Riverhead, NY, May 13, 2009 - How can buying art help LI's coastal environment and economy? Just follow the Mermaid Crossing sign to the Sirens' Song Gallery in Greenport to an art exhibition to benefit New York Sea Grant and Cornell University's LI Research and Extension Center.

"On the Edge," a unique art show featuring the works of well-known artists as well as Cornell University faculty and students, will run at the Sirens' Song Gallery at 516 Main Street in Greenport from May 22 to June 29, 2009 with an opening  reception on Saturday, May 23 from 6 to 9 pm. The show is a celebration of our coastal and barrier plants and the life they support. Accompanying the exhibition is a free lecture series by noted experts on Long Island's unique environment.

New York Sea Grant helps protect and restore our coastal ecosystems through research, extension and education; NYSG is a partnership of the State University of NY, Cornell and NOAA.

The LI Horticultural Research and Extension Center serves the needs of the horticultural, agricultural, grape/wine industry of Long Island.

A portion of all sales will be donated to New York Sea Grant and Cornell's LI Research and Extension Center; the amount of donation is tax deductible.

For more information, call Robert Kent at 631.727.3910 Ext 3 or Caroline Waloski at 631. 477.1021.

Free Lectures

Saturday, May 23 at 1:30 pm
On the Edge of Life & Death: Plants Meet Fungi: Margery Daughtrey, Senior Extension Associate, Cornell's Dept of Plant Pathology

Saturday, May 30 at 1:30 pm
Coastal Plants and Their Friends: Robert Kent, Interim Associate Director, New York Sea Grant

Sunday, June 7 at 2 pm
Deer Resistant Plants for the Garden Border: Dr. Mark Bridgen, Professor of Horticulture, Cornell