Grow Wild YYC

09/05/2026

It may be September and bit rainy but that doesn’t mean gardening season is done! We could still have several weeks of blooms ahead of us yet! It’s also that time of year when we can start planning for next year. What worked, what didn’t this year and how can we make it even better next year. This is also a great time for a consult if you are wondering how to make your yard more biodiversity friendly! Available online or in person, get in touch!

09/04/2026

Great updated resource from the Alberta Invasive Species Council! Knowing what is native, what is introduced but not an issue and what is invasive can be tough. This newly updated guide will help us all!
https://www.facebook.com/share/r/19oTqZy2jt/

08/31/2026

08/27/2026

Typically my Western white clematis blooms in proliferation mid to late July. This year at that time there was a meagre offering which I took as a sign of the season we are having. Yet here we are at the end of August and it’s a veritable beenanza out there with all the flowers! Thankfully there was enough to keep these Hunt’s bumble bees fed in July so they can enjoy this later season buffet ❤️🐝

08/21/2026

It’s hard to get work done when there’s a hummingbird literally right outside the window! This lovely lady Ruby throated hummingbird has been spending lots of time in the yard this week which makes me oh so happy ❤️. Ruby throated are at the western edge of their range in Alberta and soon they will move east and south on their migration to their winter home in Mexico and Central America. These perfect little beasts unfortunately can find lots of danger along the way including windows. Thankfully there not a lot of window strike records here for them but further east they are actually in the top 10 species that have been documented by groups monitoring window strikes. In the Toronto area there are over 2000 records 😮‍💨.
Protecting birds from windows is so very easy. All we have to do is mark the entire exterior surface of the window so they can see the entire barrier. If you look closely at this shot you will notice the dots I have to try and keep her and all the other avian visitors safe.

You may also be thinking that the honeysuckle she’s on is not native and you would be correct. Dropmore honeysuckle is a cultivar created from 2 Eastern North American species. It goes in the category of not native but not invasive and makes me happy so it stays 😊. Fear not, the milkweed you can also see would stop it from getting too far! I also have several native twining honeysuckles that are already going to berry that can fuel other birds bulking up for their migratory flights 🐦‍⬛🐦‍⬛🐦‍⬛

08/16/2026

There’s a lot going on in this photo! This is Amelanchier alnifolia, aka Saskatoon berry, a hub of biodiversity! Not only do the white flowers in spring provide an early nectar source for pollinators but the berries are a bonanza for birds, insects and even fungus. One of the few berries recognizable to everyone and falling on the good for you to eat category, you can’t go wrong adding these to your yard!
Then there are the leaves. Here we can see at least 2 invertebrates taking advantage. Those bumps belong to a gall mite (of which there are at least 9 that use Amelanchier as their host). These mites spend their entire lives inside the plant with those galls being the safe haven for growing larvae. Once they become adults, lacewings, ladybugs and other insects prey on them. Too many on the plant can disrupt the ability of the plant to photosynthesize and gather energy so thank goodness there are those predators!
Then there is the caterpillar. Recognizable to many as a wooly bear, this is the spotted tussock moth’s caterpillar. Typically preferring willow, alder or poplar, they will also eat Saskatoon leaves in a pinch. The adults are out in spring and early summer and the caterpillars emerge in July, continuing to be visible until September. While they look cute and fuzzy, those hairs are their defense and can irritate the skin. This might prevent mammals and birds from preying on them but there are likely parasitic wasps and other predatory insects specializing on them! They fall into the cute, but from a distance category for us! ❤️🐛

08/15/2026

My daughter came in the house this evening to let me know there was a bee struggling out on the driveway. Sure enough I went out there and a Hunt’s bumblebee was slowly crawling across the pavement, likely cold and out of energy after this rainy spell. I picked her up and moved her to the nearest flowers and Lo and behold she wasn’t the only one on there! Several other bees were resting and refueling there! Not only is it a kind gesture to move watch for bees cold and grounded right now but it’s also the time to watch for the boys. Male bumble bees are now entering the scene and unlike the ladies, they don’t have a hive to return to each night. Have a look in the morning and feel free to help them dry out in a warm space or get to the nearest nectar source to refuel. ❤️🐝

08/13/2026

Sometimes the progression from flower to seed is as beautiful as the flower itself. Take this beautiful masterpiece from Canada anemone for example ❤️. Unlike other plants with the name anemone, these ones do not get fluffy seed heads but rather form this spiky head. Canada anemone is confusingly no longer taxonomically Anemone but rather Anemonastrum which means literally anemone like. Often seen forming mats in unoccupied shady areas or interspersed with other plants in part sun, they are a great substitute for garden centre anemones. Growing from seed can be difficult though because they need to go through 2 cold stratifications so you may not see those seeds you planted come up for 2 years! However, it may be that our constant freeze/thaw cycles we see with chinooks and increasingly weirder winters may be enough to spur germination after one winter 🤷‍♀️

08/11/2026

I’m happy to see a bit of moisture this week and so is the garden! In between the rains the bees have been busy and this bergamot has been buzzing! A great example of things behave differently in the garden than the wild, this plant came from a plant rescue where it would normally have grown a foot or max 2 feet high. This one is at least 3 1/2 feet! I’ve never seen a native one this high! It’s only just begun blooming too which bodes well for the second half of the summer and keeping pollinators including bees and hummingbirds happy 🐝🐝🐝

08/10/2026

This is what a little brown myotis call looks like! We have been seeing a bat or two around dusk doing us a favour and eating mosquitoes (and moths) but I didn’t know what species they were and obviously I needed to know so I bought a bat meter to detect their ultrasonic calls and translate that for me 😊. While standing outside recording I also heard our skunk friend rustling around and disturbing roosting birds. It’s not just daytime biodiversity that the forest provides for!

Little brown myotis were recently listed as endangered under the federal Species At Risk Act (SARA) primarily due to the threat of white nose syndrome. These bug eating powerhouses are also susceptible to urban hazards including outdoor cats and artificial lights. Where some bat species may be drawn to light to get moths, studies have shown little browns avoid the light, potentially missing out on a buffet or needing to forage further and expend more energy to get their calories. So now is not only the time to turn out the lights for migrating birds (nope not too soon unfortunately) but also for our bat friends! ❤️🦇