A Gardening Labour of Love
Butterflyway Rangers need help battling invaders
Got a moment to spare for your garden this long weekend?
Lions Bay Butterflyway Rangers Val Morton and Hana Boye would love it if you would fill a bag with invasive plants to help nurture native plants and insect life in Lions Bay.
With insect populations declining worldwide, Morton says that one thing we can all do is help restore the native ecosystem. "Planting native plants and avoiding the use of pesticides is a great way to start," she says. "But we can also remove invasive plants from our property."
Morton and Boye are calling on Lions Bay residents to join a Village-wide effort to put out one bag or bin of invasive ivy (or other invasive plants like Himalayan blackberry, lamium, periwinkle or morning glory) out for the green waste (compost) pickup on Friday, September 11.
They are asking residents to mark the bag or bin with a butterfly symbol like the one below, and the Butterflyway Rangers will canvas the Village on Friday to record the result. They are hoping every household will take part, making the Village just a little more amenable to native plant and insect life.
"Any outline of a butterfly would do on the bag or bin," says Morton. "It can be a rough sketch with a sharpie, just so we can see it as we drive around."
"There are lots of ways to make this a fun activity," she adds. "You can get together with neighbours and possibly help out elderly people who might not be able to do the heavy pulling. Maybe make it a block party?"
In a letter to Village gardeners, Morton calls this Labour Day week effort an awareness-raising event, and notes that it doesn't have to be an onerous task.
"It's wonderful to include children and teens in an event such as this, because it teaches them when they are young to take care of the environment. Even putting a small amount of ivy into the bag can be a teaching moment for young kids. Teens can also use this as service hours for their school requirements. We can provide documentation if they need it."
Interested gardeners can find more information on West Vancouver's latest invasive plant strategy (HERE), which offers further suggestions for identification and disposal of a wide variety of invasive plants in the region.
More information on the Butterflyway Rangers and their garden initiatives can be found on their Facebook page HERE.
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