Spring is a busy time for volunteers with the lake stewardship society, Friends of Lac des Roches and Birch Lake. The group has just published its fifth annual community newsletter, and while copies have been delivered to all the residences in the area, it is available to everyone on the society’s website, www.lacdesroches.org. The society’s annual general meeting is scheduled for 7 p.m. on Aug. 25 at the Bridge Lake Elementary School. The group has commenced its water quality monitoring of the four area lakes: Little Lac des Roches, Lac des Roches, Birch Lake and Phinetta Lake. At each of these lakes, volunteers also monitor the Loon population and their breeding success for Bird Studies of Canada. The society would like to remind lake users to keep their distance from breeding loons, as they will abandon their vulnerable nests if distressed. This can put their eggs and chicks at risk to the many natural predators that hunt the lakes shorelines.
Cariboo gardening
Area residents have the opportunity on May 29 to brush up on their Cariboo gardening techniques thanks to the Bridge Lake Community School. The school has once again partnered with Lac des Roches resident and experienced gardener Wendy Marshall. She will be offering a morning filled with tips and tricks of how to make vegetable and flower gardening a successful and rewarding experience in our harsh growing season. Wendy’s charm and unending wit guarantees this to be as entertaining as it will be informative. Please call Wendy Dubbin at 593-4538 for registration and details.
Aspen at risk
The tiny white flies, or aspen leaf miners, are back just as the new green leaves are unfurling. The warm weather in mid-May provided the perfect conditions for a major hatch of these pesky parasites. It won’t be long before the flies will attack the local trees and cause their leaves to turn a pale green or silver colour from their natural vibrant green. Eventually, these annual attacks will cause the aspen trees to die, but the Cariboo seems to toughen up even the trees, and so far, the local trees have managed to survive half a dozen years of repeated assault by these relentless flies.
May celebrations
Best wishes to our friends and neighbours celebrating milestone events this month. Tony Neill, Arnold Foster and Jacquie Woloski are all celebrating birthdays in May. Enjoy your special day.