Where did the name Bow Point come from?
Originally this nursery started near Cochrane on a curve along the Bow River.
So it has a geographic relevance?
Absolutely. It’s the lifeblood of this place. That’s where the name came from is that curvature on the Bow.
Okay and you are an arborist?
No. I’m actually a herbalist by trade.
Herbalist? Tell me more.
Yes, I’m a herbalist. I’ve always had a love of plants. I was working with plants in a different way for the last decade. The thing that kept coming up was that — in terms of botany — a lot of my learning you never learned about [specifically]. What are the native plants of the area where I live? I had done tonnes of plant walks. I could tell you the edibility and medicinal use of anything and everything growing around you, but I never was fully aware of what was actually supposed to be growing here. How does that lend itself to our mental wellbeing? How does that lend itself to our worldview? And, our cultural perspective? All of these things are connected. So it’s a very critical and essential thing for people to start to understand and start to learn a little bit more about.
Why do you believe it’s important to grow native plants and shrubs?
We live in this very unusual area where the Rocky Mountains meet the foothills in the prairies. Essentially, you get this very strange landscape that we live within. It’s a very challenging landscape to live on for lots of different reasons.
It’s a time stamp in terms of, evolutionary speaking, what has evolved to live in this very difficult climate.
You can even apply it to this pandemic right now. If you look at nature and ecology, things always go in cycles. Presently we are in a current cycle with certain diseases, but you see that all the time with the plants.
If you understand those natural cycles and forces, then you can understand what is currently happening, as well as past trends.
I’m interested in how we take that knowledge and that adaptation that has been achieved over a relatively short period of time, geologically-speaking, and apply that to the future. These trees, these shrubs, these grasses, the plants that make up the landscape here tell a story. And, we just have to learn how to read it essentially.
What would surprise people the most about the plants that are available and that do work in this really challenging environment?
I think there’s that initial learning curve of the fact that we do live in this extremely challenging climatic environment. It takes a very unique set of plants and different species that have evolved to live in here.
That shock gives way to an appreciation for the plethora of species that have and do survive here. What I try to do with people is open their eyes to say OK, well maybe I can’t grow a lovely blue hydrangea, it’s not going to survive here, but maybe I can be a steward of a native willow that has an entire history.
What do you think is the most versatile plant that is adapted for this environment?
I would say that pretty much any plant can be versatile depending on how it’s used, but there’s a lot of plants that show great versatility when you start to observe them in the wild. Spacing is an example that I like to give with design. People always want guidance in terms of proper spacing for plants. But, if you go into the forest — nothing is properly spaced!
It’s chaos.
It’s chaos, right? But it’s a very intentional chaos. There’s a lot of reason why those things grow together.
Trees themselves can be utilized for any number of different purposes. Dogwoods, or a dwarf birch, can handle all kinds of different growing conditions. They can handle being an understory. They can handle being a focal point. They can handle being a hedge. They could handle being sheered. They can handle all kinds of different circumstances, environments and kinds of designs that you kind of throw at them.
I would say that any native plant can be as versatile as you’re willing to be with it!
OK. So does it take kind of a creative application? Is it how you would use it then, is that what you’re saying?
It’s also about expanding your own repertoire. You can actually put in something unique, creative, more actually suited to the purpose that you want for it; but it just takes a little bit of education and it does take a little bit of creativity and a little bit of thought.
Most people come here because I think they want that help.
OK. Excellent. Do you have any favourite combinations, plants that you like to put together?
I like strong textures. I love the sharpness of something like a juniper mixed with something really delicate like a phlox or a geranium or grass. When you start getting those textural differences, and even then you start getting into colour variations and things like that and what those look like depending on the time of year. That is where interest comes in for me.
Ok. What are some of the most typical challenges that homeowners have with their landscape materials and plant materials here in Alberta?
Planting the wrong stuff.
Tell me more.
We have things like Chinooks that other places, like even Edmonton, do not get. The only other place I think actually is Sweden maybe, or Switzerland, it’s one of those two, are the only other place on the planet I believe that gets Chinooks.
The climatic conditions are a huge challenge for people. When you start getting into clientele living even that ten-minute drive outside of the city, like if you’re talking about Cochrane, Springbank, even as you go south, the climatic conditions change quite drastically. The wind becomes a huge problem. The temperatures can fluctuate a lot more rapidly and be more extreme.
If you could only have one tree…just one, what would you pick?
That’s kind of an impossible question to ask from a plant person! I would probably pick a different tree every time of the year. And ,for every different kind of situation. I’ve seen some aspen groves that would make you want to weep. I’ve seen some pines that are just like a time stamp from an ancient coniferous forest. If I had to pick….probably a pine of some kind. That’s really hard. There’s a huge variety of pines that do well here. I’d probably go with a pine.
OK. Change of pace. What about the best day trip from Calgary? What do you think it is?
Best day trip from Calgary, that’s a good question. Honestly I feel like Kananskis is probably one of the most beautiful places I’ve ever visited on Earth. That particular area is just stunning.
Cats or dogs?
Dogs.
That was fast. You must have one.
I did, I did, yeah, I had to say good-bye to him this year. He taught me that a relationship can’t be defined in one time and space. It’s something that is constantly evolving. He is the one thing in my life that has taught me to trust above everything else.
I’m sorry. This one’s just a little easier − salty or sweet?
Salty. Savoury, every day. Everyday of the week. I would take a full medieval size savoury spread over sweet. Every day.
Right. Awesome. Any parting thoughts on working with native plans?
I think that plants are the basis of all life. Without plants, we have nothing. And so I think that if there’s any point that I hope that people get across when they come and visit this nursery, or any native plant nursery for that matter, is that planting those things in your yard and being a steward of the land is quite possibly the most important thing you can do. It’s easy to walk on this earth and take that for granted, but I think that we shouldn’t. So that would be the one thing I hope that people can get when they come up here.
