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Mono’s pollinator garden wrapping up for year

November 10, 2017   ·   0 Comments

By Jasen Obermeyer

Construction of Mono’s pollinator garden, located on Hockley Road adjacent to the Headwaters Tourism office, has wrapped up for the year, and despite the lackluster summer, has seen successful planting of various plants, shrubs, trees, and flowers.

The garden, originally proposed to Mono Council in 2015 by Councillors Sharon Martin and Ralph Manktelow, is designed to not only serve as an educational tool to inform people on pollinators, but to also help preserve and enhance the natural pollinator environment in Mono.

The first year, 2016, was focused on tiling and plowing the area, while this year’s focus has been on planting.

Through various grants from Dufferin County and the Town of Mono, as well as individual donations, 1130 flowering plants, perennials, as well as 787 trees and shrubs, has been put into the garden so far. Some of the trees and flowers include spruce and maples, to act as windbreakers, along with milkweed.

Twenty-five volunteers came out to do planting in September, which Councillor Martin described as a “great day,” and was part of a corporate tree-planting program organized by TD Bank.

Cedar fences have been installed, along with woodchip walkways. The volunteers are finishing up by putting mulch and doing weeding.

Councillor Manktelow says they are working on rehabilitating the natural stream on the property, along with creating signage, specifically educational – “what is pollination, what are the plants particularly useful, and plants that are easier to grow, that sort of thing.”

In regards to planting, he says they are half-way through planting, as it’s a “work in progress,” and plan to have another major planting day next spring. “It will just be maintenance from there on I suspect.”

He explained how the trees and shrubs are good sources of pollination, not just for bees, but butterflies as well. “Willows and maple produce a lot of nectars and pollen.”

Councillor Martin says she hasn’t seen anything die off yet, which is very surprising. “I think this is quite remarkable… so far so good, it’s really looking amazing.”

She adds that reception has been very positive so far.

Councillor Manktelow says the floods during the summer, particularly the one on June 23, almost “washed us away,” and they had to rework the trails, and put in some mounds, to create high ground for the plants.

Councillor Martin says a big cleanup followed the flood, but, “because we had so much rain, it really helped. We didn’t have to be watering all the time.”

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