by Chris Earley

To help say good-bye to Old Man Winter, it's time for our annual spring quiz . Here are some close ups of creatures that usually first show themselves in March after an absence all winter. Can you figure them out? The answers and full photos of each animal are below.

by Shelley Hunt

Hello to everyone in The Arboretum community! I am absolutely thrilled and honoured to be joining The Arboretum team as Director. Having been a faculty member at U of G since 2006, and a student for many (many!) years before that, I am well aware of the iconic role The Arboretum plays on campus. In the past few weeks I’ve been finding my way around (mainly by acting as ‘apprentice’ to long-time manager Ric Jordan, but also with lots of help from Interim Director Jonathan Newman, and from the rest of The Arboretum Management Group - Chris Earley, Sean Fox, and Aron Fazekas). I’ve been increasingly amazed as I learn more and more about the extent of Arboretum activities and outreach involving the broader Guelph community.   Read more.

On Thursday, March 28 at 7 p.m. Sean James will be speaking at The Arboretum Centre on Native Alternatives to Invasive Species in the Home Garden. Come out to this inspiring and engaging talk about choosing native plants that will work in those hard to grow places that invasive species have been occupying in your garden. This event is sponsored by the Waterloo Wellington Wildflower Society, Guelph and Wellington County Master Gardeners, The Arboretum and Healthy Landscapes, City of Guelph.  It is a free event that is open to everyone. Click here for a flyer.

by Ric Jordan

For those of you who have visited me at The Arboretum you probably will recall that I have an office which has one major drawback – a severe lack of windows to the outside. At this time of year there are some advantages to this arrangement. When I leave my snug cubby I can be greeted by a variety of external weather conditions of which I had no knowledge and this is the time of the year when it can change hourly. Anglo Saxons had two terms for March, Hlyd monath meaning Stormy month or Hraed monath meaning Rugged month. Both descriptors can be totally applicable to this month which to many means ‘Spring is coming, not quite yet, but soon’. Some of our most memorable snow storms have come in March but then we remain upbeat as we know the white stuff will soon disappear and be replaced by the emerging green of spring and all the associated colours of vegetation.  Read more.

    
Snowfall at The Arboretum                          Child on Arboretum Front Patio
February 27, 2013                           February 27, 2013

Ever wonder who is visiting your feeder or what that dragonfly might be called? How about identifying that pretty flower in the woods or who left those tracks? To increase awareness of local wildlife, The Arboretum has put together five booklets to help you and your family connect with nature. Spring Woodland Wildflowers of The Arboretum features the showy forest flowers of May. Mammals of the Arboretum not only shows what furry animals might be in your neighbourhood, but what tracks they leave. Feeder Birds of the Arboretum covers winter birds that you might find in your backyard and Summer Garden Birds covers summer birds that you might find in your backyard. Dragonflies of The Arboretum shows the diversity of these mosquito eaters and helps you learn how to identify dragonflies. The booklets are $8 each including tax.

We also have 11 inch by 11 inch replicas of the Wildlife Crossing signs that are on the roads surrounding The Arboretum. There are 10 different designs. These would look terrific in your yard, at your cottage or on your favourite student's bedroom wall. The signs are $10 including tax.

For anyone who enjoys sketching or if you want an interesting book for note-taking we still have copies of our Arboretum Nature Journal available as well. These are $10 each including tax.

Further information on the booklets, signs and journal is available on our website. To purchase any of the above please contact us at 519-824-4120 ext. 52358 or [log in to unmask].

The Pruning, Ecological Vegetable Garden, Gardening Fundamentals and Introduction to Birds 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.

by Chris Earley

Blue bunny pee. Yup, that is this e-newsletter's sightings topic. Really. Have you seen it? I have seen it and have always thought it had to do with some kind of plant that the cottontail rabbits are eating. I did a web search and found out that I am correct, but the answer is even more fun than that. Supposedly, when a cottontail eats buckthorn bark, it pees yellow or brownish urine, but the urine has a chemical in it that causes it to turn blue when exposed to sunlight! And I don't mean just a bluish tinge, I'm talking about a brilliant neon antifreeze blue. So, there is something fun about invasive buckthorn after all. And that, dear reader, is your homework. Before all of the snow is gone, I challenge you to go out and find some blue bunny pee yourself. The attached photo was taken in the Gosling Wildlife Gardens suburban garden (that's garden #4 - the one with the little fenced veggie garden in it). Good luck!

  
Blue Bunny Pee  

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]