Susan Hunnicutt

Where the sidewalk ends…there used to be an overgrown strip of land. With the help of a Community Connections Small Grant, this cul du sac turnaround is now Whitnall Knoll Gathering Circle—a bench built around an old elm, two raised pollinator beds, and a hand-painted oak sign, named for Charles B. Whitnall, founder of Milwaukee’s park system. We planted milkweed, coneflowers, asters, bee balm & native grasses using the hugelkultur method, and honestly, the bees and monarchs found the garden before most of the neighbors. This summer, I registered Whitnall Knoll as an official Monarch Waystation, and just recently found a monarch caterpillar feasting on our milkweed!