A Day at Work

At Seedy Saturday I had the fortune of meeting a young plant enthusiast who immediately put his name down for volunteering with the plant rescue project. I called him on a Tuesday and by Thursday at 8:30am he was ready for a day of challenging work and unknown surprises.

We picked up a hitch hiker on the way and shared stories of tree planting, bears and strange encounters in the norther regions of Saskatchewan. We were much relieved when we made it to our work spot and began identifying plants.

The goal of this days work was to establish a native plant garden at the Metis Heartland Forest Centre with John Hanikenne and arrive back in Saskatoon with a truck load for the adoption program. After loading the truck with saskatoons, bearberry, sage, rockcress, bergamont, pin cherries, choke cherries, honeysuckles, strawberries, violets, locoweed, lilies, yarrow, and peavines, we sat in the shade for a hearty lunch and good conversation.

John is an inspiration. After a back injury and 6 years in a wheel chair, he is now not only walking, but lifting and shoveling for hour upon hour. He kept up with Jordan and I relatively easily.

When we arrived at the Centre, John took us for a hike around some of the trails. There is something very special about this forest. I had never seen or felt anything quite like it. Close to the lodge there is a large stand of mature Red Pine. They provide a canopy that is easily twice the height of our native Jack Pines. The Red Pine is not indigenous to the area, but it is growing very well.

The trails extend for miles, with many of the same plants that we transplanted near the buildings. The purpose of transplanting more is for ease of access. Many of the people who have knowledge of the plants and their uses are elderly, to have a variety of plants close by will help them to teach the groups that come to learn; Suntep, Siast, and others.

The soil by the centre was compact and sandy, so we decided a raised bed garden would work best. We pieced together our clumps of ecosystem salvaged and used soil from the well that John started digging to fill in the gaps. In the process we learnt how to witch for water with a chainsaw blade and a coat hanger...good times!

We were hosted for supper in Prince Albert, good Saskatchewan Burbot that my pops makes up real nice. After a good but brief visit we head out again to the forest and dig until we can no longer see the plants beneath our feet. By 11 pm we are back in the city, with dirt under our nails, philosophy spoken and acted upon, and sleep not far off.

Thanks John and Jordan for an excellent and magical day.