Poor weather did not deter the Greater Victoria Green Team this Sunday, October 18th. In the drizzly mist, volunteers met to remove English Ivy threatening native plants and the biodiversity of UVic Mystic Vale. Director of Restoration of Natural Systems and UVic Professor Nancy Shackelford and co-op student and UVic’s Ecological Restoration Club leader John Kang are leading a photo monitoring project to track how the Vale is responding to the ivy being removed. Specifically, the project is tracking how quickly the ivy regrows and what native species return to restore the area. The GVGT and UVic are thankful for the help from our volunteers on this incredible project. In total, 45 people joined us, logging 80 hours!
THANK YOU
Thank you to our volunteers: Matthew, Siena, Meghan, Jorge, Fiona, Walker, Teja, Geraldine, Celeste, Christina, Rika, Ayako, Alexi, Sophie, Zuva, Vicki, Fang, Liam, Lea, Anu (& her pack of nine!), Oceana, Barb, Josie, Andre, Lily, Ola, Alex, Tyson, Sydnie, Sal, Joel, Nicole, Oliver, John, and Aaron!
Thank you to the University of Victoria for your continued support! Environmental stewardship is a collaborative effort and we appreciate your dedication and effort restoring the Vale. We’re looking forward to next time already!
A Photo Albums from the day are found here: 1st Session & 2nd Session!
Group Photos!
Highlights
- In total 45 GVGT volunteers came out and removed 7 cubic metres of English Ivy. Our efforts totalled more than 80 volunteer hours!
- 20 people were introduced to the park and 18 people had never removed invasive species before!
- Thank you to our in-kind sponsors who donated thank you gifts to our community: EarthRated dog poop bags, tea lights from Honey Candles, Lush hard perfume and West Coast Seeds.
Participant Quotes
It felt satisfying to clear the mass of ivy away, and everyone was so friendly. The snacks were also awesome!
It’s wonderful to restore the island habitat to what it is naturally meant to be!
I enjoyed being part of a team and securing the beauty of Mystic Vale for the future.
