Friends of Tietze Park Facebook
The City of Dallas acquired Tietze Park, the 9-acre stretch from Llano and Vanderbilt Avenue on Skillman Street, in 1924. In 2002, the Friends of Tietze Park Foundation was formed, dedicating itself to the improvement, preservation and continued beautification of the park. 22 years later, the nonprofit organization is keeping up with its mission and bringing a pollinator garden to Tietze Park.
Admittedly, this wasn’t in their initial plan. Although, with the organization’s President, Amanda Schulz — a certified Texas Master Gardener who grew up gardening, the idea of something like this was surely within the realm of possibility.
The project was set in motion after neighbor Charlie Fenton nominated the nonprofit for the Lowe’s annual Hometowns Grant back in 2023.
Months passed after they submitted final grant paperwork, and by June of this year, Lowe’s was announcing the grant winners from across the U.S. and their park was on the list.
Tietze was officially getting a pollinator garden.
After being awarded the $36,000 grant, it was time to get to work. Alongside the pollinator garden, would be an ADA concrete observation path that would lead to an ADA accessible picnic table area. The garden also brings with it the possibility of being designated as a City of Dallas Monarch Butterfly Waystation.
“These are spaces that are just planted to attract monarchs, you know, as they are coming through on their various migration paths. So you plant big spaces, not only with host plants, that would be like the various types of milkweed that the caterpillars host on, but then also nectar plants that they really like, because when they’re coming through in the fall —when they’re making their way from Canada down to Mexico — they are stopping at basically fueling sites, just like you know, you and I would fuel up our car,” Schulz said.
The garden will also bring a host of new wildlife to the area, according to Schulz. Honey bees, various bumblebees, green anoles and other kinds of butterflies are all possibilities for the kinds of critters that will make the park their new home.
Friends of the Tietze Park invites the community to come to the park on Saturday, Oct. 26 at 8:30 a.m. to join and thank the Lowe’s employee volunteers who will be planting the garden. Attendees will be given seeds to toss into the seeded bed areas and participate in the planting process.
