In Praise of RoncyWorks Gardeners

Following the reconstruction of Roncesvalles Avenue in 2011, some community volunteers spontaneously started weeding and picking up litter in the 21 plant beds along the street. More gardeners volunteered and by 2013, the RoncyWorks Green Team was formed in partnership with the Roncesvalles Village BIA. Over the years, their work has enjoyed much praise and recognition. 

Their labour of love has brought a lot of joy to the neighbourhood:  

• Not only have the gardeners studied and selected suitable plants for the various conditions, they have weeded, tended, and nurtured the garden beds, they have improved the soil, picked up litter and sometimes supplemented the watering.
• They have favoured predominantly Canadian native shrubs and flowering species, which attract butterflies, other pollinators, and birds.
• One of the most rewarding activities for the street gardeners has been to chat with passers-by about plants, trees, and pollinator species. It’s been an opportunity for horticultural education, and urban habitat preservation. 
• Also, the gardeners act as unofficial street ambassadors, giving directions or on-the-spot reviews for nearby attractions. They enjoy a cooperative partnership with the Roncesvalles Village BIA in welcoming people to the area.
• They have enhanced our cultural identity as an eco-friendly community, and have extended the ecosystems of High Park into the urban neighbourhood. 

It’s been a delight to see an increase in pollinators in these gardens over the years. Watching a Monarch butterfly linger in a garden on the east side of Roncy, flutter across the street to settle in the garden on the west side, and seeing people photograph Black Swallowtail butterflies hovering amongst flowers on the street confirms its use as a corridor for pollinators travelling through the Village.

These gardens are cherished by many in the community for their diversity and eco-friendly approach that contrasts with the formal corporate gardening typical of many main streets that have planters. And, by many business members and directors of the RVBIA who showed appreciation to our street gardeners, which amplified the goodwill generated by beautiful street gardens.

Roncy’s unique gardens, including the Dundas Roncesvalles Peace Garden that was constructed in 2016, and the community volunteers behind them all, have been formally recognized, receiving numerous awards listed below.

Long-time volunteer gardener Ann Crichton-Harris and former Roncesvalles Village BIA Member Rahel Schneeberger-Brown collaborated on the garden south of Boustead Avenue over several years.

Most of the Green Team members have gardened on Roncesvalles for 7 to 10 years and five were part of the BIA’s original community consultation committee for the main street redesign. This shows how deeply embedded volunteering for our community has been on Roncy. 

RoncyWorks wants to express our deep gratitude to all these dedicated volunteers — most of whom continued to tend the gardens during the pandemic in 2020 — and to former Green Team members who put in a lot of time over the years, before they moved away. 

During the current lockdown, the gardens continue to flourish on their own. It’s a testament to the attention and care they’ve received over the years.

Garden Gallery 2020

Garden by The Whole Plate on Roncesvalles south of Pearson Ave.

LIST OF AWARDS:

2011 TABIA, to RVBIA for Streetscape Improvements (Roncesvalles Renewed)

2012 Queen’s Diamond Jubilee Awards: to four members of the RVBIA Beautification Committee, RoncyWorks, and the Dundas Roncesvalles Peace Garden for community service.

2013 TABIA, to RVBIA for innovative volunteer program RoncyWorks

2016 Ontario Horticultural Association, District 15 Youth Award Grant, to DRPG for tulip planting event

2017 Ontario Horticultural Association, William Baker Youth Award, to DRPG

2017 TABIA, to RVBIA and DRPG for the Peace Garden

2018 International Downtown Association, Award of Excellence, to RVBIA, City of Toronto, DRPG

2019 Community Leadership Award, Arif Virani MP: A. Bushby for DRPG

2019 Community Recognition Award, Bhutilla Karpoche MPP: Friends of DRPG

2019 TABIA, to RVBIA butterfly and pollinator gardening initiatives

2021 Parkdale-High Park Community Champion Award, MP Arif Virani: RoncyWorks Green Team Volunteers

Read more:

Greening of Roncy Part 1

Greening of Roncy Part 2

Dundas Roncesvalles Peace Garden

Roncy Garden Gallery 2020

This gallery contains 13 photos.

Photo Credits: Jackie Taschereau, René Foisy-Marquis, Anne Karpynczyk, Veronica Feihl, Rahel Schneeberger-Brown, Kevin Kapenda, David Neinstein & Hillary Woods. More photos of the Dundas Roncesvalles Peace Garden on Facebook.

Dundas West | Roncesvalles Peace Garden

Roncy’s Northern Gateway

Peace Garden (noun)
A public botanical garden created to commemorate the end of conflict, OR a public space dedicated to pay homage towards the commitment of peace, or rather, freedom from the disturbance, thereby promoting quiet and tranquility. A welcoming retreat.

The DRPG was conceived to honour the 1812 Battle of York, when Canadians of both Immigrant and Aboriginal status, fought side by side to fend off American invaders.

Because the intersection of Dundas West was once part of an indigenous trail that is, today celebrated as part of a Bicentennial Peace Garden Trail Network (combining Canadian History with promotion of Toronto’s First Nation’s heritage) – Founding Project Managers had set out to create a venture that could include many community groups as well as, benefit the area, aesthetically by serving as a Welcoming Northern Gateway to the Roncesvalles Village.

With the support of City Councillor Gord Perks, the Mississaugas of the New Credit First Nations, the RVBIA, Horticultural Societies of Parkdale & Toronto, RMRA, Sunnyside Historical Society, Toronto Public Space Initiative, Romero House, Bishop Marrocco/Thomas Merton Secondary School, and RoncyWorks, the ambitious undertaking is now a beautiful representation of many groups working together, peacefully – I might add.

Designed by Mary Tremain of PLANT Architect inc, the Peace Garden will now provide a space for enjoyment, contemplation, and community gathering, it also celebrates 200 years of friendship and peace for the City of Toronto and in particular, to the residents of the Roncesvalles area.

Seating areas consist of curved wooden benches that are thoughtfully integrated within the tapered concrete planter walls that surround and protect the garden beds.

construction of the curved benches

Plants and trees reflect a range of contemporary and heritage varieties local to the High Park area. Decorative, engraved granite paving tiles set among passive solar blocks, comprise the walkways, known as the Peace Path. Lighting has been incorporated to improve visibility and highlight the circular interior space.

An interpretive sign provided by DRPG community partners; the Roncesvalles Village BIA, and the Mississaugas of the New Credit First Nation, will be installed at the southwest corner. This sign will be unveiled on Saturday June 11th at the garden’s opening ceremonies.

GRAND OPENING: SATURDAY JUNE 11th, 2016 – JOIN US!
During Roncy Rocks
11 am Opening Ceremony: Intersection: Dundas Street West at Roncesvalles Avenue

12:00 – 5:00 at the Indigenous Music Stage: Ritchie Avenue at Roncesvalles Ave

WHAT TO EXPECT: At the Opening Ceremony:

• The Ceremony will be co-officiated with the Mississaugas of the New Credit First Nation and the Friends of Dundas Roncesvalles Peace Garden, to formally open the Peace Garden.
• An Indigenous Elder gives a blessing.
• Mary Tremain, of PLANT Architect, will be thanked for her beautiful landscape design. The City of Toronto will be thanked for capital funding and management of construction.
• A heritage plaque revealing the indigenous origin of this portion of Dundas Street, and its rise to prominence during the War of 1812 will be unveiled by its co-sponsors, the Mississaugas of the New Credit First Nation and the Roncesvalles Village BIA.
• The first community arts project between a First Nation and a Toronto community group will be unveiled — the “Peace Path” of engraved pavers winding through the Garden will be unveiled.
• The city’s first indigenous artwork painted onto a street infrastructure box will be presented to the public by the artist.  An image from an 1812 Fort York artefact, for Luminato’s “Trove” exhibit, installed on an outside wall at the site will be revealed.
• The Garden will be designated for the Moccasin Identifier project to mark its historical significance. At the Indigenous Music Stage:
• 12 noon: Georgina Toulouse of Sagamok First Nation sings a welcoming song in Ojibway language. Chief Stacy LaForme of the Mississaugas of the New Credit First Nation, who is himself a poet, welcomes everyone and opens the first stage of indigenous music to be performed on local streets, roads or trails in over 200 years
• 12:30 PM Métis Fiddler Quartet: siblings Alyssa, Conlin, Nicholas and Danton on viola, guitar, violin and song merge classical strings and spirited Métis music.
• 1:45 PM Marc Meriläinen (Nadjiwan): The untamed beauty of Marc’s northern Manitoba home infuses smoking hot rock, with the heartbeat of a community
• 2:30 PM Métis music workshop
• 3:00 PM Manitou Mkwa: Inspirational singers and hand drumming family group from the Mississaugas of the New Credit First Nation. Raised in the tradition of performing at Pow Wows, the group is devoted to raising awareness and support for Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and their families.
• 4:00 PM Cheri Maracle: hypnotic vocals with contemporary four-piece jazz ensemble pulses with Cheri’s Mohawk heritage style.
• 5:00 PM Donna’s Boy: Glenn Gould expresses his Mi’kmaq roots with a deep, full voice and six piece Blues/Rock band of horns, harmonica, guitar, fiddle. They’ll pump up the tempo. Spark

Roncy’s Pee Rocks

Although the boulder-in-river-stone design element featured in several Roncesvalles Avenue street gardens may look like Xeriscape or Zen design, they are actually strategic coping solutions for dog urine.  Roncy has Pee Rocks.

Roncy’s dog pee rocks are saving roses

Zen Design & Dog Pee Solution

As dogs walk (hopefully on leash) with their owners, they constantly source out other dogs’ territorial markings and plan on masking those scents with their own. It’s what they do.

With an accumulation of doggy leaks, clever RoncyWorks volunteered gardeners, came up with an attractive solution that would help safeguard the shrubs and perennials. Now dogs gravitate to the Pee Rocks.

I like it so much, I’m going to apply the design on flanking sides of my own front walkway.

Now, if only we could stop dogs and people from trampling the plants, that would be awesome. The most harm happens when dogs are tethered to the trees in some of the gardens. A stop to that could save a lot plants, volunteer effort and money spent replacing plants.

RoncyWorks Garden Gallery 2014

A momentous year of urban gardening by our Green Team yielded plenty of delights on the street and lots of shots to share. In these photos taken among our 21 planting beds, you’ll see what evolved, and both treasures and trouble spots discovered since spring. Even this late in the season, the fall gardens are a reminder of what makes this neighbourhood awesome.

May Flowers and June Blooms

Photo Credit: Heidi Eisenhauer

July’s Garden Glories

August’s Beauteous Bounty

Photos above by Heidi Eisenhauer

Roncesvalles in Bloom 2013 & 2014

Photos above by Jackie Taschereau