An Orchard Refuge

Sherry and Annie chat about Geraniums in the pollinator garden. Photo credit: Lynn Nicholas

Ben Nobleman Park has become a refuge for so many of us during the challenges of COVID 19. The volunteers for The Ben Nobleman Park Community Orchard gather in small groups to care for the fruit trees and pollinator garden and connect with each other in a socially distant way.

But the park has also become a haven for others who want to gather in small groups for exercise classes and volleyball. Kerry and Hilary from Marine Kickboxing on Eglinton West are leading kickboxing classes on Monday, Wednesday and Friday at 6pm.

Due to provincial rules, they need to limit the class to 10 people in total – including the instructors – so that anyone who is interested in joining a class should buy their ticket in advance from the Marine Kickboxing website.

A socially-distanced kickboxing class led by Marine Kickboxing on Eglinton Avenue West. Instructors Kerry and Hillary are running the classes in the park on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays at 6pm. If you want to join the class, register at https://www.marinekickboxing.ca/ but coming along to watch the kickboxing crew is fun…and free! Photo credit: Lynn Nicholas.

Also from time to time, a group of friends are gathering in the park to play volleyball. It’s a delight to see the park used so well!

A group of friends come to the park some evenings to play volleyball. They bring their own net and have lots of fun in the fresh air. Photo credit: Lynn Nicholas

But recently, the park was also briefly a haven for another local resident – a lost turtle. We’re not sure how how the turtle got to the park, but Lynn and others saw it wandering around recently. Lynn called 311 and for the moment, we can’t find the turtle in the park so we’re hoping it has been rescued by animal services and is on it’s way to a good home!

A lost or abandoned turtle was found in Ben Nobleman Park. It was reported to our city helpline at 311 and by the next day the turtle had vanished. We are hoping this beautiful creature has been rescued by animal services or found by its owners! Photo credit: Lynn Nicholas.

Now, how does the park stay so lovely? Well, it’s a team effort! Parks, Forestry and Recreation have a team of gardeners, arborists and others who take care of the park, and recently they had a team weeding in the children’s playground and adding mulch. Toronto playgrounds are still currently closed to the public due to COVID-19 but when the province thinks the time is right, they will reopen it.

Dylan from the City of Toronto’s Parks, Forestry and Recreation department compresses the mulch in the playground to prepare for the day when the province opens up playgrounds again. Photo credit: Lynn Nicholas.

While Parks and Recreation does their bit, we the volunteers have an important rule to play and we meet weekly to ensure the fruit trees and the pollinator garden are well cared for. Our Saturday morning crew, including Lynn, Sherry, Annie, Marilyn, Gail and Ruth have been working hard to keep the pollinator garden clean and lovely.

Gail peeks out from amongst the flowers in the pollinator garden. Photo credit: Lynn Nicholas.
Annie hard at work amongst the bee balm. Photo credit: Lynn Nicholas
Marilyn takes a rest while working in the pollinator garden. Photo credit: Lynn Nicholas.
Ruth in action! Weeding the pollinator garden. Photo credit: Lynn Nicholas

So, while the word is coping with a pandemic, Ben Nobleman is providing us that precious bit of green space where we can all find some joy, hope and peace. Interested is learning more about what we do? Make sure you join our volunteers mailing list by sending an email to growingforgreen (at) gmail.com. See you in the park soon!

Susan Poizner is the coordinator of The Ben Nobleman Park Community Orchard in Toronto and the author of the award-winning fruit tree care book Growing Urban Orchards. Susan teaches fruit tree care skills online at he fruit tree care training website OrchardPeople.com. Susan is also the host of The Urban Forestry Radio Show and Podcast, a show that explores topics relating to fruit trees, food forests, permaculture and arboriculture. She is also an ISA Certified arborist.