Savannah Naturalization – Phase 2

On Wednesday and Thursday before the May long weekend, students from the Grades 11 and 12 Biology classes (and some volunteers) helped supervise Grade 7 Science and Geography classes as well as students from the Junior and Montessori Schools, in planting most of the 2,000 grasses and wildflowers we grew in classrooms throughout the College.

Hundreds of dandelions met their match and were replaced by plugs of six important grass species and more than a dozen kinds of perennials when the Middle School students attacked the older naturalized areas. The younger students planted even more plugs in the de-sodded and roto-tilled strips along Garth Street, where the Grade 10 students planted oak seedlings in April.

These native grassland species will, over time, displace most of the domestic grasses and weeds that have grown up in our naturalized areas, and provide both habitat and beauty around the upper playing fields. The wildflowers will, for the most part, take until next summer to make a display, but already we are seeing an increase in the diversity of birds and insect visiting the naturalized areas.

We also took delivery of nine more large trees that will begin to define another forty meters of our planned one kilometre running path around the upper fields. Four of these trees are dedicated to the Junior School, which raised over $600 with their “Toonies for Trees” campaign on Earth day, and three to the Grade 10 class who paid extra for their dress-down day on Earth Day to provide more trees. A white pine will form the centrepiece of a memorial to Doug Moore, donated by his colleagues.

In all, more than three-quarters of the HSC population will have taken direct action in the growing and planting of our naturalized area this year, and even more will have contributed financially through our fundraisers. While the big goal of contributing to the sustainability and aesthetics of the College community has been moved forward substantially, the secondary goal of mass participation has always been seen as important for creating an environmental ethic and having students feel a sense of pride as they watch the plantings grow and change over the next couple of decades.