Growing Up Green

February 22, 2011
A student's nature journal. (Photo: Claudia Bolli)

A student's nature journal. (Photo: Claudia Bolli)

By: Claudia Bolli

The Grade 1 students at Brightview School in Edmonton have adopted a different pet than most kids would choose. After their teacher Linda Wight participated in the Outdoor Classroom Institute this past summer, they were inspired to adopt trees near their school. Each child also keeps a nature journal with portraits of their trees and pressed leaves as well as other things they learned outdoors.

Portrait of the tree Mr. Big. (Photo: Claudia Bolli)

Portrait of a student's adopted tree. (Photo: Claudia Bolli)

Linda and her students are also busy with a successful indoor growing project. I recently went to visit them because TelusTV was filming a story about it. Linda started this garden through the Cityfarm’s Little Green Thumbs Program that I co-ordinate. The students showed me how they help out with caring for the plants, including pruning and transplanting. After the first crop of plants is finished, Linda plans to grow flower seedlings and transplant them to an outdoor naturescape in spring.

Thanks to her experience with Evergreen’s programs, both Linda and her students have been able to spend more time outside connecting with nature.

Claudia Bolli is one of our School Ground Greening Consultants based in Edmonton, Alberta. To get in touch with one of our Associates in your area, visit our website or our Expert Assistance page to send your questions to our staff.

Comments Off | In the Field, School Ground Greening | Permalink
Posted by jessicamnagy

A Field Trip to Remember

December 9, 2010

By: Aimee Carson, Community Food Project Manager

The Emmett Ave. Community Gardeners with some of the West Mt. Dennis Community Kitchen Group (Photo: Mike Derblich)

The Emmett Ave. Community Gardeners with some of the West Mt. Dennis Community Kitchen Group (Photo: Mike Derblich)

I remember the 45 minute bike ride from my home to our meeting spot at West Mt. Dennis United Church. It was a rainy Saturday morning and chilly for mid-September. We were a group of community gardeners and cooks, taking a field trip to the St. Jacob’s Market in Waterloo and excited to capitalize on all the fresh produce still available from Ontario producers.

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Comments Off | Food, In the Field | Permalink
Posted by jessicamnagy

All Hands in the Dirt: Montreal Edition

December 6, 2010

Community taking action in Mount Royal park in 2010 (Photos: Evergreen)

Mount Royal is a beautiful park in the heart of Montreal. It’s host to mature forest habitats and has a unique and varied history, having been carved into being by glaciers tens of thousands of years ago and has played a continuous role in the shaping of the Montreal area as we know it today.

It’s not surprising that Mount Royal has become such a cherished part of the city’s identity. Rising to the task to keep this park beautiful, Les Amis de la Montagne is a non-profit organization that was founded in 1986 and has dedicated itself to the protection and enhancement of Mount Royal though community involvement and environmental education. Evergreen has been fortunate to work with this fantastic group over the last several years!

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Comments Off | In the Field | Permalink
Posted by Colin from Common Grounds

Today: Send an e-mail, plant a tree…

November 19, 2010
Diageo employee planting native wild ginger into cultivated leaf mold plots at Jericho Beach Park

Just another day at the office (Photo: Laura Smit)

Evergreen BC’s corporate volunteers work hard, in and out of the office.  The following groups dedicated time, money and effort toward restoring nature in Vancouver this year, giving our urban forest (and our stewardship groups) a huge boost!

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Comments Off | Events, In the Field, Native Species, Stewardship and Planting, Vancouver, Volunteer | Permalink
Posted by Laura from Common Grounds Vancouver

New Partnerships Tackle Old Problems

October 18, 2010

 

JVS team at St. Paul's Catholic School. (Photo: Anne Dabrowski)

 

Looking back, I think one of Learning Grounds’ most important accomplishments this summer was a small-scale idea that had a big impact. We were able to tackle one of the largest issues in school ground greening: summer maintenance.

So often we hear from schools who have a beautiful garden, but no one to tend it over the summer months when maintenance is needed. Many times the survival of school gardens falls on the shoulders of one or two dedicated teachers who take it on because there is simply no one else available. And while some schools are able to organize family garden teams over the summer, many schools are left without staff and without options for summer garden maintenance. But this summer, we were lucky enough to be able to create a partnership–the first of its kind in Toronto–that not only ensured three school gardens survived the summer, but also provided much-needed greening opportunities to community members.

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Comments Off | Gardening, In the Field, School Ground Greening | Permalink
Posted by Anne from Learning Grounds

Turning over a new L.E.A.F.

August 26, 2010

Tree Tenders ecard, Photo: L.E.A.F

Are you interested in looking after your trees but not sure where to start? Trees are a great way to beautify a neighbourhood and a little care will go a long way. Our friends at L.E.A.F. are hosting their Tree Tenders Training Course in Markham, September 2, 5, 7, and 11. Many Evergreen staff and dedicated volunteers have attended and successfully completed the course.

“I have taken the course myself and highly recommend it. We are pleased to be a partner in such a great learning opportunity!” – Lisa Fisk, Program Manager, Richmond Hill Stewardship.

“Informative, practical, great instructors and I am consistently using the information and resources I received in the course.” – Kim Sellers, Program Manager, Mississauga Stewardship.

Learn more and register for the Tree Tenders Training course at L.E.A.F!

Comments Off | Events, Green Tips, In the Field, Native Species, Stewardship and Planting, Uncategorized, Volunteer | Permalink
Posted by Kim from Common Grounds

FALL into planting season early!

August 26, 2010

Fall tree planting event Photo: Evergreen

Get a jump on plating in your local area and join Evergreen and our community partners at fall events!  We have many early autumn events planned for the first week of September and many more to come throughout the season across the GTA.

Join us to plant trees, shrubs and wildflowers on Saturday September 11, 10 am-12 noon in Mississauga at Shelby Park and in Scarborough at Morningside Park .  Check out our online event calendar for more on event details.

Comments Off | Events, Green Tips, In the Field, Native Species, Staff, Stewardship and Planting, Toronto, Uncategorized, Volunteer | Permalink
Posted by Kim from Common Grounds

Community Gardening and the Law of Supply and Demand

August 19, 2010

A lush community garden plot. (Photo: Evergreen)

Over the past three years, the number of community gardens in Vancouver has more than doubled, yet the wait lists show no signs of getting any shorter. Green thumbs rose to the City’s challenge of creating 2,010 gardens by 2010 to serve as a legacy of the recent Winter Olympic and Paralympic Games. Despite this huge increase in availability, Andrew Pask of the City’s Social Policy Division, estimates that the wait list for garden plots across the city is “at least in the thousands.”

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2 Comments | Gardening, In the Field, Issues, Vancouver | Permalink
Posted by Allison from Evergreen British Columbia

Community Tree Nurseries Taking Root

August 19, 2010

Evergreen staff and volunteers building seed beds in Richmond Hill. (Photos: Evergreen)

More than 3,000 tiny trees and shrubs from staghorn sumac to white spruce are holding strong in Evergreen’s first native tree nursery, launched in Richmond Hill’s Phyllis Rawlinson Park last fall. Our second nursery, launched this spring at Downsview Park has 800 thriving seedlings of Ontario’s official tree.

Evergreen created these nurseries to improve the hardiness and genetic diversity of the native plants we use across the GTA. It’s also a chance for us to learn how to grow various native species from seeds and seedlings.

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Comments Off | In the Field, Stewardship and Planting, Toronto | Permalink
Posted by Colin from Common Grounds

Friday the Thirteenth Scare: Giant Hogweed

August 13, 2010

Giant Hogweed (Photo: Joe Ferreira, IPM Specialist, City of Brampton)

You may have heard a lot of panic in the news lately about this plant. Even though today is Friday the Thirteenth, we wanted to bring you just the facts:

This towering plant with large, white, umbrella-like flowers may look harmless–or even inviting–but the reality is quite the opposite.  The giant hogweed is an invasive species that produces up to 120,000 seeds that spread by wind and water.  The seeds typically sprout in the first two years but can remain in the ground more than five years, eventually dominating a habitat.  The pesky plant also has natural defenses that can cause various skin irritations.

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Comments Off | In the Field, Issues, News | Permalink
Posted by Kim from Common Grounds

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