Ocean City Eyes Partnership On Pollinator Gardens

OCEAN CITY – Resort officials are looking to partner with a local nonprofit to offer residents a pollinator plant rebate program.

Last week, members of the Ocean City Coastal Resources Legislative Committee (Green Team) discussed plans for a new rebate program.

Through a partnership with the Lower Shore Land Trust, Environmental Engineer Gail Blazer said the resort would be able to offer residents a rebate on pollinator plants purchased through the nonprofit’s native plant sale, which occurs annually each May.

“One of our action items on the Green Team for the future is to have pollinator gardens …,” she said. “Putting in a pollinator garden is like having a bayscape garden, but really geared toward a habitat for pollinators.”

Currently, Ocean City offers incentives – including rebates for beach district plants and rain gardens – to participating residents. Such programs, Blazer said, are paid for using critical area mitigation funds, or money collected from property owners and developers who could not meet the town’s stringent landscaping criteria in the critical area.

Blazer explained it would be those same funds that are used for the pollinator plant rebate program.

“You have to pay for them upfront,” she said. “It will be a rebate program. You have to show that they were planted in the ground … There will be a couple extra steps to get your money back, but it will be worth it for people if they want it.”

Kate Patton, Lower Shore Land Trust’s executive director, said the nonprofit was eager to work with Ocean City. Officials said residents would be able to pre-order pollinator plants through the native plant sale and receive a rebate from the town of up to $50.

“We do a native plant sale as part of our Pollinator Festival, and we work with a lot of organizations to help them install pollinator gardens on their property,” Patton said. “We also put together packages, so they can do, say, 10 to 12 plants that are either for a sunny and dry area, or a wet and shade area, or wet and dry areas. There’s a lot of things we can do.”

Patton said the rebate program would educate residents on the benefits of pollinator gardens, as well as the nonprofit’s pollinator certification program.

“It seems to me like a really good educational campaign that will put plants in the ground and raise awareness,” Patton said.

Blazer said participation in the rebate program is first come, first served. Officials noted that more information would be forthcoming.

“For $50 people can do a pollinator garden if they are interested …,” she said. “If they are interested in a pollinator garden or certification, contact Kate and I and we can work to get you a flier so you can order them.”

About The Author: Bethany Hooper

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Bethany Hooper has been with The Dispatch since 2016. She currently covers various general stories. Hooper graduated from Stephen Decatur High School in 2012 and the University of Maryland in 2016, where she completed double majors in journalism and economics.