Harrisonburg community invited to celebrate, tour new greenhouses

Harrisonburg’s popular urban forestry and pollinator programs now have a new tool at their disposal to make sure the growing season lasts all year.

Two newly installed greenhouses and nursery space maintained by Harrisonburg Public Works will be celebrated on Thursday, April 20, from 1 to 3 p.m. at 1020 Greendale Road.

The event will include a ribbon-cutting ceremony, followed by the opportunity to take a tour of greenhouse and nursery spaces and view a diverse selection of pollinator plants and trees that will soon be planted in The Friendly City.

Guests may learn about the urban forestry and pollinator programs and ask questions about how the city selects native and native cultivar plant species, propagation efforts, program details and events, and how the community may participate in environmentally friendly efforts in their own green space.

“We are thankful for the community support behind these environmental efforts over the years that have made these programs possible,” Public Works Green Space Manager Jeremy Harold said. “This new space helps encourage growth of city environmental initiatives that feed our communities health and well-being daily. We look forward to utilizing the space not only as city staff but welcoming our local community members and students to participate in various environmental city programs, working as a community.”

The urban forestry and pollinator programs have created adequate and diverse spaces for pollinators across Harrisonburg while replacing trees lost due to the emerald ash borer.

Urban forestry efforts have planted approximately 1,338 trees in recent years, which almost meets the city’s goal for one to one replacement of trees lost to the invasive beetle.

Recent urban forestry projects include Purcell Park Pond, Noll Drive pollinator area and Heritage Oaks Golf Course tributary; as well as ash tree replacement in Westover Park, Northend Greenway, Friendly City Trail and JMU’s East Campus Buffer.

Pollinator spaces also continue to grow, from manicured garden beds and pollinator meadows to street medians that help decrease mowing costs and safety concerns. The city is halfway through planting the Harrisonburg Pollinator Corridor and is in the fifth year of a 10-year plan.

The new greenhouse and nursery space will help the urban forestry and pollinator programs grow by providing:

• 1,600-square-feet greenhouses featuring more tables for growing space and concrete pads that help with the growing environment
• Facilities for plant species propagation, cutting down on plant costs
• More native and native cultivar plants and trees for enhancing pollinator spaces, attracting pollinators who provide us food
• Facilities to house plants and trees used for stormwater restoration projects and riparian buffers to help with stormwater runoff and water quality
• Storage for trees for the City’s Harrisonburg Conservation Assistance Program
• Storage for wood products from removed dwindling trees as part of the urban wood utilization program
• Facilities for supporting environmental programs and an outdoor classroom for visiting local students

For more information about the Harrisonburg pollinator program, visit www.harrisonburgva.gov/pollinators.

For more information about the Harrisonburg urban forestry program, visit www.harrisonburgva.gov/urban-forestry-program.