"I feel the earth move under my feet
I feel the sky tumblin' down
I feel my heart start to tremblin'
Whenever you're around"
- Carole King

This is Earth Day - NANPS style! Since we can't move Earth Day to our NANPS Annual Spring Plant Sale, we will work around that by having a traditional weed pull and deadheading event. It all sounds rather destructive, but really it is the circle of life. Think of it as a cathartic cleansing before the renewal - The Plant Sale and an Extraordinary Excursion.

'Tis the Season
NANPS First Garlic Mustard Pull of 2012 - Saturday April 21st, 10 a.m. - 2 p.m. Charlie Clifford Memorial Park, Sprucewood Dr. (Bayview/Steeles Ave., Markham) Save up your energy and frustrations and take it out on a notoriously sneaky, invasive species. No need to contact anyone. Above all, don't give garlic mustard the heads-up that we are coming. Just come quietly if you can, regardless of the weather. Bring a hoe, boots, gloves and friends. For more info, email NANPS President, Greg Hagan or leave a message on NANPS voicemail 416-631-4438.

Near-deadhead Experience coming soon
Special Earth Day deadheading of advance plant orders for the Annual NANPS Spring Plant Sale - midnight of Sunday April 22nd. Last chance to order web-only offerings! Otherwise, take your chances at the plant sale in Markham on May 12th. Note: Ohio Spiderwort (Tradescantia ohiensis) is at the plant sale only.

Lots of other activities are happening in the local area to celebrate Earth Day 2012. Due to the sheer numbers of events, The Scoop calendar will not list the groves of tree planting activities per se, but will post if other activities may be of interest to our readers, e.g., festivals, hikes and tours.

NANPS is offering a twinflower of an event this year! An exclusive pre-excursion Biodiversity Workshop held in Scarborough on Saturday May 5th followed by a chartered coach bus trip to NANPS property, Shining Tree Woods in Norfolk Co. on June 2nd, replete with supper and a visit to a native plant nursery, *St. Williams Nursery & Ecology Centre. Only $15!!! Reserve your spot now!
*(a hybrid of Pterophylla & ForestCare)

If you can't join NANPS at Shining Tree Woods, please spend some time weeding out an invasive species or working on a restoration project in your area. Send details of your activities. For 2012, our goal is 400 of 2,012 volunteer hours devoted to Shining Tree Woods.

If you can't attend, you can still help by pledging financial support for each bag of garlic mustard removed. In 2011, 45 bags of garlic mustard were removed from Shining Tree Woods. Send your pledge. No, we are not bringing it back with us to make garlic mustard pesto. Didn't you hear? Don't eat the stuff!

The Natural Treasures of Carolinian Canada Lorraine Johnson - NANPSter, Editor, Author, City Farmer, Lecturer at York University Sunday April 29th from 2:00 - 3:00 p.m. at the former Parks Canada Discovery Centre on 57 Discovery Drive, Hamilton, now administered by the Hamilton Waterfront Trust. Parking is free, but there is an admission charge of $3. Refreshments will be provided after the presentation, along with an opportunity to talk with our guest speaker!

The Scoop bets that the pre-mature launching of Spring stirred up those native gardening juices lying dormant through the uhhh... "winter". Only 3 more weeks until the largest native plant sale in Canada blossoms! More details will be revealed in the next while.

Last reminder - get those pre-orders in before midnight April 22nd!

Volunteering - a job for life!
In recognition of National Volunteer Week, NANPS, an all-volunteer organization, gratefully acknowledges the efforts of our volunteers and asks that any interested plant sale volunteers sign up by email.

Are you a virtual, social butterfly milkweed?
Lots of native plant groups and those interested in native plants and habitat are tweeting and posting information, thoughts and ideas. Both NANPS and The Local Scoop are on Twitter and Facebook. Follow and Like! Links are on the respective websites.

Project Migration You may have noticed Red Admiral butterflies migrating through in huge numbers this week in the GTA. eButterfly is now live and ready to accept Canadian butterfly records. Create an account and become a citizen scientist by joining the eButterfly community - share your butterfly observations and understanding and improve the conservation outlook for biodiversity.

Dr. Kirsten Prior, a post-doc in Dr. Frederickson's lab in the Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology at U of T needs our help.

"I am looking for seeds of myrmecochorous (ant-dispersed plants) for a project on the effects of an invasive seed dispersing ant (Myrmica rubra) on native woodland herbs. I am interested in obtaining seeds with their eliaosomes attached from as many myrmecochores as possible. I will be collecting some seeds myself, but I am looking for species that I may not have access to. These include Carex pennsylvanica, Carex pedunculata, Corydalis spp., Dicentra canadensis, Asarum canadense, Uvularia perfoliata, Claytonia virginiana, or any violet species. I am especially looking for Viola ordata (which is actually an introduced species). Once collected they should be stored in an airtight container (preferably with BHT crystals), and either shipped to me right away or kept frozen until they can be shipped." Contact information

Changes to the provincial Endangered Species Act

With the release of the provincial budget, the Ontario government has introduced a new budget bill called Bill 55 (Strong Action for Ontario Act) which has a series of changes or amendments that will endanger Ontario's Endangered Species Act (ESA) and other vital environmental legislation. These changes threaten protection for the province's biodiversity as well as our most vulnerable plants, animals and ecosystems.

You can make a difference by asking Premier McGuinty to withdraw these amendments. This government must stand by the core values of the ESA and must ensure that our parks truly protect wildlife and their habitats.

Send your thoughts:

Premier Dalton McGuinty
Michael Gravelle, Minister of Natural Resources
Dwight Duncan, Minister of Finance

The views expressed are of The Scoop and do not necessarily reflect The Local Scoop, its parent company (NANPS), subsidiaries, affiliates, verticals, hangers-on or even those of the Spokesplant.

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