100+ students & staff collaborate to create pollinator garden

On September 27, 74 ERS 100 students and 35 volunteers joined the Sustainability Office to restore a greenspace overrun with invasive species to a pollinator’s oasis. Volunteers included staff, members of SER UW, Greenhouse Changemakers, as well as students from all six faculties, highlighting the achievements that can be made when we come together to work towards a common goal.  

The plan for the pollinator garden was based off student restoration projects from ERS 341 as part of a Living Labs project. The Sustainability Living Lab program provides a diverse range of opportunities for experiential learning to build sustainability leadership and improve campus. The garden includes 489 native plants from 18 different species, creating a biodiverse habitat that can support many organisms. Two plant species included strawberries and Saskatoon berry shrubs, providing snacks for the campus community too! Funding for the plants was generously provided by the Invasive Species Centre’s Invasive Species Action Fund.  

This restoration project comes to a successful conclusion after 4 events and 148 volunteers removed invasive buckthorn and garlic mustard and planted native species in their place.  

Interested in supporting campus biodiversity? Join the Sustainability Office for our fall tree plantings, occurring on October 3rd, October 4th, and October 11th.