In under a year, Boise Eliot Native Grove has transformed a grassy dumping ground into a thriving native pollinator habitat and education space. Located on N. Ivy St. north of the Fremont Bridge ramp, the Grove is now planted with over 500 plants representing 40+ species of native plants and 9 species of trees, along with logs, stumps, snags, boulders, educational species signs & interpretive signs featuring English, Latin & Chinuk Wawa plant names.

Community members Andrine de la Rocha and Howard Patterson are Boise-Eliot neighbors who designed and implemented the Native Grove project. Working with PBOT, Bureau of Environmental Services, East Multnomah Soil & Water Conservation, Xerces Society for Invertebrate Conservation, & others, they have organized over 1300 hours of volunteer labor to sheet mulch, apply compost, install rocks & logs, plant seeds, trees and plants, weave a willow structure, water, and design & install signage. Volunteer hours include 170+ from students at Boise-Eliot/Humboldt School and The Ivy School, and 80+ adult volunteers from the neighborhood, schools, businesses, and SOLVE volunteer program.

They are currently working with The ReBuilding Center Community Outreach Program to design a six-sided bench to be built by neighbors from various groups in the area, from Self-Enhancement, Inc, to Oregon Tradeswomen, to The Q Center. Watch for the Earth Day Party in April 2019, when the bench will be unveiled in the Oak Meadow.  Come take a walk and learn about the little native ecosystem in your neighborhood.