Bees, Trees, Turtles & Snakes: North Mianus and Riverside Schools Students Explore Binney Park

Working with the PTAs from Riverside and North Mianus schools, the Riverside Garden Club ran another successful and fun-filled field trip to Binney Park for fifth-graders on Thursday, May 4, and Friday, May 5.

Busloads of 148 students started their adventure at 9:30 am with a scavenger hunt through Binney. Each student was provided with a 20 item photo card and were tasked to match up the photo with the
live fauna or flora in the park.

All students then participated in a hike through Binney Woods led by Greenwich’s Tree Warden, Dr. Greg Kramer.

On Thursday, Joel Dawson, a beekeeper from Old Greenwich Honey, spoke to the Riverside students about the role of bees in nature and demonstrated some much needed bee-keeping equipment.

On Friday, Dan Burbanker from Greenwich Land Trust spoke about bees to the North Mianus students.

The North Mianus students also spent time with Jessie, a turtle and snake specialist from the Stamford Museum and Nature Center, who brought many specimens of the turtles and snakes living in Binney Pond.

“The Riverside Garden Club’s purpose behind the field trip is to give the students a greater appreciation for conservation and the natural beauty that surrounds us every day here in Greenwich in addition to learning more about Binney Park,” said Patty Roberts, the organizer of the event. “This is the third year that the RGC has run this event, and we hope to keep it going in the future.”