By Pam Wright
Local Journalism Initiative Reporter
ReLeaf CK gardeners are changing the local landscape one plant at a time.
Their hard work was evident Sunday during the group’s inaugural Garden Tour, highlighting green spaces that focus on native flowers, plants and trees.
Wallaceburg area resident Denise Shephard’s native garden was one of seven Chatham-Kent sites featured on the first-ever tour.
Around 50 people came to visit the colourful space, some even armed with notebooks to jot down ideas.
Shephard said it was enjoyable sharing the beauty created with indigenous plants and answering questions.
“It was a pleasure to be part of today’s tour because I was able to share my enthusiasm for native plants,” Shephard explained.
A life-long gardener, Shepherd said she began to incorporate native species into her traditional gardens when she retired six years ago.
She said it’s been a rewarding journey watching the diversity of insect, bird and animal life, created when indigenous plants take root.
Shephard believes interest in native species is growing as evidenced by the keen interest of people who visited her garden.
“They shared how much they enjoyed it,” she said. “They were so polite and asked a lot of questions.”
ReLeaf CK founder Mike Smith, who spearheaded the tour, said he was also impressed by the interest.
The North Buxton resident has been working away at turning his one-acre property into a natural landscape. Two years ago, he started revamping the land he described as “a plot of grass with a hedge of Rose of Sharon.”
Smith is thinking big. Working with the Lower Thames Valley Conservation Authority, he’s added 700 trees of varying species to the property.
Smith said he started ReLeaf CK to personally document the transformation of his land. However, interest is high and the Facebook group has grown to 900 members.
The ReLeaf CK tour, said Smith, gives gardeners exposure to the beauty of natural species, and first-hand knowledge of ideas of how it can be done.
Around 90 people attended Sunday’s event all told, which is the first day of a two-day event.
A second tour featuring other Chatham-Kent gardens will take place Aug. 15. Tickets can be procured through Eventbrite by accessing ReLeaf’s Facebook or Instagram page.
