The Mayor Sowle Butterfly Garden is on the north end of Jaycee Park, 525 East River Street, along the Riverwalk Trail, near the Performance Shelter.
Welcome to the city's first official butterfly garden! We invite you to come and visit the garden year-round to enjoy its ever-changing beauty along with the abundance of nature found along Michigan's longest river, the Grand River.
On October 3, 2024, the city opened a 545-square-foot pollinator garden with ADA-accessible features of a concrete walkway, bench, and informational sign. The pollinator garden is planted with native Michigan perennials to support native Michigan butterflies and bee species. During the optimal blooming periods between of the spring, summer, and fall, the garden will display spectacular colors from the varieties of plants.
Why a butterfly garden?
Thom Sowle (1955-2022), who while serving as the Mayor for the City of Grand Ledge from 2018 through 2002, had voiced ongoing enthusiasm to bring an official butterfly garden to Jaycee Park. His voice was echoed by many members of the Grand Ledge community. After much planning and receiving a grant to support the project, Mayor Sowle's butterfly garden has now come to fruition. Pollinator gardens are a tremendous way to help support the Monarch butterfly population as well as a vast number of pollinator species that rely on native plants to survive.
Is the butterfly garden easy to access?
Yes! The butterfly garden can be accessed via 2,280 feet of the ADA-accessible Riverwalk Trail. The Riverwalk Trail can be accessed, with handicapped parking available, via the north at Island Park, 206 West River Street or via the south at Jaycee Park, 525 East River Street.
When can I visit the butterfly garden?
The garden will be open year-round, from dawn until dusk just like all city parks and their amenities. With a bench overlooking the garden and the Grand River, it is a perfect spot to relax and take in the incredible nature views!
Are restrooms nearby?
Permanent and portable, ADA-accessible restrooms are open seasonally throughout Jaycee Park and along the Riverwalk Trail between Island Park and Fitzgerald Memorial Field.
