Youth Led Native Garden
In partnership with Fresh Roots and the Suwa'lkh School Leadership Class
At the end of 2022, staff of Coquitlam Heritage and Fresh Roots met to discuss a possible collaboration. The Suwa'lkh School Leadership Class has worked over the years to restore vital Indigenous plant systems around the Suwa’lkh (‘New Beginnings' in the Hul'qumi'num language) School which was formerly Millside school. Being just down the street, Mackin House Museum preserves the heritage of Fraser Mills, and so a project uniting current students who learn in the former school where mill worker’s children attended and the former home of mill management, creates a vital link between the past and future of Coquitlam.
As Fresh Roots specialize in growing foods and cultivating native plants, a designated space in the Mackin House garden was chosen to be re-planted by the students with emphasis on a garden that could educate visitors about native plants, and sustainable cultivation practices.
With visits to the museum, research, and planning, the Leadership class has access to the history of the area, along with the development of their expertise and personal skills around garden design, care, and implementation.
In May 2023, the students worked tirelessly to fill the garden with fresh native plants. The plants include Snowberry, Nodding Onion, Yarrow, Pacific Ninebark, Kinnikinnick, Coastal Strawberry and Red Flowering Currant. If you would like to add these plants to your garden, stay tuned for a blog on how to care for them. Visit Mackin House today to see the garden. To learn more about the program, watch the video above. Our friends at Fresh Roots also wrote a blog about this experience, which you can find here.
