Volunteers Work on Native Garden Project at Potter Place

Joint effort with Spring Ledge Farm

May 28, 2021 • Saved under Andover Organizations
By Sam Humphrey
Many volunteers gathered in May to work on the native garden project at Potter Place. Shown are Kylee Cancio-Bello, John Hodgson, (Suzy Norris, Cherrie Swenson in the back), Dylan Begin, Jeff Good, Brooke Heiser, and Pam Cooper. Photo: Alex Estin

On May 2, about 20 volunteers came together to help initiate the first steps of the native garden project at Potter Place. With double the expected turnout, the initiative was met with so much enthusiasm and hard work that we accomplished more than we had originally planned.

Bill Hoffman prepares the Lull House garden for daylily transplants during the May gardening efforts at Potter Place. Photo: Larry Chase

To start off the project, we transplanted the long embankment of daylilies at the location of the new native garden. Along with this, the gardeners managed to remove many of the invasive plants that were colonizing the site. 

Many of the classic orange daylilies were relocated to the north slope of the historic residence site facing the RR Station. Also, new beds of daylilies were added to the street side of the Lull House. 

In the coming week, the team plans to finish soil preparation and grading at the new garden site where the native perennials and shrubs will be installed. The selected native varieties and much of the gardening effort is provided by Spring Ledge Farm, New London. Project leadership is a joint effort shared by Spring Ledge Farm and the Andover Historical Society.

A special thank you to all of the hard-working volunteers, Spring Ledge Farm, and the Andover Historical Society who help to make this new garden a reality.