Calling for stories from the Park…..!

Do you have any reminiscences about your time in Grenville Park? There have got to be lots of really good stories over the past 75 years and we would like to capture them as we can. We have recently received one story from a former resident reminiscing about growing up here and we would like to build on that one. Stories can then be archived in the member section of the website.

Since arriving here we have heard so many stories of people arriving in the neighbourhood for the first time and saying they had lived in Kingston for years and never known this beautiful place was here, me included. We all found the park in our own time and I know there are great stories to share just like the ones now archived in our 50th anniversary history book. The communications committee would be happy to collect the stories and post them as they arrive.

If your inner author/novelist is so inclined please write to the Grenville Park email address with attention to the communications committee and we can follow up. Looking forward to fabulous stories, thanks in advance.

Posted on behalf of the communications committee

David Williams

City tree planting program

The City of Kingston Neighbourhood Tree Planting Program 2022 opened March 1. Place your order for trees (limit of 2 per resident) to plant on your property by following this link.

https://www.cityofkingston.ca/resident/trees-nature/neighbourhood-tree-planting-program

If you wish to donate a tree to the Park, we will gratefully accept all donations, except evergreens (Colorado Blue Spruce, White Pine, White Spruce). At this point we are not looking for evergreens. You can place your own order, then inform the Parks and Recreation Committee or if you need help placing an order for donation, please call or email Pamela Hodgson, PRC chair.

pollinator garden planted

Thanks to Hannah Anderson, Caitlin Wimmer, Emily Wimmer and Ryan Anderson (not shown) who

planted 6 different species of wildflowers on Friday June 25, 2021 in Grenville Park’s first Pollinator Garden.

Take a stroll in the park to enjoy the garden located not far from the Phillips St entrance. We hope many bees and butterflies will visit Butterfly milkweed Asclepias tuberosa, Dense blazing star Liatris spicata, Wild oats gramma Bouteloua curtipendula, Green-headed coneflower Rudbeckia laciniata, Prairie smoke Geum triflorum, Thimbleweed Anemonoe virfiniana.

Dr. Tallamy’s on “Nature’s Best Hope”

On May 4, 2021, Grenville Park and the Rideau 1,000 Islands Master Gardeners hosted Dr. Doug Tallamy, world-renowned ecologist and New York Times best-selling author from the University of Delaware's Department of Entomology and Wildlife Ecology. Dr. Tallamy’s presentation entitled “Nature’s Best Hope” was engaging and entertaining and his message of supporting species diversity in our home gardens was truly inspiring. If you missed it, we have the link to the presentation (unfortunately, the first minute is clipped) as well as some of the comments from audience members: 

 ·      Oh. My. Goodness. What a fabulous presentation by Doug Tallamy!  This is helping to reshape and revitalize my approach to landscaping and regeneration of land in my care.

 ·      What an ambassador for nature!  He set out a challenge but made it sound achievable. I am very glad I attended this webinar. Thank you to the Master Gardeners and Grenville Park for sponsoring the event.

 ·      I really enjoyed this presentation and felt it was uplifting. No doom and gloom about never being able to fix the world, but simple strategies that we can all do relatively easily. It made me feel that I can do something. 

 ·      That was a great talk. I learned a lot, especially about caterpillars being the main food source for nestlings. My inclination has always been to smear them when I see them on the trees I’ve planted (I will still do that to tent caterpillars…), but now I will let them be. 

 ·      Thank you Dr. Tallamy: I’ve read “Nature’s best hope” recently and preached it to everyone I know! I’m happy to report that my 11 and 8 yr old just sat through your presentation tonight and we all enjoyed it! Time to dig up our lawn now!

 ·      Thanks so much to Doug and the organizers for a splendid talk and a wonderfully inspiring occasion!

 ·      Fantastic presentation. I look forward to getting a link to the recording to pass along 

 ·      Thanks so much for bringing us all a wonderful presentation from Dr. Tallamy. It’s a great gift to the community.

PRESENTATION: moved off-line but available from website administrators

Photo Credit: GPCHA Resident, David Graham

Photo Credit: GPCHA Resident, David Graham

No Mow May part II ?

After spearheading the "No mow May" initiative in Grenville Park, John Clark takes to his meadow-like lawn with a bush hog on June 1. Thanks, John - let's help the pollinators again next year!