Below is a summary of our upcoming workshops. The complete description of each one can be found on our website. Our workshops are an important part of what we do. We appreciate your past and future support of our workshops; the income supports other Arboretum educational endeavours such as brochures, signs, booklets, tours and our website.

If you know of people who may be interested in our workshops who do not receive this e-newsletter we would appreciate if you would pass this information on to them. To subscribe to the newsletter follow the simple instructions as outlined on our webpage at: http://www.uoguelph.ca/arboretum/educationandevents/enewsletter.shtml

If you have a spot in your community or at your workplace where you can display our workshop posters, please send us an e-mail at [log in to unmask] and we will be happy to send them to you.

Below is a list of upcoming workshops at The Arboretum. Please forward this e-mail to your friends and colleagues! The more participants we have, the more programs we can offer.

Our registration is an on-line registration process which allows you to register for our programs at anytime. A secure link is provided for this easy registration process. Click here for the link: https://www.uoguelph.ca/arboretum/educationandevents/register

by Chris Earley

We all love lady beetles so this quiz is dedicated to them. They help us control aphids in our gardens and make young and old naturalists alike smile. Did you know there are many different species of lady beetle? Can you figure out what these ones are? For help, try using the Lady Beetles of Ontario website by the U of Guelph's entomologist extraordinaire, Stephen Marshall: http://www.uoguelph.ca/debu/lady/lady-beetles.htm

The answers are at the bottom of the newsletter.  A printable version of this quiz with answers is available at: http://www.uoguelph.ca/arboretum/Listservnewsletter/August_2017/printable_quiz_lady_beetles_August_2017.pdf

The construction on the trail and boardwalk through the Wall Custance Memorial Forest Dedication Site has wrapped up. The work that was done has created a trail that is easy to walk on as well as a pleasure to walk on. Our staff will be continuing with clean up as well as other work around it including some restorative plantings. We hope you take the time to come and check it out.

          

Our grounds staff are out on the grounds daily working on keeping them beautiful. Some of their recent work includes pruning and weeding the collections as well as doing new plantings in the World of Trees, Horticultural Oak Collection and Native Trees of Ontario Collection.

Summer is also a busy time for our interpretive staff. You can find them out on the grounds with nets and binoculars. They have many programs they lead as well as workshops such as the Shorebirds and Smartphone Photography. Fall is a busy time for workshops so if you are hoping to expand your knowledge about nature than please check out our various workshops; one of them is sure to be for you.

For the month of July the interpretive staff have had the pleasure of working with a high school co-op student, Gillian. You will see below that Gillian contributed an article to this newsletter. She has also assisted with many other programs and projects. She has been a pleasure to work with this summer. We wish her all the best!

 
Gillian Johnson                                   Gillian Johnson

Fall is just around the corner and with that vacation time ends and businesses begin booking more meetings again. If you have a meeting you need to book in the fall we hope that you will think of The Arboretum. We have three rooms available that seat 2 - 200 people.

Enjoy the last couple weeks of August and we hope to see you out on our grounds exploring!

by Jason Chan

Recently, I was gifted a copy of Newcomb’s Wildflower Guide, and since then I have been captivated by the wildflowers in the woods, in fields, and even in roadside ditches. Being aware of these wildflowers has made my summer more colourful (literally) as I’ve noticed the spectrum of colours that are blooming.

But even before being gifted this field guide, the Queen Anne’s Lace was one of the first wildflowers I learnt to identify. Many of us are probably quite familiar with seeing the relatively large white cluster of flowers. Some see it as beautiful - florists often use it as a filler flower, a flower that fills in the gaps; but some see it as incredible invasive, taking over fields and gardens. They’re everywhere! But where did they come from?

The Name
The name of the white bloomer actually comes with a bit of controversy. Many think that the lacey-looking flower is named after an expert lacemaker who pricked her finger and dropped blood on the flower - which is supposed to represent the dark red floret that is sometimes found in the center of the Queen Anne’s Lace (see image on right). The debate however, is over which Queen Anne the story originates from; Queen Anne of Denmark (1574-1619) or Queen Anne of England (1665-1714).

The Carrot
This biennial (a flower that appears every two years) holds another aspect of history by being the derivative of one of our hearty root vegetables, the carrot; hence its other name, Wild Carrot. It makes sense considering the species name is carota meaning “carrot”. The plant falls under the same family (Apiacea) as fennel, dill, celery and parsnip. They were first cultivated in Western Asia in the 10th century and slowly made their way over to Western Europe between the 11th and 15th century. Our domesticated carrots back then were actually purple and yellow, and one study suggests that the orange we know from carrots were selected from the yellow ones. Crush one of the leaves the next time you’re out on a walk and you’ll smell carrot!

The Imposter
One last important reason to take note of this plant is because they are incredibly similar to some other white flowering plants. One which we must give particular attention to is Water Hemlock (Cicuta maculata), a plant that can kill if ingested and can cause paralysis and respiratory failure.

A few key identifiers to look out for are;

Other flowering plants that may look similar include Yarrow (Achillea millefolium) and Caraway (Carum carvi). Please be careful when exploring and familiarize yourself with any toxic or dangerous plants.

A printable version of this article is available here: http://www.uoguelph.ca/arboretum/Listservnewsletter/August_2017/Queen_Anne's_%20Lace_Article.pdf

by Gillian Johnson, Co-op Student

Around the world in countries like Ireland, Scotland, Canada, and Germany people think of ladybugs as a beetle that brings good luck. It’s fascinating that so many cultures share the same superstition, perhaps it’s because farmers and gardeners welcome them to help them grow better plants. The native lady beetles would eat pests like aphids that can be harmful to plants. The aphids may inject a toxin that would kill the leaves and can carry diseases that will damage plant growth. Unfortunately, things in the world of lady beetles have changed.

In North America there are almost 500 species of Coccinellidae which taxonomically is the family that all lady beetles fall under. The 500 species includes certain species that attack plants and certain which eat fungal spores. As we all know, lady beetles love to eat aphids and soft-bodied insects, but did you know they also like pollen from common food sources like dandelion, squash, corn, and lily?


Lady beetle in the pupa stage.

The world of beetles is diverse in uncountable ways, but they all share the trait of having a four-part life cycle: egg-larva-pupa-adult. The lady beetle life cycle starts in winter with large aggregations beneath leaf litter and stones. The adults emerge in early to mid-spring and disperse to lay eggs. Female lady beetles have been found to lay from 200 to over 1,000 eggs! The eggs are deposited near prey such as aphids or some other food sources. The resulting predatory larvae feed and grow quickly. When they are ready to pupate (like the chrysalis stage of a butterfly), they attach themselves to a leaf. The pupa stage may last from 3 to 12 days depending on the temperature. The lady beetle then emerges to continue the life cycle again.

In Canada, our native lady beetles are gradually disappearing due to competition for food sources and habitats with non-native lady beetles. One of the non-native lady beetles is the European Lady Beetle. They were accidentally introduced to North America by shipping in the St. Lawrence Seaway, possibly in the late 1960’s. They did not show up in Ontario until the 1990’s and are sometimes called the Fourteen-spotted Lady Beetle. The funny thing is, in different places they are called different names. In Britain, the same lady beetle is called the Cream-spotted Lady Beetle.


This is the kingdom of all lady beetles down to the species of the spotted lady beetle.

Another interesting but intruding lady beetle is the Mexican Bean beetle that likes to feed on plants. This beetle is dirty yellow in colour unlike the normal black and red lady beetles in this family. This lady beetle really likes the underside of leaves of beans and other related plants. The Mexican Bean beetle also has a very interesting defense mechanism. When they are poked or threatened by a predator, they will respond by releasing toxic, sticky blood from their leg joints which is a phenomenon known as reflex bleeding.


The Seven-Spotted Lady Beetle.

The Seven-spotted Lady Beetle is another non-native lady beetle and is now our most common lady beetle. This lady beetle took over the native and now rare Nine-spotted Lady Beetle. The Seven-spotted and another beetle called the Multicolored Asian Lady Beetle were not in Ontario prior to the 1980’s. The Seven-spotted was introduced from Europe and can be recognized by its three dots on each wing cover and one right behind its prothorax (section behind its head). When the Seven-spotted lady beetle came to Ontario, the Nine-spotted Lady Beetle almost disappeared. The Nine-spotted has four spots on each wing cover and one right by its prothorax. The two look very similar, so counting the spots is important! The Nine-spotted is also slightly smaller and is a creamier orange than the bright red and orange colours of the Seven-spotted.

Can you tell the age of a lady beetle by counting the spots? Let's bust a myth. When you were little, did you count the spots on the lady beetles to see how old your friend was? I know I did, but having been at The Arboretum I now know that counting can only help identify the species of lady beetle. There is actually no way to find out how old the lady beetles are! Myth Busted. Most lady beetles are good for your garden so they seem to send good luck to those who find one, at least if you are a gardener! You can visit the following website for more information on lady beetles: http://www.uoguelph.ca/debu/lady/lady-beetles.htm or come to The Arboretum to find out more.

A printable version of this article is available at: http://www.uoguelph.ca/arboretum/Listservnewsletter/August_2017/Lady_Beetle_%20Article_Gillian_Johnson.pdf

We have two great options available for guided walks on The Arboretum grounds.

Join Jason every Wednesday until the end of the year at 12:15 as he explores the grounds on a 50 minute hike. It is a wonderful way to explore as summer peaks and life blooms on The Arboretum grounds. The walk is free and you should meet at the kiosk at the end of the promenade closest to campus if you are interested in participating.
                   

On Wednesday evenings through to the end of August our Summer Interpretive Naturalist, Rachel leads our Wednesday Evening Walk series. These programs take place each Wednesday evening from 7 p.m. - 8:30 p.m. beginning at the J.C. Taylor Centre. The cost is $2 per person with children under 5 free. Here are some of the upcoming walks:

Nasty Nettles and Poison Plants (August 16) - When faced with a three leaved plant, the first thing that comes to most minds is: “Leaves of three, leave them be!” No one wants a bad run in with poison ivy, but we can’t spend our lives avoiding every plant that has three leaves! This Wednesday night come familiarize yourself with the potentially harmful species in the Guelph area so you can adventure with confidence!

Drawn to Nature (August 23) – Drawing requires us to be more observant, more so than a quick peek or a fast snapshot. Taking the time to sketch the natural world allows us to notice things we might not have noticed before and to connect with nature on a deeper level. Tonight we will be starting our own nature notebooks! Feel free to bring your own sketch book but it’s not required!

Surfing the Web (August 30) – How do spiders communicate? Through the World Wide Web!! This Wednesday night we will be on the hunt for outdoor “web-sites.” Come gain a new appreciation for our 8 legged friends as we debunk spider myths, discuss their fascinating adaptations and learn identification tips!

The Annual Wall Custance Memorial Forest Dedication Service is on Sunday, September 17, 2017 at 2:30 p.m. For further information please contact the Wall Custance Funeral Home at 519-822-0051 or www.wallcustance.com.

Snow? ... No it is not snowing here at The Arboretum! However, it is a sight commonly seen in December during Christmas parties.

Although it definitely doesn't look or feel like Christmas outside, it is time to think about booking your company's Christmas Party. The Arboretum is a perfect location for your Christmas party for groups up to 130 people. For further information please contact Dawn Ann Webster, Bookings Co-ordinator at extension 54110, [log in to unmask].

All catering is provided by Hospitality Services, University of Guelph. For further information on the catering please call extension 53350 or [log in to unmask].
 
West Lawn                                        Auditorium set up for Christmas Party

Guelph Bug Day is a fun, free, educational event for community members of all ages. Our goal is to cultivate a fascination for the very cool, very small world of insects! Come get up close and personal with our live specimens, take one (or two, or three!) guided bug-catching hikes in the expansive and beautiful grounds at the University of Guelph Arboretum, try tasty insect cuisine, put your imagination to the test with insect drawing contests, and explore the variety of buggy vendors that Guelph has to offer. Rain or shine, bring your adventuring spirit and prepare to be amazed.

Follow us on Twitter @GuelphBugDay or on Facebook "Guelph Bug Day"
             

Lots going on this month! Monarchs are back! This year we have lots of adults and caterpillars, especially considering that we had so few the last two years. Hopefully this boosts their overall population. Our interpreters have been raising some of the caterpillars and a recent kids group got to watch an adult emerge from its cocoon! Our Cooper's Hawk chicks have left the nest and one was seeing playfully chasing an irritated American Crow. Many Cedar Waxwings and other berry eaters are still coming to our overloaded serviceberries at The Arboretum Centre. A new species of moth, the Black-and-yellow Lichen Moth was added to our list and hummingbird moths are showing well, too. Real hummingbirds are being seen throughout our site but especially in the Gosling Wildlife Gardens and many birds, including an American Redstart, are bathing in the recirculating stream there.

 
American Redstart                            Monarch Butterfly
photo by Brenda Doherty                   photo by Gillian Johnson

                  
                   Hummingbird
                   photo by Melanie Howarth

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Be a part of the BetterPlanet Project by donating on-line:

Your donation can be directed to The Arboretum online through the secure University of Guelph donation page: http://uofg.convio.net/arboretum

If you prefer not to make an online donation, there are several other ways to provide your financial support. You can choose to donate by telephone, mail, fax, or in person:

UNIVERSITY OF GUELPH Attention Alumni Affairs 50 Stone Road East Guelph, Ontario, Canada N1G 2W1 Tel: 1-888-266-3108 ext. 56934 Tel: 519-824-4120 ext. 56934 Fax: 519-822-2670 Email: [log in to unmask]

If you would like information on bequests and planned giving to The Arboretum please contact:

Amy Atkinson
Senior Development Manager, Ontario Agricultural College
at (519) 824-4120 ext. 58652 or by e-mail at [log in to unmask]