Sidney's paradise on the edge of the Moose Woods
To tell our story, you have to go back to November 1999 when I met Scott Lawrence, my life partner, on an idyllic beach on the Baja Peninsula, Mexico. I was hitchhiking with a girlfriend, bound for Costa Rica. Scott had motorcycled from Canada and...
September roundup: Conservation and nature stories from around the world that caught our eye this month
Bobolink (Photo by Bill Hubick)
Hay delay In an effort to protect grassland bird species, including the threatened bobolink, some PEI farmers postponed their first cut of hay this past summer. Harvest the story > Nightingales could disappear into the night The...
Emblems of Canada: tree edition
Trees have played a significant cultural role in the lives of many Canadians; they are engrained in our national identity. Take the Canadian flag for instance. It features a single, prominent red maple leaf in the centre, which speaks to the...
Adventures along the Humber River
Whenever I stay with my dad and step-mom in Toronto during the spring and summer, I often cycle and walk on the Humber River Recreational Trail near their house. As its name implies, the path goes along the Humber River, a Canadian Heritage River....
Nature Destinations: Alfred-Kelly Nature Reserve
The Alfred-Kelly nature reserve is an oasis within an area where residential development is rapidly increasing. The nature reserve is named for an ornithologist who, in 1983, donated his property in Piedmont to Bird Protection Quebec (Protection...
One tree at a time: Canada’s forests
Tamarack forest (Photo by NCC)
What is the one habitat type that runs through every province and territory, surrounds communities where most Canadians live and covers about one-third of the country? If you guessed forests, you would be right! We’re lucky to live in a...
Rediscovering food from our own backyards
Another week has gone by, and the time has come where I look at my empty cupboards and realize that I cannot put off grocery shopping any longer. Grudgingly, I pack up my reusable bags and head across the street to the grocery store. I browse...
A natural misconception
The idea that nature is silent is a lie. Nature is loud, and sometimes obnoxiously so, especially when you’ve been paddling or hiking all day and just want to fall sleep. Don’t get me wrong: I’ll take the sounds of nature over...
Grandfather nature
I partly owe my love of nature to my grandfather. He likely developed his own fascination with nature from growing up on a farm in the historic Meadowvale Village in Mississauga, Ontario. When I was three years old, my grandfather moved into a...
Bringing nature to you: The power of houseplants
Office plants can help clean the air and brighten any room (Photo by J. Pilsack, Wikimedia Commons)
I’ve always loved plants. I like their colour, their smell and the feeling I get when I’m surrounded by them, both inside and outside the house. Last year, I started covering the entire windowsill of my bedroom with plants and...
