by Chris Earley

Here is a fun topic -babies! Can you identify any of these "babies" that can be found in the Arboretum? The answers are at the bottom of the newsletter.

by Ric Jordan

Welcome to the summer of 2013! I don’t think I can recall a year when the weather has been so variable and so streaky. In Guelph, depending on where you live this past Sunday was a perfect example of the type of weather we have been receiving. I live just north of downtown Guelph and we were hit with deluge after deluge of rain in the afternoon and early evening, very similar to the Ti-Cat – Eskimo football game being played here on campus, however less than a kilometer south virtually nothing fell. And then more precipitation on Monday and a bit more on Tuesday for a total of over 100 mm in less than 3 days. Except for the lush greenness some areas in the collections looked like spring melt had just occurred with all the standing water. Except for putting us a bit behind in maintenance schedules the water is welcome although we do need a bit of time to allow the ground to become unsaturated. So much of the last bit of rainfall ran off and did little to recharge the ground. After a bit more rain last night being pushed by a ‘cold front’ sleeping was finally comfortable again after a few nights and days of oppressive heat and humidity.

If you haven’t visited the grounds recently we have installed an educational exhibit in the World of Trees collection entitled ‘Vanishing Acts’. I talked a little about th exhibit in last months newsletter. This travelling exhibit has been put together by the Morton Arboretum and through our membership in the American Public Gardens Association (APGA) we managed to obtain it for display. We felt the message it conveys fits nicely within our mandate and World of Trees is a perfect home for it until it moves on to another location in late October. If you do visit please let us know what you think and whether you feel we should investigate more exhibits such as this.

We are presently in the process of streamlining the registration process for our workshops by moving to an on-line system which will assist us and you by simplifying registrations, providing automatic e-mail confirmations and any other information that is required for the workshop. All transactions will be handled by a secure server that the University uses. During the transition process we will still be able to handle phone registrations however it is hoped by the end of the year as many as possible will be handled on line so keep your eyes and ears open for updates on this move.

Recently an opportunity arose for 2 individuals to attend a Sentinel Plant Network (SPN) workshop at The Frelinghuysen Arboretum in Morristown NJ put on by the APGA. Having worked closely before with Rodger Tschanz, Trial Garden Manager from the Plant Ag department on campus I invited him to come along. The goal of this SPN workshop was to provide us with materials outlining SPN’s new interpretation and educational outreach materials and guide members on how to incorporate these resources into our outreach activities. Ultimately it is hoped that Arboretum visitors will act as citizen scientists, monitoring their neighbourhoods for potential pest and pathogen threats. We hope to roll out some of these materials in the early fall and continue into next year so keep an eye open for some talks or events.

Enjoy the summer, hope you get to visit an arboretum, botanic garden or some great green spaces. If you do please send us a picture or two, we are always looking for new places to visit or recommend.

  
Italian Garden                                 Vanishing Acts

Join Mike, our Summer Interpretive Naturalist, for Wednesday Night Walks at The Arboretum until the end of August. The cost is only $2 with children under 5 FREE! Walks take place every Wednesday evening from 7 - 8:30 p.m., beginning at the J.C. Taylor Nature Centre.

For more information please contact The Arboretum at 519-824-4120 ext. 52363 or go to our website.

July 17 - Talkin’ Trees
Don’t know your trees? Come for a walk through The Arboretum to learn how to identify trees based on their leaves, needles, bark, seeds, cone, shape and etc. We will be doing a scavenger hunt to test what we learned.

July 24 - Arachnophilia
Arachnophobia is often associated with the spread of negative, and often false, information along with a lack of education about spiders. To gain appreciation for our 8-legged friends, we will debunk spider myths, discuss amazing arachnid adaptions, learn identification techniques, and more!

July 31 - Plant Behaviour and Intelligence
Plants behave in some oddly intelligent ways such as fighting predators and maximizing food opportunities. But can we think of them as actually having a form of intelligence of their own? Come learn about the incredibly sophisticated and dynamic forms of awareness and communication of plants.

August 7 - Beetle Mania
Making up over ¼ of all animal-life on Earth and living in almost every niche imaginable, one might say “beetles rule!” We will discuss how beetles became so successful, their incredible adaptions, importance to humans, and how to identify local groups.

August 14 - Teachings from the Trees
If trees could talk I’m sure they would have a lot to tell us. Incorporating a mix of scientific lore, poetry, history and personal observation, we will elicit the connections and relationships between trees and the animals whose lives depend on them – and who in turn work to ensure the trees’ survival.

August 21 - Behaving like an Animal
Animals do many amazing things: they forage, communicate, play and learn. Since we haven’t learned to speak Squirrel or Robin yet, it’s up to us to observe and conduct experiments in order to determine why animals behave the way they do. Unleash the scientist in you as we learn and practice the study of animal behaviour.

August 28 – Bark Life
Bark does far more than just protect the tree—it is also a vital lifeline for many insects, birds, and other wild creatures. We will wander The
Arboretum while learning about the different types of bark and the creatures associated with it.

Our first ever bioblitz (June 22-23) was a big hit! We found many different species including quite a few new records for The Arboretum. We still have many records coming in, but currently our total is 466 species identified. Nice! We will update this list as the records come in. Here are the preliminary totals for a few groups:

23 Lichens
57 Fungi
124 Plants
9 Slugs and Snails
20 Spiders
14 Butterflies
89 Moths
18 Dragonflies and Damselflies
47 Birds
9 Mammals
8 Reptiles and Amphibians
2 Fish

A big thank you to all of our volunteers, especially the identifiers who worked tirelessly to accumulate so many records!

  
Dragonfly Group                              Painted Turtle Diggin Hole for Eggs
photo by Janet Topan                      photo by Chris Earley

      
Christina and Eric holding a toad         American Robin
photo by Chris Earley                         photo by Chris Earley

                        
                         Eyed Elater click beetle
                         Photo by Chris Earley

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. We can accommodate up to 150 people for lunches or dinners with a picturesque view of The Arboretum grounds. We still have some good dates available … book soon before they are gone. 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 at The Arboretum

Mark your calendar … The Arboretum Auxiliary Plant Sale is on Saturday, September 14, 2013 from 9 a.m. - 2 p.m.

Hawks, Tree Identification, Mushrooms for Beginners and Growing Native Plants from Seeds 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.

For further information and / or to register please call at 519-824-4120 ext. 52358 or [log in to unmask] 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.

Lots of warm weather has produced an increase in our insect sightings recently. We had many species of dragonflies and damselflies at the dragonfly and damselfly workshop and many species of butterflies at the butterfly workshop. We also had a sighting of a monarch butterfly! Normally that would not be incredibly noteworthy, but this is our first one this year and the latest first-of-the-year sighting that I can remember. Hopefully the monarch numbers will increase soon. We have also had a spectacular showing of Tulip Tree blooms this summer and currently have many blooming Black-eyed Susans adorning our old fields. Come and see them!

Emerald dragonfly
photo by Chris Earley

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]