flora and fauna

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June 12, 2007

Field Notes: Dame’s Rocket (Hesperis matronalis)

Posted by greenlivingottawa under Ottawa, flora and fauna
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You may have noticed this lovely flower growing in large patches along the edges of rivers and streams and in ditches and woodland areas around Ottawa. Its name is Dame’s Rocket or Dame’s violet (Hesperis matronalis).

Although it is certainly lovely to look at, Dame’s Rocket is considered an invasive species in Canada. It was brought over from Europe a long time ago as an ornamental plant for gardens but has since escaped cultivation and infiltrated our ecosystems where it out competes native wildflowers for resources and space.

For a full list of all the herbaceous plants that are considered invasive species go to the Canadian Botanical Conservation Network’s website.

 

June 7, 2007

The Royal Swans are Out!

Posted by greenlivingottawa under Ottawa, flora and fauna
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The royal swans have been released this year. They were kept in their “overwintering” facility all summer last year because of unfounded staff fears over avian flu. There was local and national outcry over their captivity last year because the facility–which some dubbed swantanamo bay–was not set up for year-long inhabitation.

So far the two pairs living near us seem to be fairing well despite their long captivity. The photo above is of a pair of black swans (Cygnus atratus) who have set up home in the reeds near the Bank Street bridge of the Rideau River. There is a pair of white Mute swans (Cygnus olor), who have taken up residence on the other side of the bridge, across from the Billings Bridge Mall.

Queen Elizabeth II gave six pairs of mute swans to the City of Ottawa in 1967 in honour of Canada’s 100th birthday. The Mute swans you see in the river today are descendants of these original six pairs. The first pair of Australian black swans were obtained from the Montreal Zoo in 1974 in a trade. For more info see the FAQ’s on the City’s website.

If you see a sick or injured swan please contact the City immediately through their emergency 3-1-1 number.

 

May 21, 2007

Finding Native Trees and Shrubs for Renaturalizing Gardens in Ottawa

Posted by greenlivingottawa under 100-mile, Ottawa, flora and fauna, household, transportation
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ferguson.jpg

One of the biggest challenges in creating a naturalized garden in Ottawa is finding native nursery stock. I attended a public lecture this past winter on attracting wildlife to a garden that was given by the friends of the Central Experimental Farm and Fletcher Wildlife Garden. The Ferguson Forest Center in Kemptville came up at this talk as a place to purchase shrubs and trees as did the Evergreen Canada on-line database of native plants.

In order to determine what to plant along a partially-shaded strip to the West of our house I used Evergreen Canada’s database. This database is a fantastic resource allowing you to search for plants according to about 50 different criteria and enabling you to create on-line lists and projects for your gardens. I came up with a list of ten plants for my particular project that were under 3 m, tolerant of drought, tolerant of shade, provide food for a variety of wildlife and are native to Ontario.

The May Two-Four weekend being the traditional time to plant in Ottawa (amongst other activities), my husband and I set out in a Vrtucar for Kemptville early Saturday morning (Ferguson Forest Centre is open to the general public on weekdays and from 8:30 am to 3:00 pm on Saturdays). Clear directions on getting to the Centre are available on their website.

The prices on container stock were extremely reasonable: $10 per pot. And the plants themselves looked healthy and in the case of the dogwood I purchased were about 3 to 4 feet in height. Much better prices than anything you’ll find at a nursery in town and the centre was originally set up to supply stock for large scale reforestation projects so there is an emphasis on native plants that you won’t find elsewhere. Using the Ferguson Forest Centre an average sized urban garden could easily be renaturalized for under $250.

Ferguson Forest Centre, 275 County Rd. 44, R.R. #4, Kemptville, Ontario, K0G 1J0, (613) 258-0110, Toll Free at 1-888-791-1103

 

May 17, 2007

Tree-planting With the City Stream Watch Program

Posted by greenlivingottawa under 100-mile, Ottawa, flora and fauna
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I spent my morning planting trees along Mosquito Creek off of Spratt Road in the south of Ottawa with three other volunteers and the two staff people of the Rideau Valley Conservation Authority’s City Stream Watch Program. Between the 6 of us we managed to plant 200 trees and shrubs including bur oak, red osier dogwood, highbush cranberry and spruce. The plantings were done in an area that had been planted last year and those volunteers who had come out last year were excited to see that many of the saplings they had planted had survived the winter and were doing well.

The City Stream Watch program is in its fifth year. The goals of the program are to obtain and manage information on the health of city streams. To this end volunteers conduct macro stream assessments on various streams within the City of Ottawa under the supervision of City Stream Watch staff persons. The program also organizes tree plantings to stabilize stream banks as well as clean-up days. There are currently well over 100 volunteers with the program.

The next City Stream Watch Volunteer Training Workshop will be held on May 26 from 9 a.m. to noon in the small park at the mouth of Sawmill Creek about 100 m east of Bank St Bridge and westbound Riverside Dr. Please contact Grant Nichol if you plan to attend. You can also contact Grant Nichol if you are interested in volunteering with the program but cannot attend the workshop and other arrangements for training can be made.

Grant Nichol, City Stream Watch Coordinator, (613) 580-2424 ext. 22886
grant.nichol@ottawa.ca

 

May 16, 2007

Peace and Environment News

Posted by greenlivingottawa under 100-mile, clothing, energy, flora and fauna, food, household, organic, transportation, waste reduction
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Peace and Environment News, the PEN, is Ottawa’s longest running source of information on local environmental and social justice issues and solutions. It is available for free at libraries and assorted health food stores, book stores, community centres etc. You can also subscribe to PEN through making a donation to the Peace and Environment Resource Centre. After some months’ delay back issues are also made available on-line.

Besides articles of local, national and international interest, the PEN also features a two-page calendar of upcoming Ottawa environmental, peace and social justice events as well as listings of local activist groups, e-mail bulletins, radio and tv-shows.

The May-June issue includes articles on revisioning democracy in municipal politics, a review of the greenness (or lack there of) of the municipal budget, a green design for Tucker House, homelessness in Ottawa, lobbying for a turtle sanctuary, greening sacred space, banning cluster munitions and a new farmers’ market in Cumberland.  PEN will be on summer holidays so the next issue will not come out until September.

For information on how to submit a story or an event notice go to their website: http://www.perc.ca/PEN/ 

 

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