Popular Hill Mansion

Popular Hill Mansion. . , What is a Pollinator Garden? , Pollinating gardens usually consist of ornamental flowers to attract pollinators such as bees, butterflies. and hummingbirds. Kitchen gardens were also essential pollinating gardens. These are small scale practical gardens located near the family house, easily accessible for cultivation and harvesting to provide fruits and vegetables for the family and household members, including enslaved persons. Honey bees are not native to America and were brought over by English settlers in the 1600s. By the mid-1700 's. feral honey bees had established multiple hives in the woods and most small-time farmers hunted the hives, practicing bee ‘lining' as it was called, leading to the colloquial term 'making a beeline.' Most small farms did not keep honey bees, but, as a surgeon, Dr. Huston might have, as honey was essential for medicinal purposes, such as making salves for wounds. , , Salisbury MD: Bee City USA , The City of Salisbury became a certified Bee City USA affiliate in 2018. The certification recognizes Salisbury's efforts to conserve pollinator species by providing safe spaces for pollinators, using native plants in landscaping. providing ponds, streams, bird baths or other sources of reliable sources of clean water, and refraining from using pesticides on public land. This garden contributes almost 1,000 sq. feet to Salisbury's status as a bee city by including a variety of plants suitable for pollinators including native species. , , Plants in the Garden , While all the plants in the garden are pollinators, many serve a dual purpose for medicine, culinary, or even to make dyes for the wool from the sheep raised at Poplar Hill Mansion. Common plants in this region would include bee balm, black eyed susans, coneflowers, yarrow, milkweed, baptisia, coreopsis, and bleeding hearts. Match the icons on the plant signs in the garden to the key below to see how plants were used.