Evolution of the Land
Since 2011, Planting Seeds of Hope (PSOH) has been leading the implementation of Children’s Lands programming in Canada.
PSOH believes that the more time young people spend in nature, the more likely they are to internalize their kinship with the natural world and see how their actions impact the life surrounding them.
This awareness often grows into something called active empathy for life, an understanding that further inspires them to protect and care for the natural world.
In 2009, PSOH started running Children’s Land Canada programming — donating most of their 46 acres of commercial farmland to local children who began the first Children’s Land in Canada, a dedicated place for them to explore and interact with nature in meaningful ways.
As their relationships strengthened and sense of belonging deepened, the children started the process of creating environments that benefit the natural world, and an empty field began its transformation into an array of different ecosystems, rich in diversity and beauty.
The property is now home to a forest of 12,000 native trees, an interconnected hiking trail system, a one-acre wetland, a thriving fruit orchard, an area for children’s gardens and community shared agriculture (CSA), and a small homemade greenhouse, as well as meadows and grasslands for insects, birds, and butterflies.
We’re pleased to share some of the many inspirational ways local children have collaborated to support ecology, increase biodiversity, and create environments that benefit humanity and the natural world.
Their transformative actions demonstrate the powerful potential in each of us to make decisions that improve our surroundings.
Children’s Forest
The children wanted to plant trees to create an environment where local deer could hide from coyotes and where birds and squirrels had a place to sleep. This idea resulted in a 12,000-tree forest, for which the children were acknowledged with a Carolinian Canada Conservation Award. The trees began as tiny seedlings, and many are now well over ten feet tall!
Field Restoration
The land that the children originally received had a decades-long history of commercial agriculture use. As they transformed the field into an area rich in biodiversity, the children discovered that their efforts to improve the land — planting trees, creating a wetland, establishing hiking trails, and so on — were matched and met by the life-bringing wisdom and power of Mother Earth.
The once-depleted field is now home to thousands of plants, wildflowers, insects, and animals. Each year, the children and their families look forward with excitement to discovering new flora and fauna that appear there. They have learned that as the land heals, the soil changes, enabling different plants and wildlife to emerge with each new cycle.
Trails
In 2009, a young girl envisioned a trail system that would wind its way through the large open field. She sketched an initial design, which was then roughed out with a weed trimmer. Over the years, her designs and trails continued to evolve to meet the ever-changing landscape of the backfield. Today there are several kilometers of trails used by the hundreds of children that visit the property each year.
For the moving story of how this trail system came to be, please read Lily’s Evolving Trails.
Wetland
What started out as a simple wish for a water garden transformed over time into a one-acre wetland that provides a much-needed habitat for animals, birds, wildlife, and aquatic plants. The wetland is equipped with a floating observation dock that allows children to get up close and personal with the rich wetland life. In the winter, it becomes a skating rink for them to enjoy.
To learn about the wetland’s incredible evolution, please read Spence’s Wetland.
The Bug Hotel
The PreSchool children from Niwasa Kendaaswin Teg spent the fall discovering and building a relationship with the bugs in our area. They quickly transitioned from being fearful, to being curious to becoming empathetic advocates for the bugs. When asked what they would like to create on the land that would bring joy to themselves, others and the natural world, the children unanimously decided to build homes for the bugs.
The Fairy Tree
A young girl wanted to create a magical place where children could be inspired to use their creativity and imagination. When she learned that people in Ireland refer to the hawthorn tree as a “fairy tree” (because the thorns protect the fairies) she decided that the old hawthorn tree on the border of the property would be the perfect place for what she was envisioning.
Click here for the inspirational story of Sadie’s magical fairy tree.
Children’s Garden
The front area of the property was once covered in grass and nothing more. The children worked together to create beautiful gardens using a method called lasagna gardening (we now substitute regular soil for peat moss) where different organic materials are layered on top of one another to create soil. They then added painted signs, colourful stones, and other personal touches to their plots, resulting in a place of special beauty for their plants to grow.
Community Shared Agriculture
Garden produce is shared within our community and beyond, benefitting friends and family, nonprofit organizations, and the visiting elders who impart honoured teachings. Harvested food is presented as an offering of thanksgiving to Mother Earth and enjoyed by the children themselves, who set up food stands to exchange their bounty for donations that support their ongoing projects and initiatives.
Climbing Stumps
Children love to climb, and one of their wishes was to create an area on the land where they could do exactly that. Large stumps were recycled from a fallen maple tree, and the children designed and helped install a climbing stump area, which is enjoyed by all the children who visit each year.
Fruit Tree Orchard
One wish the children had for the land was to grow fruit trees. Small apple, peach, pear, plum, and cherry trees were planted in 2012, and each fall they are covered in fruit. The children enjoy harvesting the fruit and sharing it with friends and family.
Greenhouse
The children helped build and decorate a mini-greenhouse using old screen doors donated by one of our community mothers. In addition to holding all of the children’s seedlings each spring, the greenhouse is also a dun place to warm up on sunny winter days.
Living Shelters
The children have planted several living shelters on the land: a bean tipi with magical purple beans, a sunflower house that facilitates children’s meetings, a grape arbour, a birch tree circle, and a gathering of “elders” made up of proud Saskatoon berry trees. All of these shelters provide enjoyment for children and visitors — especially in the summer and fall when they come into full bloom!
Fairy Tree
One of the children’s favourite places to visit on the land is the fairy tree. Located in a secret place under a hawthorn tree, the fairy tree began as the inspiration of one particular child, who envisioned a special spot for honouring fairies, gnomes, and little people. From this vision — and with the help of trusted adults — she created a place of magic for visiting children.
For more details about this heartening story, read Sadie’s Fairy Tree.
Bug Hotel
One year, a preschool class that visited the land regularly decided to create a bug hotel so that the insects they enjoyed watching would have a comfortable place to live. They researched and planned the project, gathered the supplies, and worked together to build a beautiful habitat for these tiny creatures.
To discover more about this initiative, read Bug Hotel.
Click here for information about opportunities to visit the land. INQUIRE NOW