Grants of up to $5,000 are available to support community-led projects that:
PollinateTO supports projects that:
All Toronto neighbourhoods are eligible. Priority will be given to projects located in Toronto’s Neighbourhood Improvement Areas (NIAs).
Since 2019, PollinateTO has:
PollinateTO advances the principles and priorities of the City’s Pollinator Protection Strategy and Biodiversity Strategy.
Want to create pollinator habitat in Toronto? Applications for the next round of the City of Toronto’s PollinateTO Grants are now open. Watch a recording of a virtual information session to learn about the grants, the application process and be inspired by past projects.
Please note: Timelines are subject to change
Create your own group or join one that is already established in your community. Partner with others who can support your idea.
To be eligible, groups must include at least three Toronto residents residing in three separate households.
Decide on a name for your Group. Select a Group Lead to be the main contact.
Look for potential garden locations in your neighbourhood. Choose garden sites that are visible to the public, have access to water and are easy for your group to get to (walking distance is ideal). Your project may include multiple locations. Priority will be given to projects located in Toronto’s Neighbourhood Improvement Areas (NIAs).
Complete the Property Owner Support Letter template (Word doc) for each location.
If the garden location is on…
Decide on a name for your Project (this is different from your Group name).
Download the PollinateTO Application Questions Summary (please note, questions are subject to change). You can use this document to help plan, brainstorm and organize your project ideas and application submission.
Create a community engagement and education plan – think about the best ways to involve the community in your project.
Think about how your proposed garden(s) will be maintained in the long term and who will be responsible for the continued care of the garden(s). You can use the Garden Maintenance Plan template to help you plan.
Put together an estimated budget (max. $5,000). See the Eligible Costs section for guidance. You must use the Proposed Budget Summary template (Excel doc) provided.
You must apply using the online application form before the deadline.
The following documents are required to evaluate your proposal:
The following documents are optional. You can use them to help you plan your project:
Applications will be screened for eligibility by City of Toronto staff. Applications that are determined to be eligible will be further assessed by a Review Committee made up of representatives from various City of Toronto divisions. In the case of proposals for gardens on school grounds City staff will engage the School Board as part of the review process. Final recommendations for funding will be approved by the Executive Director, Environment & Climate, City of Toronto. Successful applicants will receive notice via email and details about next steps.
The Review Committee will make funding recommendations based on their assessment of the following elements of each application:
A funding agreement will be drafted and sent to successful applicants to be signed. Upon returning the signed agreement, the City signature will be added and the first installment of the funding award (approximately 90 percent) will be processed.
Funded groups will be required to sign the Declaration of Compliance of Anti-Harassment/Discrimination City Policy and will be asked to review the City of Toronto Guide to Political Activities for City Funded Groups and sign a corresponding document to acknowledge the policy.
The City of Toronto has engaged official trustee organizations for PollinateTO. These organizations will provide administrative oversight of the funding disbursement to successful PollinateTO grant recipients.
PollinateTO Trustee Organizations
PollinateTO is open to all resident-led groups, registered charities and non-profit organizations. Resident-led groups must have at least three residents of Toronto (from separate households) as part of the group.
Examples of eligible projects include:
Examples of projects the City will not fund include:
PollinateTO supports projects that create pollinator habitat in all Toronto neighbourhoods. Priority will be given to gardens located in Toronto’s Neighbourhood Improvement Areas (NIAs).
Gardens can be on private and public land. Your project proposal can include multiple garden locations at one or more sites (i.e. different addresses). Your proposal can also have one or more garden locations at a single address (i.e. separate garden beds on different parts of the same property).
Each garden location must have access to a source of water.
Note: Property owner support is required for all proposed garden locations except for gardens proposed in City parks on the PollinateTO Pre-Approved City Parks List.
Examples of private property include residential, commercial, post-secondary institutions, faith and spiritual centres, non-profit organizations, etc.
This is most often the area between the road and the sidewalk.
Applications are welcome from all Toronto School Boards. PollinateTO has partnered with the Toronto District School Board (TDSB) and the Toronto Catholic District School Board (TCDSB) to establish the process described below.
Examples of public property include Toronto Public Libraries and City of Toronto Recreation Centres.
You can apply to further enhance a park in your community with a pollinator garden. Please follow the process as outlined below.
Please see our Native Flowers, Trees & Shrubs list to help you select plants for your garden.
Optional: You can use the Proposed Plant List template to help you organize your plant choices.
Mandatory for all approved PollinateTO gardens – you must “click before you dig”. This process will identify any underground infrastructure in the area you want to build your garden. Ontario One Call provides a locate request process that is free, reliable, timely and easy to use. You can make the request online. You can do this after your project has been approved.
Budgets cannot exceed $5,000. Funding can only be used for the direct delivery of the proposed project.
Download this information here – PollinateTO Eligible Expenses.
Examples of fundable budget line items:
We encourage the hiring of Indigenous, Black and equity-deserving staff, consultants, labourers, interpreters and translators, and encourage supporting Indigenous, Black and equity-deserving businesses for eligible purchases.
Examples of budget line items that are not fundable:
Upon project completion, grant recipients must submit the following;
Watch the PollinateTO Impact Report Information Session recording to learn more about grant reporting requirements.
Your group should consider following the PollinateTO tips for creating a pollinator garden when designing pollinator habitat. Ideal pollinator habitat will include food sources, nesting and overwintering sites and larval host plants among other considerations.
Download this information here – PollinateTO_Best Practices for Pollinator Education
Educational messaging should align with the guiding principles and priorities of the City’s Pollinator Protection Strategy. The following are best practices for designing a pollinator educational initiative funded by PollinateTO.
How will your project educate and engage the community? Some ideas you might consider:
View the PollinateTO Approved Projects Map to see where all our projects are located.
PollinateTO funded projects are listed below by ward and neighbourhood.
NIA = Neighbourhood Improvement Area | EN = Emerging Neighbourhood
| Year | Ward | Neighbourhood | Group Name | Description |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2023 | 19 | The Beaches | 188th Toronto Girl Guide Unit | This Girl Guide Unit is teaming up with members of The Beaches Presbyterian Church Council to turn an unused section of the church property into a pollinator garden. The Girl Guides will manage the project, learn about garden start-up and care. They will also deliver presentations on pollinator stewardship to inspire other Girl Guide groups to start their own pollinator gardens. |
| 2023 | 13 | St Lawrence-East Bayfront-The Islands | Canary Park Gardening Volunteers | The Canary Park Gardening Volunteers, in partnership with the Friends of Corktown Common, will transform a lawn area at the corner of Bayview Avenue and Harris Square into a pollinator garden. Their goal is to nurture a sense of community as they educate and engage their neighbours on the vital importance of cultivating native species to create habitat. |
| 2023 | 13 | Cabbagetown-South St. James Town | Children’s Environmental Education Committee, Sprucecourt Co-op | This group located at Sprucecourt Co-op will spearhead a community-led project to create new pollinator gardens areas in their community gardens. Co-op members will engage in hands-on learning about the importance of habitat for pollinators and other wildlife, including specific programming for children that they can share with the surrounding community. |
| 2023 | 9 | Dufferin Grove | Dufferin Grove Park Garden Co-operative | The co-operative will expand pollinator habitat in Dufferin Grove Park. The community will be engaged through educational workshops, plant sharing and planting sessions to help residents learn about native plants, experience the benefits native plants provide, and to expand pollinator habitat and connectivity throughout the neighbourhood. |
| 2023 | 14 | Old East York | East York Children’s Community Garden | This project will create a pollinator garden and habitat on an unused patch of land at the East York Community Centre that will increase plant and pollinator biodiversity in the community. This natural, low-maintenance, pesticide-free garden will also beautify the neighbourhood and increase community awareness about the importance of pollinators. |
| 2023 | 5 | Black Creek (NIA) | EcoClub & Autism Intensive Support Program | This project will create a pollinator garden in front of Brookview Middle School. Students and community members will have opportunities to observe and learn about pollinators’ importance to food security. The garden will foster inclusive relationships within the school community and provide opportunities for students to work collaboratively. |
| 2023 | 17 | Hillcrest Village | École élémentaire Paul-Demers | This project will engage students and staff at École élémentaire Paul-Demers in the creation and upkeep of their pollinator garden, which will host a variety of native plants. As an EcoSchool, this group’s goal is to create a garden that helps pollinators flourish and provides ongoing learning opportunities for students, staff and the surrounding community. |
| 2023 | 22 | L’Amoreaux West (EN) | Environmental Justice Committee | Beverly Glen Junior Public School will expand their outdoor classroom with the addition of a pollinator garden, to provide students opportunities to explore and learn about pollinators, to practice environmental stewardship, and offer a calming natural space for students and staff to enjoy. They will link the pollinator garden to the Science and Social Studies curriculum. |
| 2023 | 11 | Leaside-Bennington | Evergreen Bird, Bee and Butterfly Garden | The Bird, Bee and Butterfly Garden at Evergreen Brick Works will be an innovative space that sustains a diverse group of pollinators, contributing to increased biodiversity in the Don Valley Ravine corridor. It will also serve as an educational space used for children’s programming and visitor engagement. |
| 2023 | 6 | Clanton Park | Faywood ABC School Eco-Club | The Eco-Club at Faywood ABC School will create a native plant garden to encourage and promote creating pollinator pathways in the Wilson Heights and Clanton Park neighbourhoods. The pollinator garden will incorporate with connections to Indigenous land-based teachings and the school’s arts-based curriculum. |
| 2023 | 14 | North Riverdale | Frankland Community School | This project will take place at Frankland Community School, where a community centre, daycares, and summer camps are all also housed. This project includes gardens that are accessible to both the school community and the public. |
| 2023 | 4 | High Park-Swansea | Friends of Morningside High Park Church | This project will rejuvenate gardens bordering Morningside High Park Church. This space will become a pollinator garden that will better serve the environment, benefit the adjacent community vegetable garden, and will educate and engage the public about the symbiotic relationship between plants, bees, insects, and other wildlife and the food that we eat. |
| 2023 | 19 | Danforth | Garden @ Kimbourne Community Permaculture Project | This is a community-led permaculture project that aims to grow food and community in East Toronto. Their pollinator gardens will be located at Kimbourne Park United Church. The project will directly involve the community in garden development, maintenance and provide ongoing experiential learning opportunities. |
| 2023 | 24 | Guildwood | Guildwood Butterflyway | The Guildwood Butterflyway is a group of residents who will convert their boulevards from turf grass to pollinator gardens filled with native plants. Their vision is a community blooming with native pollinator plants that supports the birds, insects and wildlife in the Scarborough Bluffs area, an important pollinator migratory point in Toronto. |
| 2023 | 4 | High Park-Swansea | Howard School Community | Howard Junior Public School will revitalize an existing garden in their yard. Their garden will include painted signs made by students, plant labels, and other student artwork that will engage and educate visitors. Education opportunities for students and the broader school community will be proivde through hands-on workshops. |
| 2023 | 7 | Humber Summit (NIA) | Labour Education Centre | This project will compliment the existing medicine wheel garden at this location. Students will design, create and learn about the garden, which will become part of the curriculum during the 7 to 12 weeks students are involved in the pre-apprenticeship program at the Labour Education Centre. |
| 2023 | 3 | New Toronto | Lakeshore Environmental Gardening Society (LEGS) | LEGS will expand pollinator habitat at the Daily Bread Food Bank (DBFB) and develop educational programming which will bring in local community partners for tours and workshops, as well as self-guided tours. They will raise awareness about the importance of saving native species and habitats as an important link to food security in urban Toronto. |
| 2023 | 11 | Wychwood | Local Enhancement and Appreciation of Forests (LEAF) | LEAF will enhance their Urban Forest Demonstration Gardens, located in five Toronto neighbourhoods, with their primary garden located at Wychwood Barns. Designed as welcoming spaces accessible to the public, LEAF will engage the community by creating educational signage and plant labels, increasing volunteer training and education, and providing tours and workshops. |
| 2023 | 9 | Corso Italia-Davenport | Nairn Pollinators | This group will plant and maintain a pollinator garden at Nairn Park to serve as a resource for local families to learn about the crucial role that pollinators and native plants play in the maintenance of biodiversity. The pollinator garden will provide a tangible example to community members of how beneficial and beautiful pollinator gardens and native plants can be. |
| 2023 | 19 | East End-Danforth | Newmarket Ave Pollinator Pathway | The Newmarket Ave Pollinator Pathway will span eight residential front yard gardens, many which will be converted from lawn spaces. The project will incorporate community engagement events including a community planting day and educational workshop with a local expert on creating habitat connectivity. |
| 2023 | 14 | South Riverdale | Nimahkikiike (We Make Medicine) | This group will create a pollinator corridor on the front yard of Queen Alexandra Middle School. The QA Mashkiki Gitigan (QA Medicine Garden) will be supported by Indigenous staff, students (Indigenous Language program), the broader student body, and community members. An important aspect of their project is engaging Indigenous community members and parents, where they will work with Elders in planting practices focused on pollinators and traditionally significant native plants as an act of healing, decolonization, reconciliation and reclamation. |
| 2023 | 19 | East End-Danforth | Norway Junior Public School | This group will build several pollinator gardens at Norway Junior Public School. Students will be involved in designing, planting, and caring for the garden. In the spring, the science curriculum will have lessons focused on plant life for students to get inspired and involved in the garden. |
| 2023 | 10 | Trinity-Bellwoods | Ossington Old Orchard Parent Council | The Parent Council at Ossington Old Orchard Public School (OOOPS) will replace their original pollinator garden plot that was removed due to renovations. This project will allow OOOPS to continue their practice of incorporating gardening into the school curriculum. The garden will be enjoyed by students, staff, families, and the surrounding community. |
| 2023 | 2 | Islington | Our Lady of Peace Elementary School | Peace Gardens will be created at Our Lady of Peace Elementary School and will create a pollinator habitat and an interactive and educational gathering space for students, families, and the community. The school community will be involved in designing, planting, and caring for the gardens. The project will extend learning beyond the curriculum and classroom, promote student engagement, and strengthen kinship with the natural environment. |
| 2023 | 3 | Kingsway South | Our Lady of Sorrows School | A pollinator garden will be included into the overall school playground design at Our Lady of Sorrows School. The garden will be an experiential teaching tool for students and the surrounding community. The school’s Eco Team and Nature Appreciation Club will be stewards of the garden and ambassadors for environmental sustainability. |
| 2023 | 13 | St Lawrence-East Bayfront-The Islands | RC3 Garden Group | The Garden Group at River City 3 condominium has united to enhance four existing gardens with native plants and create three new gardens by converting existing lawn areas. The RC3 Garden Group plans to grow their movement by educating other residents about the vital importance of pollinators and native plants in the fight against climate change. |
| 2023 | 11 | Palmerston-Little Italy | Rewilders | Rewilders aims to connect a 1 km pollinator pathway through the neighbourhood of Palmerston-Little Italy. Rewilders will outreach through signage, community partnerships, a table at the local farmer’s market, planting events, and garden tours. Rewilders will establish a kids stewarding club (the WeeWilders) to provide education and support to young gardening enthusiasts. |
| 2023 | 4 | Runnymede-Bloor West Village | Runny(bee)de CI Garden Group | Students at Runnymede Collegiate Institute (CI) and their sister school, Mountview Public School will be provided with a hands-on opportunity to learn about the significance of pollinators in an educational setting. Lessons on local ecology, Indigenous history and stewardship, will give students with the confidence to explore other avenues of climate action. |
| 2023 | 19 | Taylor-Massey (NIA) | Secord Garden Committee | The garden committee at Secord Elementary School aims to make the school a pollinator pathway, ensuring pollinators are able to connect to nearby habitats like Taylor Creek Park. Students will be involved in all aspects of planning and building this highly visible pollinator garden, in hopes to increase wider community involvement in pollinator gardens. |
| 2023 | 4 | South Parkdale (NIA) | South Parkdale Community Pollinator Gardeners | A pollinator habitat corridor will be created with seven pollinator gardens on boulevards and lawns along three residential streets in South Parkdale, including a fully accessible garden. This project will support pollinators while deepening people’s appreciation for nature and community gardening. |
| 2023 | 7 | Pelmo Park-Humberlea | St. Basil-the-Great College School’s Nature Club | The Nature Club at St. Basil-the-Great College School will lead the design, planting and upkeep of a pollinator garden on the school grounds. The entire school community will also have opportunities to be involved with planting and maintaining the garden while incorporating the garden in the delivery of curriculum and a variety of lesson plans from science to art. |
| 2023 | 18 | Newtonbrook East | St. John’s Gardening Group | The unused field of St. John’s Church will be transformed into a pollinator garden with the aim of preserving the land as a place for workshop-based education, community gathering and, of course, for pollinators. The group will facilitate educational events for their community to learn about pollinators, climate change and other environmental issues. |
| 2023 | 19 | Old East York | 266th Toronto Guides | The pollinator gardens on Coxwell Avenue at Cosburn Avenue will serve as a place for youth to take part in plant and insect identification, seed saving, art projects, citizen science observations, and more. The group will engage Indigenous knowledge keepers to recognize historic Indigenous connections and practices on the land. |
| 2023 | 1 | Elms-Old Rexdale (EN) | The Elms JMS Community Initiatives Group | Multiple pollinator teaching gardens will be created at The Elms Junior Middle School where students can learn about the environmental sciences curriculum through hands-on learning. The Elms After School Cooking Club will also utilize the garden by educating participants on the importance of pollination and its connection to growing food. |
| 2023 | 22 | Steeles (EN) | The Lewis Lions | David Lewis Public School will combine a love of outdoor environmental education, creative classroom spaces that inspire learning, and an overall respect for native plants and the animals that pollinate them. They will connect with several community groups, offer walking tours, and install multi-lingual garden signage to extend the reach of community engagement. |
| 2023 | 12 | Wychwood | Stop Community Food Centre | The Stop will plant a pollinator garden at their Green Barns site at Wychwood Barns to help enhance the existing garden and increase educational opportunities for the community. In addition to workshops, The Stop will integrate learnings and activities around pollinators into their broader garden programming throughout the growing season. |
| 2023 | 9 | Little Portugal | The Theatre Centre | This project will expand and enhance the gardens surrounding the Theatre Centre on the West Queen West strip, bringing awareness to the importance of pollinator stewardship to the local community and visitors. The project will create gardening and community engagement opportunities for neighbours who have limited access to outdoor space. |
| 2023 | 2 | Kingsview Village-The Westway (NIA) | Westway Butterfly Brigade | This project will expand and rejuvenate existing garden areas at Westway Junior School to attract pollinators and provide habitat for pollinators to eat, rest and hydrate. They will create signage to identify pollinator plants within the garden, the pollinating species that may visit the garden, and the importance of pollinators to local and global ecosystems. |
| 2023 | 11 | University | Trinity Food Systems Lab (TFS Lab) | The TFS Lab will create a pollinator garden near existing campus food gardens at Trinity College at the University of Toronto. Diverse plants will support pollinators throughout the year in all life cycle stages. Through informational sessions and events, TFS Lab will create an intergenerational dialogue that will facilitate research, knowledge sharing and learning opportunities. |
| 2023 | 4 | Lambton Baby Point | Warren Park JPS Parents and Teachers | The pollinator garden at Warren Park Junior Public School (JPS) will provide students with valuable educational experiences, enriched learning environments and opportunities for curriculum linked programming for all grades. Students will be engaged in nurturing the garden plants from seed, so they feel close involvement and investment in creating the garden. |
| 2023 | 24 | West Hill (NIA) | West Hill DD Program | The West Hill Developmental Disability (DD) Intensive Support Program at West Hill Collegiate Institute will create a pollinator garden to create more accessible green spaces on the school grounds. This project will continue to engage the DD program students in learning about plants and soil, as well as life skills, math, literacy, communication, and responsibility. This project will help sustain these skills in students and promote community building amongst themselves and beyond. |
| 2023 | 2 | Humber Heights-Westmount (NIA) | Westmount JS Pollinator Club | A pollinator garden will be created at at Westmount Junior School for the enjoyment and education of Kindergarten through Grade 5 students. The pollinator garden will also be a space where families and community members can come together to enjoy gardening, observe the natural cycles of the species who live there, and beautify the school grounds together. |
| 2023 | 14 | Old East York | William Burgess Public School | The pollinator garden at William Burgess Public School will be a key tool in the school’s educational strategy, with each student involved and hands-on in its construction and maintenance, while learning about nature, food security, climate change, and the role we each play in protecting the environment. |
| 2023 | 6 | Bathurst Manor | William Lyon Mackenzie C.I. Gardening Club | The Gardening Club at William Lyon Mackenzie Collegiate Institute will expand pre-existing pollinator gardens at their school to encourage the growth of pollinator-friendly habitat. The gardens will demonstrate student’s ability to implement environmental change in their communities, and further involve their school in environmental action. |
| 2022 | 13 | Moss Park | All Saints Pollinators | The All Saints Pollinators will create three pollinators gardens at All Saints Church-Community Centre. The pollinator gardens will aim to increase the vibrancy and resiliency of the community in the Dundas Street and Sherbourne Street neighbourhood through this beautification process and bring new life to public spaces to facilitate social exchange. |
| 2022 | 13 | North St. James Town | Art City in St. James Town | Art City will transform a small underused and poorly maintained green area into new pollinator habitat in the dense tower community of St. James Town. Youth will be engaged in hands-on environmental education through on-going stewardship of the garden, workshops, and art projects that give voice to local environmental issues. |
| 2022 | 4 | High Park North | Annette Street Public School & High Park Alternative School | Garden stewards at Annette Street Public School and High Park Alternative School are excited to refresh three garden spaces. Students will learn and share the value of pollinators and native plants with the community through post on the education board, signage and plantings in the garden. |
| 2022 | 11 | University | Bloor Annex Business Improvement Area (BIA) | Bloor Annex BIA will “Pollinate the Annex” on Bloor Street between Spadina Avenue and Bathurst Street, creating pollinator gardens in four public parklets. Using interactive plant markers and a local plant map, we intend to build relationships with our community through education and engagement. |
| 2022 | 1 | Elms-Old Rexdale (NIA) | The Braeburn Neighbourhood Place & Boys and Girls Club | This project focuses on climate action learning for children. Children will be creating a pollinator garden alongside adult allies and youth mentors at Braeburn Neighbourhood Place. Participants will have fun and interactive opportunities to deepen their understanding about interconnectivity of pollinators, biodiversity, stewardship, where our food comes from and why it matters for our future. |
| 2022 | 14 | South Riverdale | Bruce Green Committee (BGC) | BGC will create The Valerie Mah Pollination Station at Bruce Public School as a commemorative garden dedicated to Valerie Mah, the first female Asian Vice-Principal in the TDSB. The project’s goals include sparking student, educator and community member interest in the phenomenon of pollination and local horticulture. |
| 2022 | 9 | Junction-Wallace Emerson | Carleton Park Pollinators | A pollinator garden will be created in Carlton Park, which will beautify the park and educate residents about the benefit and beauty of native plants. The gardens will increase the biodiversity of the neighbourhood, and help establish a pollinator corridor with nearby Symington Avenue Playground community garden and the greenspaces along the West Toronto Railpath. |
| 2022 | 12 | Wychwood | Community History Project | The Community History Project maintains a small museum, The Tollkeeper’s Cottage at the corner of Bathurst and Davenport. This colourful project will become a gateway to the forest escarpment that will become part of the National Healing Forest. |
| 2022 | 13 | Moss Park | Corktown Residents and Business Association | This group will create a pollinator garden in Sackville Playground that will educate people and children in the community about the importance of pollinator protection as well as the elements that make a healthy ecosystem. This new garden will serve to start the process of creating and connecting more pollinator habitats within the neighbourhood. |
| 2022 | 24 | Golfdale-Cedarbrae-Woburn (NIA) | Cornell’s Butterfly Garden | This group will create a butterfly garden in front of Cornell Junior Public School with easy accessibility to all. The garden will teach students and families about the benefits of pollinators on the ecosystem. Through this process, community organizations and people of all ages will be engaged in the creation and maintenance of the garden. |
| 2022 | 9 | Palmerston-Little Italy | Dewson Street Junior Public School Council | This project will transform under-used space at Dewson Street Junior Public School into healthy, thriving pollinator gardens. These new native ecosystems hold natural value, create beauty and provide a space for important ecosystem education for 450+ students, their families and the surrounding school community. |
| 2022 | 13 | Regent Park (NIA) | Dixon Hall | This project that will give Regent Park youth an opportunity to animate the garden beds of the Bill Graham Youth Centre. Youth will build pollinator habitat, gain gardening skills, and create something they can proudly display to their community. The goals are to increase biodiversity, honour Regent Park’s urban agriculture tradition, and celebrate youth. |
| 2022 | 24 | West Hill (NIA) | The Eastview Gardeners | The Bee-utify Eastview project will create a large pollinator garden at the front entrance of Eastview Public School. The goal is to create a place for students and community to come and observe pollinators and also have a comfortable place to relax and enjoy. The teachers of the school will engage their students in fun and exciting learning opportunities and cultivate the environmental stewards of tomorrow. |
| 2022 | 20 | Clairlea-Birchmount | Feed Scarborough | The Scarborough Junction Pollinator Garden is an expansion of its Scarborough Junction Community Farm. The green space will provide families and neighbours a place to come and connect with the Land, their shared culture and each other, while promoting plant biodiversity, food security, and importance of growing native plants and pollinators. |
| 2022 | 5 | Rockcliffe-Smythe (NIA) | Friends of Henrietta Park | A pollinator garden will be established at Henrietta Park. The garden will provide an educational opportunity by creating a space for participants, both adults and children, to learn and share their skills and knowledge, as well as cultural opportunities, by providing a space to share knowledge between people of different ages and backgrounds. |
| 2022 | 5 | Rockcliffe-Smythe (NIA) | Friends of Smythe Park | A rain garden and pollinator garden will be added to Smythe Park as part of the Healthy Park Healthy People project. The rain garden will help absorb overland flooding from streets that has been contaminating the ponds, resulting in a negative effect on both the flora and fauna. The pollinator garden is strategically placed where very few insects have been seen. |
| 2022 | 21 | Bendale-Glen Andrew | Green Industries Program | The Green Industries Program at David and Mary Thomson Collegiate Institute will create a pollinator garden featuring a variety of flowering plants to attract pollinators throughout the spring, summer and fall. The garden will increase pollinator populations, and also educate all who visit about the importance of native plants and pollinators. |
| 2022 | 25 | Morningside Heights | Hillside Outdoor Education School | Students will be involved in all aspects of the creation and maintenance of the Pollinator’s Paradise garden at Hillside Outdoor Education School. The garden will be a learning tool with a focus on raising awareness around the role of pollinators and native species within our ecosystem. The group hopes to continue building on this for years to come. |
| 2022 | 11 | University | Huron-Sussex Community Garden | The Huron-Sussex Community Garden was founded in April 2016 in a busy neighbourhood in the heart of University of Toronto. The pollinator garden is a welcome addition to the existing community garden and will educate the gardeners and others about pollinator stewardship. |
| 2022 | 16 | Victoria Village (NIA) | Jardin des Merveilles | Five pollinator habitats will be created at Jeanne-Lajoie Elementary School through this project. The gardens will feature native plants and shrubs and serve as an education space for students. |
| 2022 | 16 | Victoria Village (NIA) | Jonesville Allotments Pollinator Group | This group will establish a vibrant pollinator garden within the busy gardens located at the Jonesville Allotment Gardens at Victoria Park and Eglinton Ave. The garden will both beautify the space and importantly, equip visitors with a new-found awareness of how this pollinator habitat directly impacts the success of urban vegetable growing. |
| 2022 | 15 | Mount Pleasant East | Manor Road United Church | This group will be planting a drought resistant native garden at Manor Road United Church that provides a habitat for birds, insects and wildlife. The native garden will be an opportunity to teach the community about native plants and the importance of pollinator gardens, with signs that identify the different types of plants and shrubs. |
| 2022 | 4 | Roncesvalles | Parkdale Junior and Senior Public School Garden Committee | This group will establish an Indigenous Medicine and Pollinator Garden at Parkdale Junior and Senior Public School. This garden will support learning in Indigenous knowledge, pollination, habitats, plant health, and food. It will also beautify the community, creating an inviting space for neighbours and Parkdale families. |
| 2022 | 11 | Trinity-Bellwoods | Pierre Elliott Trudeau Elementary School Community | Pierre Elliott Trudeau Elementary School will engage their multi-lingual community through their project, Jardin de Pollen. Located along a well-walked downtown street, the three pollinator beds will not only provide enjoyment, but will also provide an opportunity to educate students and the broader community through informative signs in multiple languages. |
| 2022 | 20 | Clairlea-Birchmount | Pollinator Pedestrian Access Path | The Pollinator Pedestrian Access Path will create six pollinator gardens through their Pilkington to Santa Monica project, including five in front residential yards and one on a public corridor that joins two neighbourhoods in Scarborough. The gardens will offer native plants, natural seating and play space such as boulders and tree stumps. |
| 2022 | 5 | Mount Dennis (NIA) | Portage Trail Community School | The Portage Trail Garden project will create a pollinator garden in front of the Portage Trail Community School. With assistance from the Portage Parent Council, the goal is to promote a space for children to learn about plants in a playful environment. |
| 2022 | 14 | Greenwood-Coxwell | Roden School Council | As part of honouring the Indigenous survivors of Canada’s Residential schools, this group is planting a Kindie Heart Garden with students at Roden Public School. The garden will be a permanent living memory of the generations of Indigenous peoples that have come before. The project will honour the land and provide much-needed habitat for native pollinators. |
| 2022 | 8 | Yorkdale-Glen Park (EN) | San Lorenzo Latin American Community Centre | Community members, including immigrant and refugee families from Latin America, will create three pollinator gardens at San Lorenzo Latin American Community Centre. This project will incorporate traditional and lived experiences from Latin American countries to help raise awareness on creating new natural habitats for biodiversity in our neighborhoods. |
| 2022 | 10 | Trinity-Bellwoods | SKETCH Working Arts | SKETCH will create Weave and Mend Gardens at Artscape Youngplace on Shaw Street. The pollinator bed, titled The Mother’s Bed, will be designed by artist Harley McDowell to honour the impact mothers have on our lives. The group believes that like mothers, pollinators play a significant role in our ecosystems and without this vital relationship we would be lost. |
| 2022 | 22 | East L’Amoreaux (EN) | St. Aidan Catholic Elementary School | Through the Stardust Pollinator project, St. Aidan Catholic Elementary School will create a pollinator walkway leading to the front entrance of the school. The project proposes the creation of two new pollinator gardens that will serve to educate students and the community about the importance of our pollinators. |
| 2022 | 20 | Scarborough Village (NIA) | St. Boniface Elementary School | A pollinator garden at the front of St. Boniface Elementary School will be seen and experienced by staff, students, families and community members. The garden will be a teaching tool for students and classes. The hope is that the lesson goes beyond school and that students and staff become advocates for pollinators. |
| 2022 | 7 | Glenfield-Jane Heights (NIA) | St. Francis De Sales | The goal of the Learning Garden project is to beautify St. Francis De Sales school while providing natural areas to support the environment. Students will have the opportunity to participate in all aspects of the maintenance of the pollinator habitat. |
| 2022 | 12 | South Eglinton-Davisville | The AppleTree Group | The AppleTree Group’s Outdoor Community Classroom Project will create a pollinator garden in June Rowlands Park. The goal is to transform the existing educational garden into a fully functional outdoor learning space for school and community groups to gather and learn about the importance of pollinator gardens and their positive effect on the environment. |
| 2022 | 4 | Junction Area | The Junction Business Improvement Area (BIA) | The Junction BIA will create a pollinator pathway along Dundas Street West. The project aims to return biodiversity to The Junction by providing butterflies and bees with additional food sources and mark The Junction as the most pollinator-friendly neighbourhood in Toronto. |
| 2022 | 1 | Rexdale-Kipling | The PACT Urban Peace Program | The Grow-To-Learn Pollinator Garden at Thistletown Collegiate Institute will serve as an educational resource for students and the community. PACT will deliver workshops for students during school hours, and to the community at weekly markets. All visitors will be able to take a self-guided tour with the help of QR codes, sitemaps and digital information. |
| 2022 | 20 | Clairlea-Birchmount | St. Clair Diggers | The St. Clair Diggers will create seven garden beds located at St. Clair Evangelical Missionary Church. This project aims to increase native plants on the property, attract pollinators, beautify the neighbourhood, and share learnings with our community. The group will work with Grade 3 classes in local schools teaching them about pollinators. |
| 2022 | 15 | Thorncliffe Park (NIA) | Thorncliffe Park Urban Farmers (TPUF) | TPUF will transform lawn areas to vibrant habitats for pollinators in Thorncliffe Park Community Garden. This project serves as an example for other property managers to transform their lawns and nurture interest in urban horticulture to support the physical and mental well-being of area residents who may not have access to their own garden spaces. |
| 2022 | 15 | Banbury-Don Mills | Toronto Botanical Garden | The Toronto Botanical Garden will redesign and replant an existing perennial border with at least 75% native plants for pollinators. This project will create an engaging and educational pollinator garden for the estimated 250,000 visitors that visit Toronto Botanical Garden each year. |
| 2022 | 4 | High Park North | West Bend Green Community | A butterfly pathway will be created on the west side of Indian Road north of Keele Subway Station. This project is part of a series of boulevard gardens lining High Park to the rail corridor gardens on the east side of Dundas Street West from Glenlake Avenue to Humberside Avenue, establishing a series of pathways for butterflies along the rail corridors in the west end of Toronto. |
| 2022 | 14 | North Riverdale | Withrow Junior Public School | The Withrow Parent Outdoor Education Committee will create multiple gardens at Withrow Junior Public School. This project will extend the pollinator pathway already started by The Bain Co-op. Withrow students will learn about the Indigenous worldview through the lens of caring for the plants and land they grow on. |
| 2021 | 20 | Oakridge (NIA) | 757 Gardening Committee | 757 Gardening Committee at 757 Victoria Park Condo will convert a large empty rockery area into the Bee Kind Pollinator Rockery Garden. This area is clearly visible to residents and neighbours. Their hope is for this project to bring together members of the community to help plant and beautify the neighbourhood. |
| 2021 | 4 | Runnymede-Bloor West Village | 75th Old Mill Scouts | This group of Scouts will create a pollinator garden at St. Paul’s Church. This space will provide education for the Beavers, Cubs and Scouts as well as to the church parish and local community. It is hoped that this garden will inspire others to plant native pollinator plants to create an ever-expanding pollinator pathway within our city. |
| 2021 | 22 | L’Amoreaux West (EN) | Agincourt Community Services Association (ACSA) | ACSA will create a pollinator garden in Chester Le Park, that will feature a variety of native plants. Through this project community residents will receive workshops and demonstrations that feature the importance of pollinators, the connection to climate change and food production, and will learn about the tools needed to support pollinators. |
| 2021 | 14 | North Riverdale | City Adult Learning Centre (CALC) | CALC is excited to create a pollinator garden at CALC Secondary School, which will cover several areas and thus be part of more than one outdoor teaching space. The pollinators will benefit the food crops, be aesthetically pleasing, and promote learning about all aspects of botany, environmental stewardship and agriculture. |
| 2021 | 16 | Parkwoods-O’Connor Hills | Flemingdon Park Ministry | Flemingdon Park Ministry will increase the biodiversity of their farm supporting pollinators and wildlife through the Common Table Pollinator Garden and Labyrinth. With signage, workshops, and a prayer labyrinth, this garden will also provide a space for education and reflection for the community. |
| 2021 | 16 | Flemingdon Park (NIA) | FoodShare Toronto | FoodShare Toronto’s Flemo Farm is a community-developed and community-owned ½ acre urban farm located in Flemingdon Park. The Flemo Farm Pollinator Corridor Project will create a pollinator area in the farm perimeter and plant over 1,220 perennial native flowers. The pollinator garden will sustain the growing food production at Flemo Farm. |
| 2021 | 1 | West Humber-Clairville | Father Henry Carr Environmental Club | The BEE-U-TIFLY Done project at Father Henry Carr (FHC) Secondary School will be a collaborative effort supported by FHC students, parents, staff, and community members. The project’s goal is to increase the ecological value of the school’s existing greenspace by planting native plants to create new habitat for native pollinator species. This natural setting will also serve as an inclusive cross-curricular outdoor education resource, providing an opportunity to enjoy and learn about nature. |
| 2021 | 13 | Moss Park | Friends of Allan Gardens | This volunteer-based organization is working to imagine and lead the revitalization of Allan Gardens Park and conservatory. The Pollinator Playground project will create a demonstration garden within the children’s playground at Allan Gardens. This new garden will connect with existing pollinator gardens in the park to create a pollinator pathway. |
| 2021 | 24 | Guildwood | Friends of Guild Park / Guildwood Butterflyway Project | Guild Park is part of a well-established migratory route for butterflies and birds. Local volunteers will convert an underused area into the park’s first native pollinator garden. The project includes an outdoor education resource where residents and students from nearby schools can learn about pollinators, horticulture and our urban green space. |
| 2021 | 13 | Downtown Yonge East | Garden Club of Toronto | The Garden Club of Toronto has partnered with Metropolitan United Church (MUC) to create two native plant-only pollinator gardens that flank the main entrance. To recognize MUC’s inclusive nature, one section has been designed as a “Pride” garden and will bloom with the rainbow colors of the Pride Flag during the month of June. |
| 2021 | 19 | O’Connor-Parkview | Harmony Community Food Centre | The Harmony Pollinator Garden will be part of South Riverdale Community Health Centre’s Harmony Community Food Centre and Senior’s Active Living Centre programs. The garden will create a pollinator corridor with neighbouring George Webster Elementary School garden and provide a beautiful space to connect and grow with our diverse community. |
| 2021 | 12 | Wychwood | Indigenous Peoples Solidarity Group (IPSG) | IPSG will create Noojimo’iwewin Gitigaan-Healing Garden at St. Matthew’s United Church, part of the National Healing Forests Initiative. This group will build a rain garden and pollinator pathway, label 125+ plants, and with the guidance of Elder-in-Residence Peduhbun Migizi Kwe, offer opportunities to learn about Indigenous and settler peoples. |
| 2021 | 4 | South Parkdale (NIA) | JBV Gardening Committee | The John Bruce Village (JBV) Housing Cooperative is fortunate to have garden space that is shared by 40 mixed income households. The existing green space will be enhanced by creating Pollinating South Parkdale: A Cooperative Community Garden that is comprised of native plants, and captures rain water efficiently. |
| 2021 | 20 | Cliffcrest | John A Leslie Parent Council | The Bee-utiful Garden Expansion Project at John A Leslie Public School will expand the existing pollinator garden, as well as create new beds in the adjacent field to participate in a greater community initiative, the Cliffcrest Butterfly Way. The expansion project will beautify school grounds and provide stewardship teaching to students and the greater community. |
| 2021 | 5 | Rockcliffe-Smythe (NIA) | Lambton Park Community School | This group will implement a pollinator habitat creation project using native plants that educates and engages the community. The project will serve as a school teaching garden and learning ground for environmental literacy and pollinator stewardship at Lambton Park Community School. |
| 2021 | 25 | Rouge | Malvern Family Resource Centre | An Eco-Learning Pollinator Garden will be created at Malvern Family Resource Centre. Their project includes signage, tours and eco-learning sessions that will help community members understand the importance that pollinators have on our ecosystems, inspiring them to grow their own eco-gardens to make a difference in our environment. |
| 2021 | 14 | Greenwood-Coxwell | Monarch Park Pollinator Partners (MPPP) | MPPP will revitalize an existing student-planted pollinator garden and create a new pollinator garden at Monarch Park Collegiate Institute. Local residents and students will collaborate to maintain the gardens and educate the community about pollinators and pollinator habitat. |
| 2021 | 10 | Kensington-Chinatown | OCAD University | The Friendship Community Garden at OCAD University engages the school community in a living project that expands natural spaces for learning, well-being, and a sense of belonging. This project increases awareness of the artist/designer role to protect ecological systems and integrate biodiversity into daily urban life and build connections between people and land. |
| 2021 | 10 | Kensington-Chinatown | Scadding Court Community Centre & Friends of Alexandra Park | This project is a partnership between community gardeners from the Alexandra Park Diversity Garden, urban agriculture program staff and volunteers from Scadding Court Community Centre, and volunteers with the Friends of Alexandra Park. These community partners will work collaboratively to develop pollinator habitat in Alexandra Park. |
| 2021 | 9 | Little Portugal | Shirley Street Junior Public School Gardeners | Project plans include adding an abundance of native plants and shrubs to the garden to attract many different pollinators, providing learning opportunities and a place of serenity and joy for students and the wider community of Shirley Street Junior Public School. |
| 2021 | 4 | South Parkdale (NIA) | South Parkdale Pollinators | Pollinator gardens will be created on a corner adjoining five houses that will also be adding native plants to their front gardens in South Parkdale. The corner is used by many pedestrians, as well as being close to two elementary schools, a rehabilitation centre, and a long-term care facility. |
| 2021 | 1 | Mount Olive-Silverstone-Jamestown (NIA) | St. Angela Catholic School | A pollinator garden will be created at St. Angela Catholic School with the help of students, teachers, and local residents to educate the community about pollinators’ role in biodiversity and environmental sustainability. |
| 2021 | 7 | Pelmo Park-Humberlea | St. Basil-the-Great College Pollinators | The St. Basil-the-Great College Pollinator Garden project aims to foster students’ development into responsible citizens and lifelong learners who actively sustain the well-being of our environment. The pollinator garden will be located at the front of SBC school and will be visible for all to enjoy. |
| 2021 | 18 | Willowdale West | St. Cyril’s Parent Council | The school yard at St. Cyril College School will be enhanced by creating a home and a safe space for insects. The goal of this project is to create new dialogue about the insects and what it takes to help protect them. The team will be using native plants as well as perennials and creating a “drinking station” for insects. |
| 2021 | 5 | Stonegate-Queensway | St. Louis Catholic School | This school group plans to transform their existing community-facing green space at St. Louis Catholic School into a pollinator garden. They will plant larval host plants at the base of trees in the main schoolyard, which will add more plants amidst the concrete, assist with water retention for trees and create more habitat for pollinator friends. |
| 2021 | 24 | Woburn North (NIA) | Sustainability at Centennial | Pollinator habitat will be established on the south half of the Progress Campus at Centennial College. The Pollinators at Progress garden will feature over 130 native plants species with plant id signage. The college community will be invited to engage in an on-site planting and webinars on native species, canopy cover and green spaces to mitigate the impacts of climate change. |
| 2021 | 12 | Wychwood | Taddlewood Heritage Association | Taddlewood Heritage Association will transform bare ground to become the Butterfly Entrance to Wychwood Barns Park. The site will be full of life and colour thanks to native plant species, bees, butterflies and other pollinators. |
| 2021 | 15 | Thorncliffe Park (NIA) | The Neighbourhood Organization (TNO) | TNO will create a pollinator garden as part of Leaside Park Community Garden. This project will not only create habitat for the pollinators to thrive but also create a beautiful, colourful space in the neighborhood that will help raise awareness, educate the community, especially the younger generation through workshops and training. |
| 2021 | 15 | Thorncliffe Park (NIA) | Thorncliffe Park Women’s Committee | Thorncliffe Park Women’s Committee will introduce an intergenerational project in R.V. Burgess Park that will enable and empower families of Thorncliffe Park neighbourhood to learn environmental sustainability, conservation, and other earth-friendly practices in a fun, creative and accessible way. |
| 2021 | 13 | Regent Park (NIA) | Toronto Birth Centre | Located at the Toronto Birth Centre, the T’Karanto Ondaadizi-Gamig Mushkiki Gitigaan (Toronto Birth Centre Medicine Garden), Elders and Indigenous teachers will share plant knowledge and teachings about growing, harvesting and storage of plant medicines. Education sessions will highlight Indigenous medicines and decolonization, and food justice. |
| 2021 | 8 | Yonge-Eglinton | Toronto Green Community | Since 1997, Eglinton Park Community Garden, located at North Toronto Memorial Community Centre, has been a haven of edibles and native plants. Closure due to nearby construction has left the garden in need of some restoration. This project will engage volunteers who are excited to cultivate native plants, and a wild meadow of pollinator plants. |
| 2021 | 24 | Woburn North (NIA) | Woburn Junior Public School | A pollinator learning garden will be created at Woburn Junior Public School. Local families from the Tuxedo Court buildings will help maintain it through the summer months. School staff and community members will promote the role of pollinators and native species in our ecosystem, and provide education and enjoyment for students at the school and the wider community. |
| 2020 | 9 | Corso Italia-Davenport | Appleton Ave. Community Organization | This group of neighbours on Appleton Ave. will create a pollinator corridor consisting of 19 pollinator patches along Appleton Avenue. The project will result in a complex urban ecosystem and engage the community through planting days, speakers, children’s activities, and a community potluck. |
| 2020 | 4 | South Parkdale (NIA) | Argonaut Rowing Club | The Argonaut Rowing Club is constructing a pollinator garden near the Martin Goodman trail. The project will create plant identifiers and signage that is easily visible from the trail. The project is supported by a dedicated team of gardeners and volunteers. |
| 2020 | 14 | North Riverdale | The Bain Co-op Pollinator Working Group | The Bain Butterfly Way will create five pollinator gardens at the Bain Co-operative. The project will create a pollinator pathway throughout the Bain, while building a sense of stewardship for the land and an appreciation for native plants. Community engagement includes a community planting day, guided plant tours, and a partnership with a local school. |
| 2020 | 3 | Stonegate-Queensway | Stonegate Community Health Centre, Bell Manor Park Community Garden and ArtsEtobicoke | A community pollinator garden will be enhanced at Bell Manor Park. This garden is part of the Community Health Centre’s Food Access Program, and addresses the lack of space for growing in lower-income neighbourhoods and provides an alternative food source and access to community activities and connections among many culturally diverse circles. |
| 2020 | 6 | Westminster-Branson (EN) | Bernard Betel Centre | A community pollinator garden will be created on a non-profit community centre property that has been serving the community for 54 years. The Bernard Betel Centre currently holds 120 programs a week and the pollinator garden will be incorporated into their programming, allowing residents in the community to enjoy and learn more about pollinators. |
| 2020 | 22 | Agincourt South-Malvern West | Centre for Immigrant and Community Services (CICS) | The ENRICH Pollinator Garden, located at the Centre for Immigrant and Community Services will enhance their educational programming, helping newcomers develop a sense of inclusion and belonging in their new communities through caring for native plants and pollinators. |
| 2020 | 14 | Broadview North | Chester School Pollinator Garden Team | This school group will create a Pollinator Learning Garden at Chester Elementary School. The school will create and maintain a year-round pollinator garden and promote the awareness and education of the role of pollinators and native species in our ecosystem and provide enjoyment for students and the wider community. |
| 2020 | 19 | Danforth East York | Resurrection Garden | This project includes filling seven beds with native plants and shrubs to create habitat for bees, butterflies, and birds at the Church of the Resurrection. The garden spaces will contain signage to educate the community about the need to support these beneficial creatures. |
| 2020 | 2 | Willowride-Martingrove-Richview | CSPC Transfiguration | The parent council at Transfiguration of our Lord Catholic School will lead the creation of a pollinator teaching garden at the school. The goal is to provide pollinators with an additional resource in the neighbourhood and to educate the community on the ecological importance of pollinators. |
| 2020 | 20 | Clairlea-Birchmount | Danforth Gardens Neighbourhood Association | This neighbourhood group is creating a pollinator corridor that will include pollinator gardens at Danforth Gardens Public School and Oates Park and transform several residential properties from lawns to pollinator habitat. The project will engage the community through garden tours and native plant sales to inspire others to transform their spaces. |
| 2020 | 3 | Humber Bay Shores | David Hornell Junior School and Mimico Residents Association | This partnership will create three pollinator garden spaces at David Hornell Junior School. This initiative will help to revitalize outdoor classrooms and provide students with important eco-learning opportunities. This project will also provide significant benefit to neighbouring communities. |
| 2020 | 11 | Leaside-Bennington | Evergreen Pollinator Revitalization Project | The Pollinator Revitalization Project will promote and preserve native species and will transform the Tiffany Commons space at Evergreen Brick Works into pollinator gardens. Evergreen welcomes nearly half a million visitors a year and with their contact through these gardens, visitors will be able to learn more about pollinator habitats. |
| 2020 | 3 | New Toronto | FJR Pollinator Project | Father John Redmond (FJR) Secondary School will create a pollinator garden to provide benefits to the school, the Ken Cox Community Centre and the greater Lakeshore community through pollinator protection and education. It will include the collaborative efforts of the biology department, Eco-club, and the parent council to build and maintain the garden. |
| 2020 | 12 | Wychwood | Garrison Creek Park Community Garden (GCPCG) | GCPCG will create pollinator gardens in Garrison Creek Park. The gardens will engage 50+ families in the area, serving as an educational tool for the public with signage, plant labels and tours. This project will complement the existing pollinator murals in the area and the Green Line project connecting green spaces in Toronto. |
| 2020 | 9 | Junction-Wallace Emerson | George Chuvalo Community Center – Christie Ossington Neighbourhood Center | The pollinator gardens will be one of the first community projects for the new George Chuvalo Community Center. The goal is to establish sustainability as one of the community’s priorities through the collaborative experience of growing a pollinator garden. The garden design will be inspired by the rainbow flag. |
| 2020 | 13 | North St. James Town | Green Thumbs Growing Kids | Green Thumbs Growing Kids is a community group that has been growing plants with children, youth and families for 20 years. They are partnered with four schools in the Toronto District School Board to create and maintain the Flower Power pollinator gardens, used for experiential learning connected to curriculum objectives in the school year. |
| 2020 | 16 | Banbury-Don Mills | Greenland Pollinator Garden | Greenland Public School has a long tradition of creating creative learning spaces, beautifying school grounds and educating children and the community of the importance of eco initiatives. The pollinator garden will be used as a teaching tool, Monarch waystation and tour site for the larger community. |
| 2020 | 11 | Palmerston-Little Italy | Harbord Collegiate PARA Pollinator Gardens | This project is a school-community collaboration between the Harbord Collegiate Eco team and the Palmerston Area Residents Association Green Committee. Two pollinator gardens will be created in the front yard of Harbord Collegiate Institute and along Harbord Street. The garden will educate and engage students, staff, and the community. |
| 2020 | 8 | Briar Hill-Belgravia | Hopewell Community Garden | This group will create a community pollinator garden in an underused area in Walter Saunders Memorial Park. The garden expands the capacity of Hopewell Community Garden, allowing for increased participation and alternative horticultural learning opportunities for participants. |
| 2020 | 14 | Blake-Jones | Kapapamahchakwew Parent Council | The Parent Council at Kapapamahchakwew – Wandering Spirit School, is a group of dedicated volunteers and staff who have strong ties to the Indigenous community in Toronto. The project will create a garden that will provide opportunities for the school community to share cultural knowledge about pollinators and Indigenous plants with the surrounding community. |
| 2020 | 4 | Runnymede-Bloor West Village | King George Junior Public School Parent Council | The Parent Council at King George Junior Public School will create a garden space for students to engage in active learning about biodiversity, ecology, and stewardship. The garden will also serve as a demonstration garden that encourages residents in the area to consider how their plant choices and gardening practices impact native pollinator species. |
| 2020 | 9 | Little Portugal | Naadmaagit Ki (NKG) “Helpers of the Earth” | St. Anne’s Church invited Naadmaagit Ki (NKG) “Helpers of the Earth” to care for the land adjacent to the church in 2013. With the help of committed volunteers, the space will be transformed into a shared community pollinator garden project called Aamoog, Memengwaag miinwaa Nenookaasiwag (Bees, Butterflies & Hummingbirds). They will offer culturally-rooted, Indigenous educational opportunities for the community. |
| 2020 | 19 | Woodbine-Lumsden | Neighbours4Nectar | Six households at the intersection of Westlake and Westbrook Avenues will form Neighbours4Nectar, planting pollinator gardens in front yards to create a pollinator pathway and engaging residents in learning why pollinators are important. Open planting days, garden tours and pollinator-themed kids’ activities will involve a wide range of neighbours. |
| 2020 | 14 | South Riverdale | Rain Gardens United | The Greenwood Pollinator Rain Gardens project includes three rain gardens on Alton Avenue and Sawden Avenue near Greenwood Park. The three rain gardens will capture and infiltrate at least 90% of annual rainfall from the roof downspouts. This will benefit local pollinators and the overall stormwater system in the neighbourhood. |
| 2020 | 4 | High Park North | Ravina Community Garden | This group will transform an existing lawn bowling space at Ravina Gardens Park into a place for members of this intergenerational community garden to directly engage with the plant and wildlife growing in the garden. The project proposes the creation of a stone wall for cavity nesting native pollinators. . |
| 2020 | 25 | Highland Creek | Regenesis | The Regenesis group at the University of Toronto Scarborough Campus (UTSC) aims to create a pollinator-friendly campus. The Pollinate UTSC project creates four new pollinator gardens and enhances an existing butterfly garden. Students and staff will engage in awareness building activities such as planting sessions, seed saving sessions, seed and plant sharing. |
| 2020 | 25 | Morningside Heights | Rouge Valley Foundation | The Bombus Native Garden at Rouge Valley Foundation includes native flower species specifically selected for the native bumble bees that are in dramatic decline. The garden is designed to flower throughout the spring, summer, and fall. Each area will also be paired with a series of bumble bee nesting boxes that will be installed within the garden plots and monitored throughout the year. |
| 2020 | 20 | Birchcliffe-Cliffside | Scarborough Arts | The Pollinator Art Planting and Botanical Illustration Program project will engage participants in arts and environmental education activities centred on pollinator-friendly plants, with the ultimate goal of planting a collaborative community pollinator garden at the Scarborough Arts’ home office. |
| 2020 | 20 | Birchcliffe-Cliffside | Scarborough Bluffs Community Association | The Scarborough Bluffs Community Association is proposing the Bluffs Pollinator Garden in Sandown Park. The goal is to encourage children to visit the park with their families and learn about pollinators. The final result can be used as an educational tool for future school projects on pollinators, native plants and environmental issues. |
| 2020 | 10 | St Lawrence-East Bayfront-The Islands | Sunshine Centres for Seniors | The Sunshine Pollinator Gardens: Seniors and Youth Bee-utify Our Community project will create three pollinator gardens at the Sunshine Centres for Seniors building on Ward’s Island, providing opportunities for all who visit to learn about the importance of pollinators. The community will also be significantly involved in planting and maintaining the gardens. |
| 2020 | 7 | York University Heights (NIA) | St. Wilfrid Catholic School ECO Rangers | Students, staff, and community members will work together to create a pollinator teaching garden at St. Wilfrid Catholic School. The ECO Rangers School Grounds Greening Project gardens will enhance student learning by providing a natural, pleasing, relaxing setting, and sparking discussions about the new additional plants and animals that they attract. |
| 2020 | 6 | Clanton Park | The Toronto Heschel School | Project Nectar will be an educational pollinator garden at The Toronto Heschel School. The goal is to give students, teachers, and community members an opportunity to learn about the role pollinators play in supporting local ecosystems. As a Jewish school, it is incumbent to care for the Earth as part of the concept of ‘Tikkun Olam’ or repairing the world. |
| 2020 | 19 | Danforth East York | Toronto Chinese Mennonite Church Community Garden | The pollinator garden at the Toronto Chinese Mennonite Church will beautify the site, engage many various groups, and raise community awareness about the needs of pollinators. Many residents use the space including three congregations within the church (English, Mandarin, Cantonese), “Kei Lok Yuen” senior’s group, children’s Sunday school, and daycare. |
| 2020 | 4 | High Park-Swansea | Windermere United Church & Friends | A pollinator garden will be created at Windermere United Church. The project will engage children from the church school, community cooking class, the on-site daycare (Windermere Kids) and the Swansea School of Dance, as well as many other groups that use the church building during the week. |
Visit the How to Help Wild Bees & Other Native Pollinators page for resources on starting and managing pollinator gardens, information on native plants and other ways you can help pollinators in Toronto.