by Chris Earley

Today's quiz has been brought to you by the letter "G"

What can you find in The Arboretum that will stick around for the winter
and starts with the letter "G"? Good luck! The answers are at the bottom of the newsletter.

by SHelley Hunt

Ontario, especially in the North, can be seen as a place synonymous with endless forest. With 66% of its total area covered in trees (a larger area than the entire country of France), it seems hard to believe that our province is also home to at least 13 species of trees and shrubs that are at risk of extinction in their natural setting. Six of these, including cucumber tree, butternut and eastern flowering dogwood, are endangered, meaning that the risk is imminent. How can this be? Given that these at-risk woody plant species are limited mainly to Southern Ontario, the answer has to do with the colliding fates of the highly biodiverse Carolinian forest region, which includes many trees and shrubs that are rare and at the edge of their range, and the intensive agricultural and urban development that has occurred over the past 200 years in the same region. The result is a greatly diminished (85% of original forest cover has been lost) and very fragmented forest, with some species struggling to retain a foothold. In the late 1970s, proactive and visionary work done by The Arboretum, led by former curator Dr. John Ambrose, resulted in the establishment of our long-running Rare Woody Plants of Ontario Program, which involves developing and maintaining ‘living gene banks’ (special plantings) of more than 20 of Ontario’s rare and/or at-risk tree and shrub species. Many of these trees are now mature enough to be producing seed, valuable for conservation and restoration efforts. Harvesting the seed from these trees, many of them beyond the reach of our usual equipment, can be a challenge, but this year we had a helping hand in the form of a boom lift loan from Skyjack. Read more...

The warm temperatures and Fall colour may be on their way out, but there is still much to explore at The Arboretum as winter approaches. The Conifer and Dwarf Conifer Collections really shine at this time of year, and in the deciduous tree collections, the lack of leaves can make other features, like trunk form and bark texture, really pop out. Hope to see you on the trails!

Sean Fox in the boom lift at a Sycamore tree

by Ric Jordan

I think it is safe to say that except for a few small exceptions we are ready for winter, whatever it may bring. Final mowing is done, skoot has been applied to susceptible species of trees to protect them from rodent and rabbit damage, ponds winterized, water lines shut off and drained, snow shovels found, snow blowers and plows ready to go, de-icing supplies in place, green house heaters serviced, vent motors re-programmed, plants are being dug for cold storage, and on a personal level winter clothing brought out. Many individuals think that operations at The Arb grind to a halt at this time of the year for the winter months however much goes on behind the scenes that you may see the results of but you don’t see us doing the actual activity.

A time consuming but necessary operation over the winter months involves updating our plant records data base and mapping system for our woody plants. This is critical for teaching and research purposes as well as being a wealth of information for visitors once we are in a situation to have it go live on line. This activity pretty well involves all staff to one degree or another but Aron, Sean, Kellen and Polly are most involved. Lig and Sean will be busy with their weekly seed group cleaning collected seed for storage for our use later or supplying other like-minded groups with quality seed. Polly will be working on information pertaining to our Rare Woody Plants Gene Bank which includes ongoing Elm Recovery Project specifics. Kellen continues to refine our GIS records for the database as well as being the go to individual for equipment issues. If you have visited the grounds recently you will have noticed many new tree identification tags in place, and Polly and Kellen will continue producing these over the winter months for spring installation in our horticultural/teaching collections predominately.

Activity at The Arb Centre does not change as much for staff as winter comes upon us. Administrative, booking, publicity, educational, volunteer and record activities are year round and while a focus may change somewhat we continue to answer the phone, respond to e-mails, plan activities, attend meetings, meet donors, give presentations, talk to students, recruit volunteers and so on. The to-do list, like e-mails and phone calls, seems endless. However as has been stated before we can always make time for a personal visit or phone call. We would love to see and meet, in some cases, the individuals who care for and support this wonderful greenspace in the heart of Guelph. Recently a short on-line article appeared in Guelph Sustainable Solutions Group blog which succinctly sums up The Arb today.

http://guelphsustainablesolutions.com/story-29-the-arboretum-its-like-the-garden-of-eden-except-without-original-sin/

I recently had the opportunity to show architect Raymond Moriyama around the OAC Centennial Arboretum Centre. Perhaps show isn’t the correct word as his firm designed the building and oversaw the construction for its opening in May 1974. Considering his portfolio covers structures from around the world I was surprised at how much he remembered from the time and the individuals he dealt with to bring construction in on budget at $250,000. This was for the building and services alone, costs for outfitting the offices and meeting spaces were additional. It was interesting watching him critique how the essential structure has endured the test of time. Although not vocalized I felt he approved of sensitivity that was used in choosing and installing the replacement fascia boards after almost 40 years and the replacement arbor facing the west lawn. Over the years I have felt that the Arb Centre is an icon of sensitivity in design for being part of the landscape and not imposing itself on the surrounding area. Sure it has its short comings but for those of us who work here we have learned to make accommodations and the planning for the surrounding landscape ensures that it will continue to be that building set into the ground.

Join us Friday, November 21, 2014 from 3:30 - 4:30 p.m. in The Auditorium, Arboretum Centre for a talk by Marc Berman entitled “The Psychological Benefits of Interacting with Nature” Admission is free.

Marc Berman is Assistant Professor in the Department of Psychology at the University of Chicago who studies the ability of natural environments to improve affect, attention and memory. Marc received his Ph.D. in Psychology and in Industrial and Operations Engineering from the University of Michigan. He received post-doctoral training at the University of Toronto's Rotman Research Institute at Baycrest. Before arriving in Chicago he was an Assistant Professor of Psychology at the University of South Carolina.

The talk is Sponsored by The Robert H ‘Bob’ Keith Endowment for Arboretum Education Programs.

             
Marc Berman                                     Click on flyer image for printable version

Looking for a great gift for the nature lover? We have a series of 5 booklets: Feeder Birds, Wildflowers, Mammals, Dragonflies and Summer Garden Birds. Each booklet is full colour and is $8. Details can be found on our website.

We also have a nature journal with a series of colour photos in the centre pages and lots of unique pages with leaf backgrounds for sketching or journaling. Each journal is $10.

Our Biodiversity placemats are $4 each or $40 for the set of all 12. Each double-sided, laminated placemat features a different group of local organisms.

Gift certificates are also available for our workshops. Owl Prowls make a fabulous family outing or check out our other workshops.

To purchase these booklets, journals, placemats or gift certificates please call ext. 52358 or e-mail us at [log in to unmask]. We would be happy to mail these out to you (a mailing fee will apply).

Christmas is quickly approaching. If you haven't already booked your Christmas party then please consider The Arboretum. It is a perfect location for your Christmas event. We can accommodate up to 150 people for lunches or dinners with a view of the picturesque Arboretum grounds. For further information please contact Barb Watson – Ash, Marketing and Bookings Co-ordinator at extension 54110, [log in to unmask] or check out our website. All catering is provided by Hospitality Services, University of Guelph. For further information on the catering please call extension 53350 or e-mail [log in to unmask].

Christmas Party in the Auditorium

Owl, Animal Tracking, Owl Prowls and Winter Landscapes Photography workshops are approaching. The dates and registration deadlines can be found in our Coming Events Listing in the column on the left side of this newsletter. A detailed description of each course is available on our website. Help us promote our programs … please forward this e-mail on to your friends and colleagues who may be interested. The more participants we have, the more programs we can offer.

Registration is available on-line which allows you to register for our programs at anytime, not just during our regular business hours. A secure link is provided on our website for this easy registration process.

If you do not have internet access registration can still be made by phone or in person at 519-824-4120 ext. 52358 as in the past. Please note that a decision is made on the registration deadline as to whether the workshop will run or not, based on the minimum number of required registrants. You may still register after the deadline as long as the workshop is running and there is space.

As the weather changes, more and more birds are showing up at our bird feeders. Chickadees, nuthatches, goldfinches and cardinals are all here for you to watch and photograph. As well, we have had our first report of a Barred Owl, so hopefully it will stick around for the winter, too. And while the fall colours are mostly over, our larches and tamaracks are putting on a lovely show of gold for all to see.

  
Chickadee                                         Barred Owl
Photo by Chris Earley                          Photo by Reuven Martin

                             
                              Tamarack

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:

Ross Butler
Director, Gift Planning
at (519) 824-4120 ext. 56196 or by e-mail at [log in to unmask]