Backyard Biodiversity Sask

08/24/2026

Backyard native grasses 🌾I absolutely love growing native grasses in my backyard garden, with Canada wild rye being my favourite! There are many benefits to growing native grasses, they can host butterfly and moth larvae, help with water retention, and can provide wintering spots for insects.

📸 Here are some of the species I have grown from seed over the years

08/21/2026

Stiff goldenrod - Solidago rigida

This perennial goldenrod is probably one of the most well behaved goldenrods I have ever grown! I have seen it growing in prairies and roadside ditches this summer. Its yellow flowers are arranged in flat-topped clusters (corymb inflorescence). The leaves of this goldenrod are quite soft, they are also stiff and broader than those of most other goldenrod species. It is easy to grow from seed and would make a great addition to a native prairie garden due to its clumping growth habit.

📸 Photos taken August 13

08/18/2026

Pink onion - Allium stellatum

This native, perennial onion species can grow up to 2 feet tall. It produces clusters of pink to purple flowers that radiate from a central point (umbel inflorescence). Its thin, grass-like leaves grow from the base of the plant (basal leaves). I have found it growing in dry prairies, along aspen bluffs, in stabilized sand dunes, and in roadside ditches.

I have found it easy to grow from seed and enjoy having this species in my backyard. The seeds can benefit from a period of cold, moist stratification, making outdoor winter sowing a good option. They can also be stratified indoors in a refrigerator using a sealed bag with a moist growing medium. Once they reach maturity and bloom, they are often covered in small native bees!

📸Photos taken August 15

08/13/2026

08/08/2026

A few backyard butterfly friends as of late: a red admiral, a woodland skipper and a fritillary!

08/07/2026

False dandelion - Agoseris glauca

This aster is one of my new favourite species. It has interesting blue-green leaves and solitary, yellow, dandelion-like flowers. I have found this perennial growing in native prairies and along roadsides here in Saskatchewan. I was recently able to collect a small amount of seed and look forward to trying to grow it next year!

📸 Flowering photo taken July 4 and seed photo taken July 25.

08/04/2026

Comparing seeds 🌾 I recently spent an afternoon harvesting needle-and-thread grass and western porcupine grass and was fascinated by the differences and similarities in their seeds (and found out just how stabby they can be).

Needle-and-thread grass resembles an actual needle with a long, curled awn attached. The awn of western porcupine grass is much shorter and lacks an obvious "thread." Both species have two distinctive bends in their awns, and the awns become twisted and coiled as they dry, helping drive the seeds into the soil.

I can't wait to sow these this winter!

08/02/2026

More ditches means more flowers! This summer is flying by, and I've spotted so many cool plants along the way. While many shared here are common, they're delightful nonetheless.

Here are a few shots of what I've seen blooming lately 📸

07/22/2026

04/22/2026

Happy Earth Day from my backyard critters to yours! Today I celebrate all of the tiny insects that call my backyard home and keep it thriving🌎