St. Albert gardener Dale Ford is knee-deep in weeds. All around her are puffy dandelions and spiky thistles, all tall and thriving. Next to her is a comparatively shrivelled highbush cranberry — one of the few plants that’s actually supposed to be here. If it weren’t for the nearby sign, it would be tough to know that this is supposed to be the Coal Mine Park pollinator garden and not a weed plantation.
“Here’s a [common] tansy,” she said, pointing out a tall, leafy plant that’s choking the life out of the native yarrow next to it.
“Out you come!” she said, as she yanked the tansy from the ground.
Ford helped design the Coal Mine Park pollinator garden four years ago and has watched invasive weeds slowly overtake it ever since.
This June 26, she will be one of a handful of volunteers in the garden evicting these unwanted guests as part of a Weed Warriors community workshop.
Weed vs not
Invasive plants are those introduced from elsewhere in the world that have no natural predators in Alberta, allowing them to spread unchecked to the detriment of the environment, economy, and human health, reports the Alberta Invasive Species Council. Alberta’s Weed Control Act lists plants that Albertans are required to control or destroy on sight.
Weed Warriors is part of the city’s efforts to teach residents how to spot and stamp out invasive plants to support native ones and preserve biodiversity, said City of St. Albert environmental co-ordinator Payton Homeak.
This year’s Weed Warriors program features two workshops and four drop-in events at four locations — a reflection of the burst of weeds this year’s drought has summoned, Homeak said. The first workshop is at Coal Mine Park on June 26 from 7 to 8:30 p.m., where guests will learn how to distinguish invasive weeds from native plants in the park’s pollinator garden.
Coal Mine Park is packed with weeds because of all the seeds blowing in from nearby construction sites, said Erin Pickard, parks operations supervisor with the City of St. Albert. The site is loaded with spiky Canada thistle, common tansy (carrot-top-like right now, but will have clusters of yellow button flowers later), and oxeye daisies.
The next workshop is at Grandin Pond on July 17 from 6 to 8 p.m. Here, guests will learn to spot toadflax (towers of yellow flowers) and bird vetch (purple flowers on a vine), the latter of which threatens the pond’s population of butterfly-supporting milkweed.
The city will hold drop-in weed pulls at Riverlot 56 on June 24 and July 15 from 3 to 7 p.m. Here, the main weed is field scabious, which The Alberta Invasive Species Council says can produce up to 2,000 seeds from its clover-like cluster of florets.
Weed Warriors will also rally at 2 Meadowview Dr. by the grain elevators on July 10 and Aug. 21 from 2 to 6 p.m. Homeak said volunteers there will help pull bird vetch and the dandelion-like perennial sow thistle from flowerbeds.
Pickard encouraged residents to use the Alberta Invasive Species Council website to learn how to spot and safely remove invasive weeds in their yards. Such weeds should be placed in the brown garbage bin, not the green compost one, to prevent their spread. Anyone who spots such weeds in public should report them to Public Operations at 780-459-1557.
Guests should wear closed-toe shoes and long pants to Weed Warrior events, Homeak said. The events are free to attend, and city crews will provide bags, gloves, and snacks.
Visit stalbert.ca/city/environment/programs-events/spruce-up/weed-warriors to register for Weed Warriors.
