CENTRE WELLINGTON – Centre Wellington Native Plant Gardening (CWNPG) is hosting two workshops this winter to get gardeners in the groove well in advance of the spring thaw.
The topic: winter sowing, which organizers say is an easy and inexpensive way to add native plants to any garden.
The winter sowing workshops are part of the second annual Be*Spoke Festival run by the cycling group Green Lanes.
Participants will be able to choose from dozens of species suited to various garden conditions including wet, dry, full shade or sun.
The first workshop is on Jan. 23 from 2 to 5pm at the Elora Centre for the Arts and the second is on Jan. 24, from 10am to 1pm at 525 Union St. E. in Fergus.
The workshops are free, but space is limited and pre-registration is required.
Email cwnativeplantgardening@gmail.com for full details and to register.
CWNPG was formed in 2024 by Kari Olsen and Kate Anderson with the goal of creating critical habitat for native pollinators in Centre Wellington.
In 2025 CWNPG established a native pollinator garden at the Elora Centre for the Arts and since then members have been collecting native plant seeds for the winter sowing workshops.
Seeds will also be available during Seedy Saturday in March, where CWNPG will run a workshop to introduce people to a variety of native plants.
Last fall CWNPG members began working with Neighbourwoods to replace invasive species with native plants along the Trestle Bridge and Cottontail trails and will continue this work through 2026.
“Native pollinators rely on native plants for food, shelter and hosting offspring,” organizers state in a press release.
“Adding native plants to our yards and public spaces will help secure native pollinator populations and our food sources.”
Not only do native pollinators support food crops, they are critical to the survival of many birds as well.
Since 1970, North America has lost three billion birds mostly due to habitat loss and declining food supplies.
“Putting native plants back into our landscapes is key to reversing bird declines,” they say.
