The pollinator garden has grown into something beautiful!
by Donna Whalley, Manager of Grand Marais Community Central and RV Park and Volunteer Committee Member on Beaches of 59
In early April, Maggie Svaling, the “Master Gardener” called up Donna Whalley, manager of the Grand Marais Community Central and RV Park looking for a community gardening project to work on while she was out at the lake this summer. Donna offered Maggie the Teardrop Garden at the entrance of the RV Park, as it was desperately in need of some love. After meeting and seeing the area Maggie fell in love with the spot and planned to turn it into a Native Plant Pollinator Garden with plants from the area.
Maggie is a seasonal resident of Grand Marais who was looking to start a Garden Club in the Grand Marais/Grand Beach area. Her idea was to create a native plant pollinator garden and her vision was to create many of these in the area for the benefit of insects, birds and animals. Not only could this help the environment, it would also add more beauty to the town.
Donna got in contact with Skyler from the Manitoba Metis Federation, regarding information, plants, etc. Skyler was onboard with the idea and reached out to others for more information. In late May, Henry, from Grand Marais Community Central and Mark, a member of the Beaches of 59 Green Team, rototilled the area in preparation for Maggie to work her magic that weekend!
Maggie is a Manitoba Master Gardener and a Master Composter. She is a past board member of the Riverview Garden Society and past Membership coordinator for Gardens Manitoba. Her passion has lead her to create many gardens in both Winnipeg and Grand Marais. In 2018, her front yard garden in Winnipeg was featured in the Urban Retreats Garden Tour.
“As a seasonal resident of Grand Marais, I want to do my part to help beautify our little town. I feel there is a lot of potential to make Grand Marais a beautiful resort community. Flower gardens can do just that!”
“I was inspired by David Suzuki’s Butterfly Way Project and want to make this project happen in Grand Marais. My hope is that the garden at Grand Marais Community Central will inspire cottagers and residents to create their own Butterfly Way. We all need to do our part to protect the pollinators and help fight climate change; and who doesn’t love flowers, bees, and butterflies (and all the other beneficial insects)!“ says Maggie Svaling.
https://davidsuzuki.org/take-action/act-locally/butterflyway/
Plants for the garden have been donated from other gardens of family and friends. Fellow Master Gardener, Lois MacLennan, has been able to source many of the plants from other Master Gardeners’ gardens in Winnipeg. Plants were also purchased from Prairie Originals in Selkirk like Big Bluestem, Joe Pye, Pink Onion, Wild Bergamot to name a few that may be new to you!
Our plan is to have at least 50% native perennials. The garden will provide a nesting habitat and overwintering habitat for bees and other beneficial insects. No fall cleanup will be done and spring cleanup will not take place until all the beneficial bugs have awoken in the spring (likely around the May long-weekend). No pesticides will used in the garden.
Plants are just getting established and some are still quite small. Even though we don’t have a lot of blooms yet, we have seen many butterflies, bees and even a hummingbird moth checking out the new space. Volunteers are always welcome to join our Garden Club to help with weeding, watering and planting. Please inquire at the centre if you are interested.
The Grand Marais Community Central is looking for Pollinator plant donations that they can add to the garden. They will welcome any and all donation’s that will fit the theme of the “growing” garden.