Ardtrea Nature

05/22/2026

Congrats to everyone who pitched in last month in helped clean up our neighbourhoods and countryside! It can be an ongoing chore but it makes BIG difference. Your efforts are appreciated! Anything that's not rotting in a ditch & contaminating our local environment is a WIN for EVERYONE!

A huge thank you to everyone who rolled up their sleeves during Pitch In Week and helped keep Severn green and growing!

Thanks to our amazing volunteers, our community collected:
✅ 92 bags of garbage = 770 lbs of litter
✅ 4 tires
✅ a truckload of additional debris and garbage

We are so appreciative to everyone who took part in Pitch In Week and helped care for the places we all share! Your efforts have made a real difference in our parks, trails, roadsides, neighbourhoods, and green spaces.

Picking up litter helps protect wildlife, keeps garbage out of storm drains and waterways, reduces the risk of plastics breaking down into microplastics, and helps keep our shared outdoor spaces safe and enjoyable for everyone.

Thank you for pitching in and helping our community shine! 🌎

03/25/2026

There was some wonderful news this month that the eastern population of the Monarch butterfly has increased during the 2025-26. The population is measured by the amount of forest space occupied at their overwintering sites in Mexico. Last year was 1.79 hectares and this year is 2.93 hectares; about a 64% increase!

There's still much work to be done to ensure this iconic butterfly species doesn't go extinct. Multiple threats still remain with habitat loss being the leading factor. Logging in Mexico remains a problem as forest areas are cut for avocado farming. In their breeding territory, here at home, much of their landscape has changed over the years. As you may know, the butterfly relies on milkweed plants, specifically Common Milkweed [Asclepias syriaca] which is what they need to lay eggs on. The caterpillars feed on its leaves and the adult butterflies find nectar from its blooms.

Unfortunately many butterfly species are struggling to adapt. While the Monarch butterfly has become the "poster child" for pollinator conservation, it's important to recognize the hundreds of solitary native bees, moths and different butterfly families that depend on native plants for their survival.

It is important to make an effort to include native plants in your gardens and around the yard. Every little bit helps! If you don't know what to look for, please do a little research by looking up your 'eco-region' to find what's suitable to your area. Ask around at your local garden centres. Find a local expert. And don't buy anything that's potentially invasive which can harm these species further.

As always, if you need some help on where to get started, please don't hesitate to send me a message!

02/25/2026

It's Invasive Species Awareness Week! While there are a number of things that are harming our natural environment across various ecosystems, there's one plant that can actually damage building foundations. What looks like bamboo is actually Japanese Knotweed. The root system is very deep, like more than 10 feet deep.
This invader is tough to eradicate because of this and the best known treatment is multiple rounds of targeted glyphosate, unfortunately. It's a multi year commitment though it's one battle that's worth winning. If you have this in your yard, or close to your house, don't hesitate to seek professional help.

02/02/2026

It's an honour to be recognized by Ontario Nature on this 2026 edition of World Wetlands Day.
These valuable spaces are under threat of destruction in the name of growth (where growth isn't happening) but rather than focusing on profits, why not see these spaces as valuable tools to combat the impacts of severe weather events. Better to protect now than to fork out tenfold in disaster recovery later on.

01/25/2026

Be sure to register for the Couchiching Conservancy's Passport to Nature online event happening on February 10 at 7 pm and featuring the fabulous speaker, Colleen Cirillo with the David Suzuki Foundation's Butterflyway Rangers program. She will help guide you through what native perennials are suitable for your yard and why it's important to include them. You won't want to miss it! Be sure to register by following the link in this shared post.

12/12/2025

I had the privilege of being interviewed by The Narhwal last month regarding a development issue in the area (and everywhere else across Ontario).

We need to keep intact our wetlands as they save us money let alone support much biodiversity that we get to experience in our backyards. These spaces are the tools we need to help deal with major weather events. We can't afford to continue destroying and degrading the wetlands for a sake of one political agenda.

You can read the full article below;

A developer built a trail through a wetland near Orillia, catching neighbours and the township by surprise. Across Ontario, wetlands are getting harder and harder to protect