MeadowMakers Program

Community Creating Habitat

Join Satinflower Nurseries and Pollinator Partnership Canada to become a MeadowMaker! This is an inspiring four-month program that will guide you through the process of restoring spaces, such as yards and boulevards, with native plants.

All participants will learn bee identification, plant identification, and plant propagation techniques. The MeadowMakers group will receive training by local native plant and bee experts in a series of workshops, resources, and field trips. Field days will include native plant and bee identification walks and trips to see local restoration projects and parks.

Join this unique program to be part of like-minded people who appreciate our local ecosystems and want to support local plants and wildlife. The group will troubleshoot problems and assist each other in their efforts. A community creating habitat.

All in-person (excluding field trips) and virtual sessions will be recorded and made available exclusively to participants for the length of the program.

Learn more about the MeadowMaker program in the Sierra Club, Capital Daily, Millstone Farm & Organics, and more!

Highlights:

• Learn plant identification and bee identification
• Gain an understanding about local ecology
• Experience a practical and meaningful way to engage with nature and help protect it
• Go on field trips and outings to profile projects and natural areas to help in your learning
• Ongoing virtual training workshops that will take you step-by-step through converting your boulevards and lawns to native plant and wildlife habitat
• Members can choose to have a MeadowMaker sign marking their property as habitat
• Access to technical how-to guides and resources
• A community of like-minded people working to create habitat

Potential Spaces Include:

• Home Gardens
• Boulevards
• Lawns
• Community spaces
• Septic fields
• Greenroof
• Raingardens and more!

Additional MeadowMaker Member Benefits:

MeadowMaker participants receive 10% off plants, seeds, and consulting at Satinflower Nurseries!

• 10% off seed and plants from Satinflower Nurseries through the year (March 1 to December 31, 2023)
• 10% off in-person meadow consultations to discuss project goals and develop a custom plan including site prep, planting choices, wildlife enhancements, and maintenance
• 10% off Individual virtual consultations to help you progress through the meadow making process
• MeadowMakers lawn sign

Kristen Miskelly

MSc Botany, RPBio (Satinflower Nurseries: Native Plants, Seeds & Consulting)

Kristen is co-owner of Satinflower Nurseries and has ecosystem restoration, native plants, and native plant propagation expertise. She specializes in the botany and ecology of southeastern Vancouver Island. Kristen and her husband James started Satinflower Nurseries in 2013, aiming to inspire and empower people to connect with nature through native plants. Kristen has been teaching plant- and ecology-related courses and workshops for more than 15 years and is currently a sessional lecturer at the University of Victoria teaching courses in Ecological Restoration.

Lora Morandin

PhD, Pollinator Partnership and Pollinator Partnership Canada

Lora is the Research and Conservation Director for Pollinator Partnership and Pollinator Partnership Canada, the largest organization in the world dedicated solely to the protection of pollinators and their habitat. Lora has been studying pollinators for 25 years and did an undergraduate degree in Ecology and Evolution with a minor in Plant Biology at Western University, she did an MSc on pollination of greenhouse tomatoes at Western University, a PhD at SFU on enhancing pollination in agroecosystems, followed by postdoctoral work at UC Berkeley on integrating ecosystem services into agricultural production. She has co-authored books and has over 30 peer-reviewed publications related to pollinators. In her current position, she created the Pollinator Steward Certification program, she conducts research and outreach, provides consultation for industry and government, and works with partners to create habitat for pollinators across North America. Visit: pollinatorpartnership.ca

Detailed Program Schedule

Module 1: MeadowMakers Introduction

Monday April 4: 6:30-8:30pm

Join us for an introduction to the program, an overview of local ecology and why making meadows is important for the conservation of local ecosystems and pollinators on Southern Vancouver Island.

Artist Sarah Jim will be a guest speaker at this first Meetup talking about:

• her creative process for the emblem design and the inspirations behind it
• relationships between art and nature, specifically meadows
• the importance of meadows from her perspective, how MeadowMakers can make a difference, and relationships between acts of reconciliation and the use of native plants + making meadows ❤️

Module 2: Identifying Your Space

Monday April 11: 6:30-8:30pm

Selecting a spot and starting to develop a plan is very important for your success in creating a meadow. In our second webinar, we will help you choose your spot, going over site types and features that will help you create the right kind of habitat. We will also be bringing forward some key resources during this webinar to start to help you along your way.

Module 3: Supporting Pollinators with Your Meadow

Monday April 25: 6:30-8:30pm

Get to know some of your local pollinators, why they’re important and how to help. This webinar focuses on pollinator identification, the needs of pollinators, and plant-pollinator interactions.

Module 4: Preparing Your Meadow

Monday May 2: 6:30-8:30pm

Learn the hands-on methods to prepare a site for native plants and seeding. You will come away from this session feeling you know your next steps to bring your meadow to life including what techniques you can use, the supplies you need, and timing of activities.

Field Trip 1: Plant Identification and Preparing Your Meadow

Saturday May 21: 1:00-3:00pm

Join us for an in-person meet up for identifying native plants and also look at some of the site preparation techniques and tools for making meadows.

Field Trip 2: Celebrating Pollinator Week Walk & Talk

Saturday June 25: 1:00-3:00pm

Let’s celebrate Pollinator Week (June 20th -26th) by spending time outdoors up close with some of our local pollinators. In this field trip we will practice our identification skills and explore relationships between native plants and our beloved pollinators

Module 5: Selecting Native Plants

Monday July 4: 6:30-8:30pm

In this webinar we help you decide which plants are best for your site and considerations to make when choosing plants. We will also go over which plants are best for pollinators and which pollinators they support.

Module 6: Planting and Seeding

Monday July 18: 6:30-8:30pm

With your meadows being actively prepared, it’s time to think about how you will plant and seed them. In this webinar, we will help you decide on whether planting from pot or seed makes most sense and how to approach each method. Techniques, timelines, and expectations will be discussed.

Module 7: Plant Propagation

Monday September 12: 6:30-8:30pm

Part of the joy in creating a meadow is learning all the life phases of native plants. Many of you may be inspired to try growing plants to increase the size of your meadow patches or sharing plants with friends. In this webinar, we will go over some of the basics of growing native plants and get you started on your way.