About 1,200 spring bulbs were ordered by the Sustainability Office to boost everyone's mood by encouraging employees to dream about spring gardening. A rainbow of bulbs were offered for sale to employees on Sept. 20-21: hyacinths, daffodils (which the squirrels don't like) and tulips.

About half were sold at cost to employees and will be brightening up home gardens. The remaining bulbs will be planted on campus: some pink bulbs around Anastasia's tree in the Peace Garden, some in the island garden of the first parking lot and some in the garden of the 3C courtyard.

Sandra Gravel (Student Services), pictured, bought her bulbs from the student Sustainabili-team volunteers. Jennifer de Vera (Sustainability Office) recommends planting the bulbs over the next week before the ground gets too hard.

Message from Jennifer de Vera of the Sustainability Office:

I would like to send a THANK YOU to all the returning and new Monarch foster parents. We successfully tagged approximately 160 monarchs this season! The Sustainability Office will be checking the Monarchwatch.org site to see where and when they are spotted as they fly South on their migratory path to Mexico.

Many students, employees and faculty from all around Dawson participated. New and returning fosters came from HR, Registrar's, I.S.T., CLL, OAD, CRLT, Journeys, North/South, Biology. French and more! We are so happy to bring such joy during this time. As a close friend once told me, "We always say the Monarch project benefits the monarchs, but we often forget, it also benefits those who have raised them!" Well-Being for Al!

Until Monarch season 2022, my friends!

Photo: provided by first-time Monarch foster parent Dinah Palinkas, our Staff Health Nurse for COVID of Human Resources. She enjoyed the experience and met a very nice student who let her take this photo of the butterfly in his hands. 

The Sustainability Office  has ordered about 1,500 tulip, daffodil and hyacinth bulbs to sell to the Dawson community to promote well-being for all. The bulbs will be available for sale at the Peace Garden on Monday, Sept. 20  and Tuesday, Sept. 21 from 12- 2 p.m.  They will cost $1 each. 

After the sale, there will be a bulb planting event in the Peace Garden and the Dawson community is welcome to help. The bulb planting will be on Wednesday, Sept. 22 from 12-2 p.m..

The Monarch butterfly chrysalises were all adopted by Dawson teams and employees, including a few first-timers. As of today, 93 have been tagged and released in the Peace Garden.

Come enjoy a wonderful moment with the butterflies every day at the Peace Garden (near Sherbrooke and Wood corner of the campus) at 12 p.m. Many of the remaining chrysalises are quite advanced- so make a plan to see them this Thursday or Friday.

Photo: from left to right: Brian Mader (Profile Co-Coordinator of Environmental Science), new Monarch foster parent Karen McRae (Computer Support for Cinema l Communications), new Monarch foster parent Yanina Chukhovich (First-Year Students' Office) and Jennifer de Vera of the Sustainability Office.

Employees and students are welcome to take a tour of our Living Campus. Even returning employees and students will see new things, such as a new pond and more.

Reserve your spot on a weekly tour by contacting sustainability@dawsoncollege.qc.ca