MARBLEHEAD — On Wednesday, Sept. 18, the Marblehead Conservancy will present an update on the wildflower project at Lead Mills. Join the conservancy in person at the library or online via Zoom. Registration is required to attend in person or via Zoom at tinyurl.com/Lead-Mills.

The Marblehead Conservancy has embarked on a project at Lead Mills to enhance and continue ongoing restoration work. In 2012, the Town of Marblehead and City of Salem acquired this 4-plus acre property, which had previously been the site of multiple lead-using facilities, rescuing it from commercial and residential development.

Following lead-contamination remediation, the Conway School of Landscape Design in Northampton conducted a study in 2015 for the conservancy to outline the topography, climate zones, and soil composition of the site.

Keeping the Conway School’s recommendations for the future of Lead Mills in mind, the conservancy made some initial trials at plantings over the years. With time, it intensified its efforts to include planting native trees, shrubs, and wildflowers across the site.

Since 2020, the conservancy has centered its goals on creating habitat for underserved native pollinators experiencing population decline due to dwindling habitat. This talk will discuss the decisions the conservancy has made, challenges to its mission, and progress made at Lead Mills in further detail.

Heidi Rubin, a member of the Marblehead Conservancy Wildflower Committee, will present an update on the Lead Mills wildflower-planting project. Rubin will discuss the history of the project, including the trials, problems, successes, and future goals in creating a native pollinator open space throughout the Lead Mills Conservation Area. There will be an opportunity to speak with the volunteer gardeners of the Wildflower Committee who are behind the scenes planning and planting.

For additional information, please visit www.abbotlibrary.org, email [email protected], or call 781-631-1481.