Emerald Ash Borer: Tree Damage Reports

If you have ash trees on your property, you are about to suffer a big hit to the appearance of your property. Emerald Ash Borer has been detected on Prince Edward Drive and is undoubtedly spreading throughout our leafy residential  neighborhood. 
The insect was first detected in North America in 2002  and is doing huge amounts of damage killing trees. The Ash Tree is an important part of the Toronto tree canopy and is largely planted on streets and along the ravines network therefore it is important to protect these trees. You can wait for the City and its dwindling budgets and resources to try and wrestle this  huge problem to the ground for you, or you can  shrewdly assess your own property. This affects city and private trees alike: take action now and have the trees on and abutting your property treated.

The Emerald Ash Borer is a small green beetle that looks for Ash Trees to feed and lay it’s eggs in. These eggs turn into larva that feed on the sap wood of the tree so not as many nutrients travel through the canopy of the tree. Here in the City of Toronto, if an Emerald Ash Borer infected tree is not treated, the tree will be dead within 10 years.

There are a number of local tree service companies that can treat your trees  with a chemical injection that has a good track record but the important thing is to go look at your trees after reading up  on superb websites such as:  
http://www.bioforest.ca/index.cfm?fuseaction=content&menuid=34&pageid=1062
http://www.toronto.ca/trees/eab.htm

Map of infestation: www.toronto.ca/trees/pdfs/EABupdatemap.pdf  
This map shows mortality on Prince Edward Drive, South of Bloor  as of February, 2012

While its not the KPRI's job or purpose to  direct you to specific tree services, we include the following local companies (who won't charge you a premium to travel long distances to assess your trees) . We submit the following list in the interests of swiftly addressing a spreading problem:
- Davey Tree  416-241-7191
- Cohen and Master  416-932-0622
- Forest Glen 416-738-4536
- Greenlawn:  905-290-1834
 Thank you


F.T.Campbell , Director

Archived Article: Native Wildflower Gardens - Beauty in Nature

Compiled from information by Metro Parks & Culture 
NATIVE WILDFLOWER GARDENS - BEAUTY IN NATURE 
By George Leja

Sun Row Community Action Site
At the Sun Row Community Action Site (CAS) in Alex Marchetti Park (formerly Sun Row Park), the community has been involved in restoration efforts to improve the ecosystem health of our urban parklands. The park is one of three CAS's chosen for immediate action (out of seventeen sites originally nominated) by the former Humber Watershed Task Force which was coordinated by The Metropolitan Toronto and Region Conservation Authority (M.T.R.C.A).

The Sun Row CAS is located between Islington Avenue and The Westway, south of Dixon Road. You can enter the park via existing trails from Islington Avenue on the west side; Sun Row Drive, Sherin Court, and Emery Circle from the south; The Westway at the east end; as well as McManus Road and Dixington Crescent from the north. Unfortunately, there are no parking areas within the park; however, vehicles can be parked along local streets close to most of the entrances.

As a result of events held at the Sun Row CAS this past year, hundreds of native trees, shrubs, and wildflowers were planted within the park to begin the restoration project. Tree species included: Sugar Maple, White Birch, American Ash, Black Ash, Red Pine, American Elm, Black Cherry, White Ash, Hackberry, White Pine, and White Cedar. Shrubs consisted of Grey Dogwood, Snowberry, Highbush Cranberry, Nannyberry, Downy Serviceberry, Meadowsweet, and Staghorn Sumac. An assortment of wildflowers included: Black Eyed Susan, Penstemon digitalis, Butterfly Milkweed, New England Aster, Heath Aster, Smooth Aster, and Cylindric Blazing Star.

In the Spring of 1998, a large wildflower/butterfly garden will be constructed within the park. The Sun Row CAS project partnership will design the garden in cooperation with The Westway Horticultural Society. The proposed garden will add to the beautification of the park, while at the same time function as a natural habitat to attract a variety of butterflies to the site. It is hoped that the new garden will provide ideas to naturalize portions of local residential, business, and school properties; thus, reducing mowing and the use of fertilizers, pesticides, and herbicides in surrounding landscaped areas.

Funding sources for the Sun Row CAS project include: the M.T.R.C.A., City of Etobicoke, Environment Canada's Great Lakes 2000 Clean-Up Fund, and a generous grant of $9,900.00 from the Canada Trust Friends of the Environment Foundation (Etobicoke Chapter) to the Humber Creek Restoration Group (H.C.R.G).

For more information regarding the Sun Row CAS, phone George Leja of the HCRG at 416-244-9517. 


James Gardens

In 1908 wholesale fish merchant Fred T. James bought 12 acres of farmland in Etobicoke as a country retreat. For the next forty years James carefully transformed his property into a picturesque garden where public visitors were always welcome. Before their main house was built in 1927, the James family lived in the coach house that still stands next door. James operated a fish market where the circular parking lot is today. The terraces and collection pools were built almost fifty years ago using Humber River slate and weeping tiles.

Mr. and Mrs James died in the 1950's leaving James Gardens as their memorial. In 1955 Metro Toronto purchased the gardens. They have acquired new land and now the total area is about 27 acres (14,479 hectares), just over twice its original size. It is now part of the Etienne Brule park system which extends from Lake Ontario to Thristletown.

At the south end of the park, along the Humber banks is a 10 acre picnic and woodland site, left in a natural state. In 1964 authorized the establishment of this area as a wild flower preserve in co-operation with the Federation of Ontario Naturalists.

The main original garden climbs the steep hillside in a variety of terraces and levels, each with its streams, pools and waterfalls. Metro Parks has tried to preserve the atmosphere of this beautiful garden. Ever-running streams and pools, fed by crystal clear hillside springs flows through the expansive lawns, flowering trees and perennials. Flower lovers will revel at the rose garden, the five acre spring garden section with 120,000 tulips, tuberous begonias, water lilies, perennials and annuals.

In 1969, a bowling green was established to the east off Edenbridge Drive and the James Gardens Lawn Bowling Club came into existence.

There is no admission Fee and no parking charge.

Vehicles can enter James Gardens from Edenbridge Drive. The park is only ten minutes walk along Edenbridge Drive from Royal York 73 bus stop. Pedestrians and cyclists can travel through the park on the Tommy Thompson Trail.

Archived Article: Montgomery's Meadow Native Wildflower Planting Project

MONTGOMERY'S MEADOW NATIVE WILDFLOWER PLANTING PROJECT

Building on the City of Etobicoke's success of the 1996 Communities in Bloom competition whereby the city was recognized nationally for its Community Involvement and Environmental awareness, the Montgomery's Meadow wildflower planting was intended to be an experimental and learning site for future naturalized native meadow plantings. The plan was to plant approximately 12,000 wildflower plugs of a variety of suitable indigenous native species encompassing an area of nearly 2,000 square metres. This planting was to be performed by organized groups of volunteers including the Etobicoke Horticultural Society, the Montgomery Rate Payers Association, Girl Guides, Etobicoke Collegiate Institute, Our Lady of Sorrows School and the community. The success of Phase One surpassed our expectations and has led to great enthusiasm to move forward with Phase Two.

Our local government budgets are being cut each year. We, as citizens, can be proactive by becoming involved in environmental initiatives. Etobicoke is fortunate in our parks and forestry department is encouraging and supportive, and give of their own time to assist with the many projects that the community has undertaken.

Montgomery's Meadow is situated within Central Park, just south of Montgomery's Inn (Dundas Street West and Islington Ave.). The site was difficult to manage from a Parks Operations perspective and was identified as a desirable area to be naturalized. As well as Montgomery's Inn, the site is also contiguous to a well-used section of the City bicycle/pedestrian path system. Although the site is located within the valley lands of the Mimico Creek, the recessed exposure of the site affords great learning opportunities for area school children, local citizens, as well as habitat creation for wildlife within the valley.

Replacing the turf with native vegetation would permit the Mimico Creek to act as an ecological link with other habitat restoration projects. In this way we could provide some meadow habitat for rabbits and voles and song birds at all seasons. We also hoped to keep overwintering butterfly chrysalises and other insects.

Native plant selection is in keeping with the historical context of the site and describes a typical meadow in this area at time of settlement. All of the plants we used were native to Southern Ontario and most reflect local genetic adaptations. In this way we hoped to preserve locally specific species of wildflowers.

The project also provided an opportunity to promote the values of natural communities to the public. Familiarity with the native plant communities in our neighbourhoods encourages an appreciation of the inherent beauty and diversity. It encourages an accommodation of these native plants in places where we live.

The goals of the project therefore were to:

1.        Enhance the natural environment through the planting of native wildflowers.

2.        Promote community stewardship. Protecting and nurturing our natural areas provides the community with a sense of place and ownership, resulting in pride and satisfaction.

3.        Become a model demonstration site of different techniques of clearing, planting and maintenance.

Canada Trust through their AFriends of the Environment Foundation gives organizations grants for environmental projects. The Etobicoke Horticultural Society, as a non profit organization and lead partner offered to apply to Canada Trust for a grant of $5,000.00 for the native plant Aplugs. These were purchased from Otter Valley Native Plants and included Swamp Milkweed, Butterfly Milkweed, Monarda fistulosa, Penstemon digitalis, Columbine, Purple Stemmed Aster, Great Blue Lobelia, Geranium, Woodland Sunflower, Carex pensylvanica, Switch Grass, and Rudbeckia hirta to name a few. Native plant seed had previously been collected by others and given to the Humber College School of Horticulture and the Etobicoke Parks Department Greenhouses where seedlings were also grown. Jack in the Pulpits, May Flowers and other native plants were donated. The Etobicoke Parks & Forestry Division also provided forestry staff to assist in preparing the site.

The Meadow was divided into two areas:

1.        An area for late summer-blooming prairie-type flowers which would stand through the winter and be mown in mid-spring.

2.        An area of spring blooming flowers which would be mown in late summer. A yearly mowing is necessary to maintain the meadow-nature of the site.

In late April 1997 the turf was removed by a combination of processes including black plastic and wood chips. Within eight weeks the turf under the plastic was dead and we were ready to get started. In early June, a teacher from Etobicoke Collegiate Institute used the project to involve his students in environmental studies and the students spent one to two hours each day for a week helping to prepare the site, plant shrubs and wildflower plugs (in grids of six plants, 10 inches apart.) The horticultural society organized two evening community planting events where members and the public were invited to bring a trowel and gloves and help plant. The press were invited and even local councillors came down. Approximately 36 volunteers showed up each evening and worked in teams. At the end of each evening the plants were watered and for the next few weeks the watering was done by the parks department staff. Our Lady of Sorrows School also came to help. In some areas mulch was used to keep unwanted weeds out while the young plants became established.

By September, three months after planting, many of the plants were in flower and most plants had survived our dry summer. The plant growth was beyond our expectations. Some knowledgeable local residents would even weed where necessary while strolling in the park. A bench was donated by Etobicoke Hort. Society so residents might rest awhile under the trees.

Planting for Phase Two has already started. A second grant was approved by Canada Trust for another $5,000 to extend our naturalized planting area; to install a protective split rail fencing around the area most liable to damage from foot traffic; build a Achipmunk wall to provide habitat to encourage an increase in the remnant chipmunk population of the area and erect interpretive signage. In September a community planting was organized one Saturday morning when twenty-eight adults and children planted another 1,400 plants. The chipmunk habitat was completed in November and more shrubs planted. The spilt rail fence was install in December.

Anyone who wishes to start another similar project and would like more information may contact Murray Cameron, Barbara Clarke, Cathy Faber, Debby Morton or Trish Murphy.