:: James Fletcher 1852-1908 ::
The Fletcher Wildlife Garden is named after James Fletcher, Dominion Entomologist and Botanist. He was based on the Central Experimental Farm (Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada) where he was also the Chief of the Entomology and Botany Division from 1887 until his death in 1908.
However, his interests extended beyond plants and insects as they relate to agriculture, to natural history in general. He was a founding member and later president, of The Ottawa Field-Naturalists' Club, the parent organization which oversees the FWG. It was thought fitting to name the garden after this eminent naturalist.
James Fletcher was born in England, in Kent County, moving to Canada in 1874.
An issue of The Ottawa Naturalist (Vol. 22(10): 189-234, 1909 was dedicated to the life and work of James Fletcher.
PLease click on the photo to open this gallery.
JUN-1990
Dedication of the Fletcher Wildlife Garden, June 1990
This is the official dedication of the FWG. After this event, work on the garden began in earnest.
I don't know who everyone is in this photo, but the President at the time, of the Ottawa Field-Naturalists' Club, Roy John, is in the back row, wearing a Tilley Hat. And of course, the Ottawa Town Crier is there!
Dedication of the Fletcher Wildlife Garden, June 1990
Part of the official dedication of the FWG. David Tomlinson, who created the award-winning design for the Fletcher Garden is on the far left of the photo.
Fletcher Wildlife Garden at the entrance to the garden, 1993
Today, you cannot see the barn at all. The area between the sign and the barn is now a flourishing woodlot. This sign stands at the intersection of the road into the garden and Prince of Wales Dr.
Looking west to the Butterfly Meadow, spring 1991
The area in the foreground is now full of shrubs and trees, thickets that provide nesting habitat for birds and cover for small mammals. The Butterfly Meadow is beyond the row of conifers.
Butterfly Meadow, 1993
Here you can see the land has been cleared for the next part of the Butterfly Meadow. To the right of the photo, the area has been planted with lots of ox-eye daisies.
Butterfly Meadow
Another view of the Butterfly Meadow, probably in 1993, when it was first created. The shot is looking northward toward the Ravine and the Interpretive Centre.
Butterfly Meadow
This shows the first creation of the Butterfly Meadow, probably from 1993.
14-JUL-2009
Butterfly meadow, July 2009
Fireweed, brown-eyed susan, yarrow, feverfew, these are only some of the plants you see in this photo.
Planting the New Woods area of the garden, May 1992
This open field is now full of tall trees and shrubs! Here, we are looking east toward the baseball diamond around which our Hedgerow now runs.
Planting the New Woods, spring 1992
This view is looking north to the entrance road into the Fletcher Wildlife Garden. The baseball diamond (not part of the FWG) is to the left, and behind is more of the New Woods waiting to be planted in 1992. Planting continued for several more years, with the last large planting of new trees occurring around 1996. Scouts continued to plant trees here and there in the new woods, for a few more years after that.
14-MAY-1992
Planting the New Woods
This area is now full of tall trees which look as if they grew up naturally and have been there for longer than 20 years! Just shows how a mowed field can transform into a woodlot in 20 years!
