You Can Plant Roses In Crocheron Park This Weekend

BAYSIDE, QUEENS — In an effort to reduce the number of invasive species in Bayside’s Crocheron Park, a neighborhood group is planting a species of flowering plants in the park this Saturday morning.

“There’s a lot we don’t know about invasive species,” said Dana Gumb, Bayside resident of 30 years and the Vice President and Chair of Conservation Committee for Friends of Crocheron & John Golden Park (FCJGP), the local preservation group that’s organizing this weekend’s event. “But what we do know is that if not kept in track they’ll completely dominate an environment, so you have to cut them back and then put something in their place,” he explained.

The group’s planting event is the third of its kind, and one of many that FCJGP has planned since forming this winter.

“Part of the desire was for people to get outside and interact with others and not be holed up in their houses or your apartments, and the other was to be able to get out into the park and do something positive in a socially distanced way,” said Gumb.

While some of their efforts have centered on litter cleanup, especially removing plastic trash bags from the Crocheron Park lake, Gumb explained that planting native species is essential for preserving the park’s ecosystem.

“We’re trying to build up our bee population and support the butterfly population and encourage insects, all of which are attracted to these plants,” he said, adding that those animals “in turn feed the birds and mammals here, so the plants are part of the entire ecosystem we’re trying to build,” he explained.

For Gumb, who has been involved in park preservation for a while, there’s also a personal element to planting these species.

“I consider these plants little babies that I’m putting out in the world and I really get a thrill out of seeing them grow,” he said, noting that as the weather gets warmer it’s exciting to walk around the park and see how the “baby plants” are growing.

Anyone who is interested in attending this weekend’s event, which will kick off at 10 a.m. near the park’s tennis house and run until noon, can register online here.

Gumb recommends wearing work pants and asks that people bring old milk jugs for watering, if they have any to spare.