"In one of the most polluted corners of Brooklyn, a nursery of seedlings thrives beneath the Kosciuszko Bridge, supplying native plants to local parks and community gardens to help neighbors connect with nature. Flowers enjoy their final days before winter's frost approaches in the lush greenspace, growing next to century-old industrial pollution and surrounded by three Superfund sites: two federal and one state."
""It makes the work that we do here even more poignant, even more important and even more needed," said Lisa Bloodgood, director of horticulture and stewardship at the North Brooklyn Parks Alliance. Bloodgood says the organization founded the nursery three years ago on what had been an abandoned corner of the neighborhood. "We are growing from seed [plants] that are primarily wild, collected by our partners within the Parks Department," she said."
""Native plants are like the quintessential New Yorkers. Like they are built to literally thrive in our ecosystem here," said Rebecca Louie, executive director of The Bee Conservancy, which works to protect pollinators. "By being in our ground, they are building the resiliency of the city," Louie said. "They are great for absorbing water. They help mitigate the heat island effect.""
A nursery of native New York seedlings operates beneath the Kosciuszko Bridge in one of Brooklyn's most polluted neighborhoods. Seedlings are grown from wild-collected seed and focus on dozens of native species suited to local ecosystems. The nursery supplies nearly 10,000 plants free to parks and community gardens across the city to support pollinators, absorb stormwater, and mitigate urban heat island effects. The site sits adjacent to century-old industrial contamination and multiple Superfund sites, prompting strict safety practices including provision of clean soil and adherence to safe-soil policies for edible plantings. The operation emphasizes urban resilience and community access to nature.
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