Issue 2.1    |    February, 2007

Native Plant Gardening Workshop

March 23 - 25, 2007
Sign-up for this workshop is closing on February 28, so please contact us today if you are interested.

A weekend workshop that will explore the joys and frustration of gardening with native plants.

• How to garden with native plants
• Identification of weeds and invasive plants: How to deal with them
• The benefits of using native plants in our gardens
• Guided tour of the Tofino Botanical Gardens
• Slideshow, including slides of different native plants and gardens
• Lawn replacement discussion and techniques
• Discussion and examples of thickets, meadows, woodland and rock gardens

The cost is $195, including two nights accommodation and two pancake breakfasts. We will have more information on our website soon, but please feel free to contact us to sign up today.

Naturalist's Weekend & Tofino Shorebird Festival

April 27-29, 2007
Join expert naturalists during the 10th annual Shorebird Festival on a weekend adventure birding and exploring the Tofino Mudflats, and the exposed intertidal zone.

The Tofino Mudflats is an estuarine ecosystem just outside of Tofino It is an internationally significant migratory stopover for shorebirds and among the top ten most critical wetlands for wintering waterfowl on Canada's west coast. Watch for western sandpipers, short-billed and long-billed dowitchers, dunlin, least sandpipers, sanderling and black-bellied plovers during the fall migration.

The cost is $195, and includes three naturalist / birding walks, two nights accommodation, two breakfasts. For more info, but please feel free to contact us to sign up today.

21st Annual Pacific Rim Whale Festival

March 17 - 25, 2007
The 21st Annual Pacific Rim Whale Festival features fantastic activities, events, artists and musical performers. This is a great time to get up to Tofino, stay at the Field Station and wonder through the Tofino Botanical Gardens, where some of the Festival's activities take place.

Josie Osborne, our resident naturalist and oyster-expert extrordinaire is hosting three events at the Field Station, the Mudflats and the Gardens:

Oyster Show with SOBO and Josie Osborne

Presented by chef Lisa Ahier and biologist Josie Osborne
March 20, 3:00 PM
Tofino Botanical Gardens, Clayoquot Field Station, Tofino

Learn all about oysters from local marine biologist Josie Os bourne of the Clayoquot Field Station. Josie will teach you about Vancouver Island oysters, who they are, how they live and where to find them. Followed by our beloved 4 time- Peoples Choice Award winner of The Tofino Oyster Fest. Lisa will be handing out recipes and sharing secrets of the nutritional benefits and aphrodisiac qualities of Vancouver Island oysters. Oh and the best part... There are samples...

"From Zero to 3,000 in 30 years: Sea Otters on the West Coast of Vancouver Island"

Presented by biologist Josie Osborne
March 20, 7:00 PM
Tofino Botanical Gardens, Clayoquot Field Station, Tofino

Join local marine biologist Josie Osborne for an informative talk about sea otters. The last sea otter in BC was killed in 1920...learn about how this keystone species is making a comeback on the West Coast of Vancouver Island, and what kind of impact they are having - from changes in the nearshore coastal environment to changes in our
local economies. By donation.

More than just mud - An intertidal adventure on "the quiet side"

Presented by biologist Josie Osborne
March 22, 10:00 AM
Tofino Botanical Gardens, Clayoquot Field Station, Tofino

$10 adults, $6 students, children 12 and under free.
Proceeds split between the Whale Festival and the Tofino Botanical Gardens Foundation.

Join local marine biologist Josie Osborne for an intertidal adventure you'll never forget. You won't find any surfers in the water, but is a lot of mud on Tofino's "quiet side." Learn about what lives in the mud and why the mud is vital to hundreds of species - from single celled algae to bears and whales, and everything in between. A favourite with kids, but adults love the mud too. Please wear sturdy walking shoes - gumboots not necessary. Sorry, no dogs.

For more great events at the Pacific Rim Whale Festival see their website: http://www.pacificrimwhalefestival.org

Annual Membership Drive

For only $20 per adult you can enjoy the waterfront Tofino Botanical Gardens all year long. This is a great gift for your family or someone else, and kids are free!

Member Benefits:

• Year round Admission to the gardens
• 10% off retail items
• 10% off admission for all visitors that accompany you to the Gardens
• Free or reduced admission to many Garden events such as the Art in the Gardens Festival, walks and talks at the Clayoquot Field Station

Prices (including GST) :

• $20 / year for adults
• $12 / year for students and seniors
• FREE for children under 12 years

See our Membership Page for more information or...

It's only a phone call away! The Foundation takes Visa and MasterCard, and we're in the office 7 days a week: (250) 725-1220.