Oh, Mr. Sun, Sun, Mr. Golden Sun…
June 2nd, 2011, 3:34 pm
Today was a most productive day for us. We started off by getting together and while some of us were finalizing a design plan for the cell garden, others were making phone calls for more donations, and one person went to meet with the Media team about getting a new sign for the post in front of the Ecohouse. A few different options were discussed with both groups, and we will reconvine next day to discuss their viability.
We managed to get 10 bags of soil donated to us before we even left Lebel to go work on site, and one of members (along with a certain helpul person from the Engineering group) took off to go pick it up right away!
After a talk with Justin about our midterm, we took off for the Ecohouse, and continued our productive day. We managed to get quite a bit done, as we finished two whole planters, bringing our total up to 3. Thank goodness the weather is finally co-operating!
We cleared the areas of woodchips and cardboard, put down fresh cardboard, and made holes in it for our flowers. We planted more Marigolds and a few Black-Eyed Susans in these new planters, and covered the area with topsoil and peatmoss, and watered.
Pretty Marigolds
Clearing area for the second plot
Planting the second garden
Watering what we planted last day
The Marigolds we planted previously around the signpost are already looking taller, and some of the old wildflowers are growing back as well! We greatly hope we can continue working at this pace, and although the lack of enough tools for the whole team is a hinderance, we make the best of it by working alternately and everyone taking initiative to be productive in their tool-less time.
As this day ends, we still wait for more donations of flowers and soil, and are ever-hopeful for the days ahead.
Mudplay
May 26th, 2011, 9:16 pm
May 25, 2010
Today our group did the presentation. In the presentation we talked about the goals for our project. The feedback we received from Noel was to remove the weeds even more by using a Bobcat. Remove wood chips from the ground, try to get permission for an osprey post. Also, have other members of the class to help us out one of the afternoons.
After the class we all went to the the eco house to dig holes and plant in them. While we were doing it we had individuals from the earth ship project show up to unload their materials onto the other half of the plot. There were some other students that came to help our planting efforts, but were unable to do much because of the inclement weather.
Two of the group members are digging the trench for the grass partition. 
Here two of the members are planting the border for the sign.
some of the plants donated to us.
The Need to Seed
June 17th, 2010, 2:53 am
The Wildflower group had an exciting event happen recently- WE BOUGHT OUR WILDFLOWER SEEDS- YAY! Not only does this mean we are that much closer to planting the garden but also we are that much closer to actually having the garden grow. Lauren and Tokio made the exciting trip to Ojibway Nature Centre to purchase the seeds. Some of the reasons we chose to buy the seeds from Ojibway Nature Centre were: extremely affordable prices ($2.50/seed canister), the seeds are harvested from plants and flowers that grow in Ojibway Nature reserve and it supports a local environment and establishment. Unfortunately two types of seeds that we were really looking forward to having grow in the garden were not available-Wild Bergamot and Butterfly Milkweed. We were hoping to grow these because they are known to attract butterflies. Oh well, it gives us something to plan for next time. Next step…PLANTING! Stay tuned…
The seeds we purchased from Ojibway Nature Centre
‘Digging up’ Information on Windsor’s Aboriginal Roots
May 26th, 2010, 11:03 pm
In an attempt at uprooting almost forgotten knowledge on Windsor’s Aboriginal heritage, the Demonstration Wildflower Garden Group is researching the symbolism and medicinal purposes of the local plants used at one time by the Ojibway Tribe. The First Nations are the ideal versions of green living as they recognized and used every part of a plant without waste. By incorporating these traditional practices and plants into a modern wildflower garden it is the hope of the group that it will connect Windsor on a deeper level with its original roots while inspiring green living through the creation of wildflower gardens. Trips to Ojibway Park Nature Centre (top image) revealed a collection of wildflower seeds for sale which are native to the land along with information regarding proper conditions for the growing of each plant. As well, the University’s own Turtle Island yielded a vast library of Aboriginal knowledge (bottom two images).
