNS TO THE CAYUGA WATERFRONT TRAIL
Ithaca Garden Club and Ithaca Children’s Garden Second Annual Daffodil Dash at Ithaca’s Cass Park on April 13, 2024 is now open for the 1-mile fun run/walk and 5-K race! Experience the sights and smells of 130,000 blooming daffodils along the level, accessible course. Sponsors’ generosity allows every dollar raised to transform into more daffodils, planted by the City of Ithaca and Cornell volunteers using unique equipment. To contribute to the fall 2024 daffodil planting, please visit Daff-a-Dazzle. Learn more and register. |
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| | | I LOVE MY PARK DAY
Join FSP Saturday, May 4, from 10AM-noon for I Love My Park Day!
We'll prepare the park for summer by cleaning up garden beds, planting new landscaping, raking the playground, mulching, trimming lakeside vegetation and more. Dress for the weather and bring your gloves, rakes, clippers and other gardening tools.
More info and registration |
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| | | DISCOVER CAYUGA LAKE
DCL's first public cruises are scheduled for Friday, May 10th! Check their Booking Calendar to see our 2024 schedule, or to purchase your 2024 Lake Lover's season pass.
DCL is working with local youth employment services to provide job training experiences for local teens this summer. Click here for more info.
DCL seeks Sunday April 14, 10:30-12:30 for cleaning and redecorating boarding facilities for MV Teal. Can you help? If so, please RSVP to Bill, bill@discovercayugalake.org. |
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| | | SAVE THE DATES
WATERMUSIC Planned for Sunday, August 4 beginning at 5 PM.
PARTY FOR THE PARK Planned for Saturday, September 21 at 6PM.
STAY TUNED FOR DETAILS! |
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