Sisyrinchium angustifolium, or blue-eyed grass; yarrow; coneflower; New England aster; and a host of other native plants sat on fresh-turned soil Thursday, September 19, as Sarah Middeleer determined where they should be placed.

Intent to get planting, Holly Kocet moved in with a spade and set the potted natives in the soil.

As part of a Protect Our Pollinators (POP) initiative, the women were among a handful of others volunteering that day to install a pollinator garden at the Newtown Animal Control Center at 21 Old Farm Road.

A hot afternoon just before Autumn began found Ms Middeleer and Ms Kocet with Mary Gaudet, Adria Henderson, Linda Dunn, and Debbie Osborne all adding their effort to the POP project. By the end of the afternoon, the plants were set and watered.

Ms Wilson loosened the ground, a potted tickseed and cone flower ready to set their roots. Stepping outside to talk with the gardeners, Animal Control Officer Carolee Mason was happy to see the addition to a small garden bed near the center’s front entrance.

The POP website, propollinators.org, states, “Protect our Pollinators is a nonprofit organization devoted to education and the conservation of pollinators and their habitats.”

The mission “is to save our endangered pollinators through education and action.

“We seek to bring awareness of threatened pollinator species; educate on the harmful effects of pesticides; provide safe alternatives to pesticides; encourage planting of native flora and increase pollinator habitat for the benefit of wildlife; and to seek local and state support for protection of pollinators, their habitats, and the environment.”

A recent POP effort to create a pollinator pathway — a corridor of native gardens on various public and private properties — now includes gardens at three schools, the fruit trail at Fairfield Hills, a garden at Cherry Grove Preserve, and other plans for future plantings. The gardens have all been established through the efforts of students, scouts, volunteers, and more.

The Newtown Parks and Recreation Department assisted with site preparation.