Please note: You must pre-register for this talk as space is limited. There will a $10.00 fee to attend. Contact Ceci Leigh for more information.

Sold out. Contact Ceci to be put on the waiting list.

Our gardens come alive when visited by birds, bees, butterflies and beneficial insects. This illustrated talk provides practical information about how to create welcoming habitat that meets the full life-cycle needs of beneficial insects.

Lorraine Johnson has been writing about gardening as a force for ecological and social change for more than 30 years, in numerous books such as Green Future; Tending the Earth; The Ontario Naturalized Garden; Grow Wild; The Real Dirt; City Farmer; 100 Easy-to-Grow Native Plants for Canadian Gardens, and the recently published A Garden for the Rusty-Patched Bumblebee (co-authored with Sheila Colla). In this illustrated talk, Lorraine shares stories and readings from these works, looking at what we can learn from efforts to rethink some gardening traditions in order to take us into a future of ecological health and justice. Prepare for some humour and some provocation, unified by the idea that our gardens matter now more than ever.

“Lorraine Johnson has been one of the most constant and helpful advocates of putting native plants back into the garden.” – A History of Canadian Gardening, by Carol Martin, published in 2000

Lorraine’s new book A Garden for the Rusty-Patched Bumblebee, in addition to some of her other books will be available for sale with author signing following the talk.

Did you know that to manufacture bricks or concrete massive amounts of CO2 emissions are produced? Primal Patch is a new business with sustainability in mind when it comes to garden construction. They use real stone for their patios and lay by hand.

Laura and Robert Johnson design and build landscape elements such as stone patios and native gardens with the environment front and centre.

Laura went to George Brown college in Toronto for Construction Project Management and began working for a small construction business in Cobourg.  Within a year or two the company grew substantially and they ended up winning bids on large projects such as Venture 13 in Cobourg and Regency Retirement here in Lakefield.  Laura learned how to read blueprints, interpret building codes and work with the other trades to achieve their goals within budget.

Growing up on a family operated beef farm outside of Bobcaygeon Robert has never been scared of a hard day’s work.  In the summers he worked as a labourer for a local landscaper that specialized in local stone work.  Robert has had a passion for natural stonescapes ever since.  Robert has almost 20 years of building experience, is a trained health and safety representative and brings his meticulous eye to every project.

With their drive for Entrepreneurship, Roberts know how and having their  hearts set on conservation, wthey launched Primal Patch in 2021. Their goal is to create yards inclusive of the natural environment while still respecting our cultural needs for aesthetics.

Tuesday September 13th will be our first in person meeting … well …in a long time.

We welcome you back!

Vikki from Griffins greenhouses will be our guest speaker.

“All Fall: Planting and Décor for a Transition into Autumn.”

 Bulbs

• Fall Planters
• Perennial Planting in the Fall:  Dos and Don’ts
• Fall Décor

 Vikki will also offer a door prize! 

Vikki always entertains no matter what she presents. So this will be a meeting you won’t want to miss.

There will be a few restrictions. We will not offer refreshments and this meeting will be for members only.