The Greater Victoria Green Team spent the day engaging 25 community members in Uplands Park restoring the habitats from invasive species.

We primarily removed Daphne, with English Ivy and Crow Garlic removed as well. Daphne causes a serious threat to Garry Oak ecosystems, a precious and incredibly endangered habitat located only here in Southeastern Vancouver Island and on the Gulf Islands. Uplands Park is home to more than 20 endangered plant species, with likely more that have not been seen. Invasive species cause very high risk to these plants that are critical to the survival of the Garry Oak ecosystem. Some of the native species we saw in the area were Great and Common Camas, Chocolate Lillies, Western Honeysuckle and Biscuitroot!

THANK YOU

Thank-you to everyone for participating: Kevin, Chenxi, Kevin, Joe, Margaret, Meg, Edna, Leo, Camila, Wanda, Allyson, Ramisa, John, Alex, Thadd, Denise, Clarisse, Miki, Chloe, Nisa, Richard, Cindy, Olga, Houtian, Hong, Katia, Maria, Amanda and Margaret!

Thank-you very much to the Friends of Uplands Park and the District of Oak Bay for partnering with us and contributing to our Green Team activities and for recognizing the importance of collaboration in community engagement and ecological restoration!

Group Photo!

Highlights

• In total 25 community members participated and contributed to 68 volunteer hours!
• 21 volunteers were introduced to Uplands Park, while 3 volunteers had never removed invasive species before!
• We removed 7 cubic metres of invasive plants!
• We worked in the very field with Margaret Lidkea and FOUP started restoration efforts in 1992!

Before and After Photos

This activity not only benefitted the environment, but also the participants themselves. By being out in nature doing something positive as a team, our community members:

• Develop a sense of belonging to community and place
• Have improved mental and physical health
• Connect to nature, which leads to environmentally responsible behaviour
• Learn about local environmental issues and actions they can take
• Learn the value of bringing together people to work towards a common goal
• Become leaders in their communities
• Increase confidence, resilience and perseverance

Action Shots

Thank you to Green Beaver, Ed’s Soup Shack, Level Ground Coffee and Tru-Earth for gifting In-Kind rewards for our hard working volunteers!