1. LHAP 304 Overview - 3 Hours
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1. LHAP 304 - Sustainable Horticultural Practices: Overview
2. Ecosystems Review
Green = Boreal Forest Yellow = Parkland/Grassland
- Purple = Montane
All plants we learn originate from some that are native somewhere on the planet earth. It may be helpful to imagine each of these plants in its native habitat so you can put the right plant in the right place.
3. Today’s trends in Horticulture
- Food Security - Quality and Quantity
Longevity of the Earth - Biodiversity, Climate Change, Water Purity and Supply
Mental Wellness - Partly because of COVID, before that because of our disconnect from nature.
4. Food Security: Food Forests, Community gardens and Natural medicine…
5. Taking the concept of the community garden and scaling up, expanding the footprint
- Read more by clicking here
There are more than 90 located in the states… where “boomers” considered golf courses as assets for land locations, “millenials” look for access to “clean food” - they can even include livestock.
Canadians are converting their front lawns! (click here) as part of Community Supported Agriculture ventures
These are not ‘new’ - WWII era they were called “Victory Gardens”...
6. Longevity of the Earth: Xeriscape
No Water. No unnatural inputs (chemical fertilizers and herbicides). Self Sustaining Landscaping.
7. Sensory Gardens
For those with reduced mobility, altered mental states and suffering “nature deficit disorder”... Areas to touch. To taste. To smell. Things to Hear and colours to see.
8. Natural Play
9. Biodiversity… the big problem…
10. Biodiversity defined
Biodiversity speaks to the variety of life in an ecosystem - including plants, animals, and other organisms (including fungi, microorganisms and insects)
Not just the amount of life, but the variability of it.
The term wasn’t coined until the 1980s, but documentation from the ‘70s shows a startling decline
Especially amphibians & reptiles, birds, and freshwater fish in Canada
There’s been a 75% decline in insect biomass in our lifetimes!
Now it is an intensive area of study worldwide
11. Looking beyond the Aesthetics
Part of our role as Landscape Designers is to look beyond the aesthetics and consider the impact our actions have on the biodiversity around us
Urban growth (land conversion, pollution, climate change, overfishing) is second only to invasion by non-native species in the destruction of native biodiversity
Introduced species
Outcompete native species, take up native species habitat, can starve native species who don’t feed on them, can be invasive due to lack of natural controls.
12. Loss of Biodiversity
Creating habitat for the human species often comes at the cost of wildlife habitat.
Urban environments aren’t new, but the impermeable surfaces and air pollution are only about 200 years old
- Wetlands are filled in
Land is cleared for Agriculture… and Agricultural land is bought up for urban sprawl.
- Habitat fragmentation is just as dangerous
13. Is there a solution?
Waiting for the federal government to institute change just doesn’t cut it. As citizens, we have to be educated, and to care.
14. Sustainable Development
The climate change crisis is starting a slow move toward practices that ensure longevity of the planet.
Better site analysis and native habitat protection & better water management practices
Use of native plant material to support local species
The City Biodiversity Index (Singapore Index) is developed by the Convention on Biological Diversity / UN Environment Programme and is used to score cities worldwide
- Measurement tool - objective
Provides a Baseline - where are we starting? HAVE we improved?
Allows for yearly (or other period) reevaluation
In 2022 Canada adopted the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework and the 2030 Nature Strategy
15. This class focuses more on the green and orange sections, but its...
This class focuses more on the green and orange sections, but its interesting to see the wider picture!
Click here to read more.
The Montreal Pledge is the statement that cities sign to show their “buy-in”.
16. Biodiversity: “The Bees”
- A link to AB Insect ID
17. Beekeeping / apiculture
We contribute the most to Canada’s honey production at 45%!
The Western Honeybee is the most popular but is not native to Canada.
Honeybees do a ton of pollinating = more fruit production
These are also the ones who make enough honey for us (support hive over winter)
Colony collapse disorder and pesticide use has caused a lot of problems.
They are generalists but won’t pollinate everything.
Consult your municipality. Join a bee club. Check the Alberta Bee Act.
18. Alberta’s Native Bees
375 different species of native bees!
Bumblebees are generalists. They can buzz pollinate (tomato, watermelon, blueberry).
Solitary Bees make 7-35 trips from flowers to cells to provide enough food for one larva!
Each trip can mean visiting 10-100 flowers.
The male bees don’t nest so those are the ones we find sleeping on flowers…
- Photo J hemberger
19. Alberta’s Native Bees
Solitary Bees
Leaf-cutting bees slice circles out of leaves for lining nests. (generalists, peas and asters)
Sweat bees are drawn to the salt on our brow (daisy, watermelon, sunflower)
Mining bees which burrow into the ground like gophers
Mason bees tunnel underground - 1 Mason bee does the work of 100 honeybees.
Click here for more from the Alberta Native Bee Council.
- Here is their brochure
- Here’s a book recommendation
20. Gypsy Cuckoo Bumble Bee
Summer of 2022, The Federal Government distributed a flyer to all residences and businesses in the primary habitat advising that this particular bee is at risk.
It is a parasitic bee - taking over the nests of other bees
Part of the risk factor is the decline of the other bee species
21. Nature WILL find a way… but maybe we could be more helpful?!
This is a concrete safety barrier at a racetrack - the leafcutter queen bee is making use of air holes in the concrete! One queen per nest, they deposit pollen and leaf material lining the nests. Upper left nest is fully provisioned.
22. Other Pollinators
- Butterflies and Moths
Bodies can’t pick up the pollen the way bees do
Proboscis allows them to reach into flowers bees can’t reach
Butterflies can see reds, purples and pinks that bees might not.
Moths like white, pale purple and pink (moonlight flowers) and those that open in the evening and fragrant ones.
Larvae can do damage to leaves Flies Annuals and bulbs
Hoverflies mimic bees and wasps in look and sound for safety
Larvae are predators of thrips, aphids, and scale
Others, attracted to bad smells pollinate plants like Jack-in-the-pulpit
23. Other Pollinators
- Wind
Trees & grasses - low colour, low scent Hummingbirds
Nectar and insects.
Proboscis also. Pollen lands on head and neck and get shaken off
- Wasps
Not awesome pollinators, but they do spread small amounts
- Beetles
Original pollinators - the largest number of species
“Mess and spoil” pollinators - clumsy munchers and defecators.
Like spicy, sweet, and fermented smells & bowl shaped flowers that let them soak up heat.
24. So what can we do to help the bees? (and other insects)
25. Insect Hotel at Bower Ponds, Red Deer 2019
Use of
Natural, untreated/unpainted wood Varying sizes and shapes of holes
- Mixed geometric shapes
26. Habitat Tips:
Consider looking for opportunities to leave some standing dead wood on properties, as well as some leaf litter.
Provide a water source - a birdbath with rocks so they have something to perch on while they drink.
When possible, leave some bare soil or use light mulches that the ground living bees can burrow through & delay spring cleanups until there are highs of 10 C, overnight lows above zero.
27. Naturalized Plant Design
The “new” landscape design… a more natural take on the Cottage Garden. Includes constructed meadows (vs turf) and addresses floral deficits caused by widespread use of ornamental grasses.
28. Tips for using introduced species:
“Keystone Plants”: Use of several core native species in the design to support pollinators
If using cultivars, keep them native-like or true to species:
Avoid trial bloom colours as much as possible, or install next to species colours
Stay away from flowers with modified sexual structures (do they still make nectar or pollen? Or are they sterile?)
Avoid flowers with significantly modified corolla and calyx compared to natives (are they recognizable as food sources?)
29. Tips for using introduced species:
Ensure large plantings of same flowers, and try to have several sources together.
Go for max overlap on flower times with diverse species blends.
Consider Bee Turf sections or allowing clover in lawns
Use a cool color palette for Bees especially
Match the plant selection for the pollinator, paying attention to Pollination Syndromes (flower traits) - next slide.
30. Flower Traits for Pollinators
- Colour
Dots, patterns and stripes as a road map (nectar guides)
- UV and iridescence for bees Scent
Shape - are the flowers deep with specialized nectaries? Or open and shallow? (Short tongue bees vs long tongue vs butterflies)
Most bees travel about a mile for food - bumble bees up to 5 miles… but if they don’t HAVE to it is so much safer for them! There are a lot of predators, parasites and hazards for bees.
31. Biodiversity: The birds
Biophilia - the wellness we feel when we interact with nature - is supported not just with what we see but also what we hear (birdsong).
32. The Birds
There has been a documented 50% decline in Bird Populations since 1966
Migratory species are especially impacted by light pollution and loss of habitat
- Nesting Sites are removed
Protected areas are less available Predatory birds and Cats reduce the populations
- Water sources are gone
- Food sources are depleted
Wetland birds are especially impacted, but song birds are close behind
33. Ways that people can help the birds
Don’t kill every bug you see, Consider planting species that produce food for birds
Shrubs that have mealy or drier fruit will sustain them better than plants with fruit high in sugar
Plant twiggy (opposite attachment) shrubs that provide safety for songbirds
Provide buffer zones from bird feeders (less than 1m or more than 3m)
- Reduce Light pollution
Protecting broadleaf species in ditches to provide pollinator corridors along roadsides.
34. Combine a bird bath with its preferred food choice and a potential home!
35. Even better than building houses is to provide native plants for insects...
Even better than building houses is to provide native plants for insects (food source) and nest building.
36. Green Roofs
Can provide habitat for many species… but adjacent glass walls may also create some casualties.
37. Consider Bats as an alternative to Insecticides!
In a more wild garden… They spread seeds more efficiently than birds in their feces… (bird’s only “go” when they takeoff)
Bats can also pollinate (in tropical and desert ecosystems)
38. Miyawaki Forests
Spaces are roughly 3-10m x 3-10m (a tennis court)
The first step is in-depth soil preparation (testing for pH, O.M., compaction, nutrients, CEC)
Consider: Canopy, Sub-canopy, Shrubs, Herbs, Forest Floor and Rhizosphere
- Wood mulch is key
39. Biodiversity:
- Wildlife Corridors
“A strip of natural habitat connecting populations of wildlife otherwise separated by cultivated land, roads, etc.”
- Lexico.com
40. Wildlife Corridors
Identification of migratory patterns and high traffic sites, followed by protection mechanisms for animals to move unhindered
Check Out Vineland Research for their initiatives in Ontario… www.greeningcanadianlandscapes.ca
If you meet the needs of carnivores, you often meet the needs of smaller species
41. Importance of Wildlife Sanctuaries
- Preservation of Habitat
- Important for natural selection Genetic diversity
- Population control
- Shelter
- Foraging
- Water source
42. Design of Wildlife Sanctuaries
Completed at the Municipal Level Corridors and linkages
- Primary pathway corridor
Smaller linkages are where they start to break down
As Landscapers, we can piggyback on them creating stepping stones
As Citizens, we can respect them!
- City of Edmonton Biodiversity Report (2008)
43. Urban Naturalization
Changing mindsets of people to allow large, naturalized areas - although not the “traditional” wildlife corridor we imagine (fenced off and fully protected) - allows movement of species through cities.
Click here to read about an airfield in Toronto being changed over into a sustainable community
Does size matter?
Fast google searches show that deer range over about 100 Ha…
44. Castle Pines subdivision of Denver Colorado - they have required that the...
Castle Pines subdivision of Denver Colorado - they have required that the corridor be maintained and naturalized with native plants.
45. A note on reclamation…
Important terms
Brownfields - refers to land that was once used for industrial purposes and now lies vacant
Microhabitats - nature finds a way, when the small creatures take advantage of spaces and disturbances left behind, it leads to:
Open Mosaic Habitat - when the microhabitats converge and create a space of mixed former industrial with natural pockets that expand toward one another.
Early successional plants - refers to nature’s process of starting with herbaceous, growing up into shrubbery, and ending with climax species (canopy trees) when conditions allow.
In these cases, it's more recognizing nature’s effort to reclaim the land vs us protecting it to begin with!
46. Biomimicry - definition 1
Species in nature mimicking other species in an effort to thwart predators
Example - Natural selection: hoverflies looking like wasps
47. Biomimicry - definition 2
Human study of nature’s systems to find more efficient and less harmful ways for humans to exist on earth.
48. Biomimicry
Examples of modern Biomimicry
Adapting wind turbines to mimic wale tubricals on their fins
Designing malls based on termite mound aeration to reduce refrigerants
Changing the design of solar panels to mimic the light holding of moth eyes
Fog catching nets based on the stenocara beetle
49. An Example for the birds…
Consider Ornilux Bird Safe Glass - an example of biomimicry: copying the orb weaver spider web with UV reflectance, that also protects songbirds (habitat at risk due to urbanization)
