I attended a canoe garden installation in Burlington held by Halton Environmental Network, Reach Out Center For Kids (ROCK) and Arthouse Halton. If you’re wondering what exactly a canoe garden is, it’s just like it sounds, a garden planted in a canoe.
The point of a canoe garden is to fill it with native plant species that have co-evolved with our native pollinators for thousands of years. These plants will create a habitat specific to our local pollinators and animals. As well as looking pretty, butterflies play a critical role in our environment as pollinators. Recently the populations of pollinators have been decreasing causing a decline in local crop production, the diversity of plant species and the animals that rely on them. By planting a canoe garden, we are increasing the sustainability of our local ecosystems and agriculture.
As well as the garden’s environmental benefits, our partners at Arthouse Halton helped make this canoe garden a piece of art. Arthouse organized an after-school program for children from the community to put their imagination to work by painting their ideas about nature onto the canoe. Our partners at ROCK are going to use the canoe to promote mental wellbeing in the community. They intend for the canoe gardens to become a source of pride for the children of the community and help people connect under a common goal, gardening, which can also be used for horticulture therapy.
If you are interested in making your own canoe garden, contact Halton Environmental Network at info@haltonenvironment.ca
Our community partners Reach Out Centre for Kids (ROCK) and ArtHouse
Contributed by Luca, Co-op Student at Halton Environmental Network