This year the Friends of the Farm offered various Tree Walks in the Arboretum. I was really thrilled to hear how popular these free tours were - with up to 100 people attending! Some of the walks planned this year were on traditional topics including Flowering Trees, Tree Identification, Maple Tree Species and Fruit Trees while others introduced newer "urban ecology" topics such as:
BIRDS AND THE URBAN FOREST - Sunday, May 17, 2015
Tour leaders: Rachelle Lapensee and Owen Clarkin
From the website: "Birds and Trees are inextricably connected. Trees provide food and shelter to many species of birds, while birds act as agents for seed dispersal and greatly influence the relationship of trees with their insect and fungal pests. Come for a tour of the majestic trees at the Dominion Arboretum during the busy spring birding season, and learn more about Ottawa's birds, trees, and their relationships with each other."
TREE FORMS AND SHAPES IN WINTER - Sunday, November 15, 2015
Tour leaders: Owen Clarkin and Bettina Henkelman
From the website: "When the leaves fall, serious tree-watching can begin. Firstly, trees that were often obscured behind the leaves of others suddenly are visible; this is especially true of evergreens. Secondly, individual tree species tend to grow in recognizable patterns, and for deciduous trees this is best observed in winter. Techniques for how to learn tree recognition from a distance will be explained."
Image from Friends of the Farm newsletter
