DAVIDSONIA VOL UME 5 NUMBER 2 Summer 1974

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J, K. Henry Lake in Native Garden Rubus ursinus ssp. macropetalus, the Pacific Trailing Blackberry, a plant found throughout the wooded areas of the Native Garden. Male and female flowers are borne on separate plants: the male flower is illustrated here. The berries are of excellent flavour.

DAVIDSONIA VOLUMES NUMBER 2 Summer 1974

Davidsonia is published quarterly by The Botanical Garden of The University of British Columbia, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, V6T 1W5. Annual subscription, four dollars. Single numbers, one dollar. All editorial matters or information concerning sub­ scriptions should be addressed to The Director of The Botanical Garden.

A ckno wledgements Pen and ink illustrations are by Mrs. Lesley Bohm. The map of the Native Garden was prepared by Ms. Geraldine Guppy. The photographs were taken by Dr. Roy L. Taylor. Editorial and layout assistance was provided by Ms. Geraldine Guppy and Mrs. Jean Marchant. An Introduction To The B.C. Native Garden

ROY L. TAYLOR

"The trees, which are interspersed in groups or standing solitary in dry upland... are thickly clad to the very ground with wide-spreading pendant branches, and from the gigantic size which they attain... form one of the most striking and truly graceful objects in Nature." David Douglas, on seeing his first Douglas fir.

It is fitting that the Botanical Garden at U.B.C. had as its first director Professor John Davidson, a Scot who followed in the footsteps of David Douglas, for his love of plants of the Pacific North­ west was no less than that of David Douglas. Today we are in the process of developing a natural repository for the native plants of British Columbia in the B.C. Native Plant Garden. The objectives of such a garden are many, for we have but scratched the surface of the knowledge concerning our native plant resources. An inventory of the vascular plants of this Province is being developed and the scope of this inventory and program will be the feature article in a later issue of Davidsonia. A living collection of our native plants was initiated three years ago with emphasis on the collection of woody material. Today this material forms part of a growing collection of plant specimens under cultivation in the Native Garden. The Native Garden provides for education, research and enjoyment. In the process of establish­ 17 ing and developing the garden we are learning about the requirements for the propagation and culture of our native species. A research program to develop new varieties and forms for the horticultural industry can now be coupled with cytogenetic investigation of our plant taxa. Little is known about either the cytogenetic behaviour of our taxa or their cultural requirements. The living gene bank now being developed will provide an opportunity for investigation into the qualities of our plant resources. The garden also provides a refuge for some of our rare or endangered species, and enables the Botanical Garden to gather comprehensive information about these unusual plants. Such information will enable propagation, through asexual or sexual methods, of these taxa so that they may be returned to suitable habitats in their natural range for re-establish­ ment of stable populations. In addition, propagules can be made available to other research in­ stitutions for further study. In some instances seed may be collected for long term storage in gene banks, as in the program at the Royal Botanic Gardens at Wakehurst.* The site chosen for the Native Garden contains several of the general habitats found in the Province; however, these are but microhabitats in what is basically a typically Western Hemlock-Douglas Fir forest. The garden consists of approximately eight acres, sloping from an upper artificial dryland garden through a forested region to an artificial lake and swamp. We have selectively cleared some of the forested area to form a meadow, and a berm separates the garden from the adjacent sports stadium. Large contained raised beds on the berm will be used for display of both annual and perennial herbaceous materials. A transitional garden area used for display of naturalized flora and ornamentals derived from B.C. natives adjoins the more formal components of the Main Garden.

Thompson, P.A. 1976. Seeds Everlasting. The Garden Journal of the Royal Horticultural Society 101 (2): 106-109. Common tree species of the B.C. Native Garden. Starting clockwise from the developing flower heads of Cornus nuttallii are shown the bark of Cornus nuttallii, Western Flowering Dogwood; Acer 18 macrophyllum, Bigleaf Maple; Prunus emarginata var. mollis, Bitter Cherry; Alnus rubra, Red Alder; Tsuga heterophylla, Western Hemlock; Pseudotsuga menziesii, Douglas Fir; Thuja plicata, Western Red Cedar. The B.C. Native Garden —Trails & Plants

ROY L. TAYLOR

The theme of the Botanical Garden program is nowhere better exemplified than by the B.C. Native Garden. Not only does the Garden provide an opportunity for people to see the plants of this Province, but the trails and special features commemorate those men and women who, through their individual efforts, have made significant contributions to our understanding of our land and plants. Some have pioneered in the exploration and mapping of the Province, others have provided insight into the richness of the flora. To all of these pioneers, we say thank you for your help in broadening our horizons. A series of interconnecting major and minor trails provide easy access to the garden. (See photo­ graphs below and landscape plan for the Garden on pages 20 and 21.) The major trail system is based on the figure eight design to provide the visitor with walks of different lengths featuring the major elements of the Garden. An attempt has been made to establish some special areas; e.g., dryland interior garden to display those plants native to the cold desert in the Ponderosa Pine Zone, an open meadow to display spring bulbs and meadow plants, a dry-walled runoff area that is par­ ticularly suited to deep woodland plants and ferns, a sand dune garden for marine foreshore taxa, a marsh bog garden especially suited to the many heath family species, a lake for aquatic species and a raised peat garden for special collections. A series of beds on an extensive berm will be utilized for large scale bed displays of annuals, perennials and ground covers. Two special gardens have 19

J.K. Henry Lake with the Simon Fraser Trail in the background. LANDSCAPE PLAN OF THE B.C. NATIVE GARDEN

ALPINE GARDEN THUNDERBIRD STADIUM

MAIN GARDEN

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TRAILS SPECIAL FEATURES 1. David Douglas Trail A. Interpretive Centre 2. William F. Tolmie Trail B. Dryland Interior Garden 3. John Macoun Trail C. David Douglas Garden 4. Simon Fraser Trail D. Grass-Sedge-Rush Garden LEGEND 5. Archibald Menzies Trail E. Demonstration Soil Profile Pit H Forest 6. Alexander Mackenzie Trail F. J.W. Eastham Meadow 7. David Thompson Trail G. Bob's Creek pi] Meadow 8. George M. Dawson Trail H. Raised Demonstration Beds H| Sand Dune 9. Adam F. Szczawinski Trail I. Ericaceous Bog fX] Bog or Swamp 10. Lewis J. Clark Trail J. J.K. Henry Lake 11. Thomas M.C. Taylor Trail K. Peatbed Garden ^ Water 12. Vladimir J. Krajina Trail L. Native Ornamentals Bed Special Gardens 13. Charles F. Newcombe Trail M. Introduced Plants Bed • 14. James A. Calder Trail Main Trails 15. James R. Anderson Trail 16. Catherine Schubert Trail ^aSP Secondary Trails

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^ iJL been developed: a garden to display grasses and grass-like plants (details of this garden and grasses on the Campus will be featured in the 1975 summer —> IM . number of Davidsonia), and a David Douglas garden in which will be exhibited many of the plants first found in British Columbia by this Lfi intrepid explorer. To provide a transition between the B.C. Native Garden and the Main Gardens two beds have been developed, one to display ornamental hybrids or selections made from B.C. natives and one to show those plants of non- B.C. origin that now form a conspicuous part of our flora. Plants have been collected from all parts of the Province and care has been taken to provide labels that give the accession number, collector and year of accession. All plants native to British Columbia have red labels; the few plants in the garden that are naturalized or introduced have black labels. JP ^•*>H ' *"- 1 - - ,jtf r * — Erythronium oregonum, the White Fawn Lily. This beautiful little plant is naturalized in the J. W. Eastham Meadow.

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An example of a "nurse log" showing establishment of Western Hemlock trees.

A raised peat bed used for display of selected acid-loving plants. Access to the collections is via a path of cedar rounds. The Learning Experience

ELAINE F. MASCALI

An important function of the B.C. Native Garden is to pro­ vide students of all ages with an opportunity to learn more about our flora. In cooperation with the Vancouver Environ­ Vaccinium ovalifolium, the mental Education Program, directed by Dr. C.J. Anastasiou, Oval-leaved Blueberry, a the Botanical Garden has undertaken to provide, in book common inhabitant of the form, a working guide to the plants of British Columbia that understory of coastal forests and an excellent fruit for are collected together in the garden. The book provides eating. instruction for teachers as well as a detailed guide to a repre­ sentative selection of the plants found in the garden. An assortment of interesting facts about each of the featured plants gives a new insight into the value of our native plants. Bird nesting sites are being provided in the Garden in To provide a starting point on a tour to the garden, an cooperation with the Vancouver Interpretive Centre has been constructed. This Centre, Natural History Society. designed by Downs-Archambault, is constructed of native 23 In addition a checklist of the wood and features a 'conversation pit' where students can birds in the area is being developed. listen to orientation lectures while observing the native plants around the Centre. To assist in an understanding of the plants and their environment, a demonstration soil pit with a soil monolith has been provided in the garden, with the co­ operation of the Soil Science Department of the Faculty of Agricultural Sciences. Additional information about our glacial till soils, and plant culture on such soils, is found in the guide book. The learning experience should be an easy one for the visitor to the garden, for one is surrounded with the subjects being studied. Through care and attention one should gain a new appreciation of native plants and their economic im­ portance, their historical and cultural values, their aesthetic and landscape value, and problems of preservation and conservation.

The immature fruits of Vaccinium membranaceum, the Black Blueberry.

Climatological Summary*

Data APRIL MAY JUNE Mean temperature 47.60°F 50.4°F 57.45°F Highest temperature 69.0°F 63.0°F 74.0°F Lowest temperature 34.0°F 40.0°F 45.0CF Grass minimum temperature 24.0°F 30.0°F 34.0°F Total rainfall/No. days with rainfall 4.21716 4.65716 0.9675 Total snowfall/No. days with snowfall - - - Total hours bright sunshine/possible 124.5/404.2 207.8/468.03 253.2/482.29 Max. wind speed for 1 hour/direction 13/E-NW-SE 10/N-SE-E 14/SE Mean mileage of wind at J' 77.0 72.4 83.0 Mean mileage of wind at 40' 115.4 105.6 116.8 *Site The University of British Columbia, Vancouver, B.C., Canada Positiontion.lat. 49° 15'29"N; long. 123° I4'S8"W. Elevation: 342.6'

Opposite: A view of the Interpretive Centre in the B. C. Native Garden. Sedum spathulifolium ssp. pntinosum. Broad-leaved Stonecrop, a native of British Columbia. This attractive rock garden plant deserves more attention from [he home gardener.

DAVIDSONIA

Volume 5 Number 2 Summer 1974

Contents An Introduction to the B.C. Native Garden 17 The B.C. Native Garden - Trails and Plants 19 Landscape Plan of the B.C. Native Garden 20-21 The Learning Experience 23 Climatological Summary

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