taking care of nature

BLOG: NATURE NOTES

Invasive Species Awareness Week Day 5: Invasive Trees and Tree of Heaven

We have a couple of invasive tree species here in the Okanagan and Similkameen and one is the frustrating Tree of Heaven. Tree of Heaven is believed to be the fastest growing tree in North America, making it outcompete many of our native species. It is also allelopathic, meaning that it can make the soil around itself toxic to other plants. This tree can easily establish itself into disturbed areas and is quite tricky to get rid of. Cutting the tree can just trigger the plant

Invasive Species Awareness Week Day 4: Mechanical Control and Cheatgrass

When trying to manage invasive plants mechanically, a popular strategy is to try to cut down or mow the plant before it goes to seed. However, this can be hard for plants that go to seed early in the year. Cheat grass is one such plant. This grass will continue to grow throughout the winter so when the spring rains end, cheat grass has already gone to seed. This means you have to cut this grass super early in the year. Because cheat grass goes to seed so early, it dies early

Invasive Species Awareness Week Day 3: Mussels

We can't go through Invasive Species week without talking about one of the biggest threats in terms of invasives, Zebra, Quagga and other invasive mussels. These mussels are know for attaching themselves to every hard surface they can. Because of this they can damage infrastructure like irrigation pipes and municipal water systems which could cost millions to fix. These mussels also alter the food web, by outcompeting native species like salmon and Rocky Mountain Ridged musse

Invasive Species Awareness Week Day 2: Bio-control and Purple Loosestrife

Not all invasives can be dealt with in the same way, it is really dependent on the species and how it grows. The most common ways to control invasives are mechanically, chemically, or through bio-controls. Mechanical is through brute force, usually by digging or pulling, and chemically is through the use of pesticides and herbicides. Bio-control are when you introduce a species, usually an insect, that would naturally predate on this plant where it originated from. This requi

Invasive Species Awareness Week Day 1: Prioritization and Rush Skeletonweed

This week is about recognizing the different invasives that are found in the Okanagan and Similkameen valleys and how they can be managed. Firstly, not all introduced plants are considered invasive, they only claim that invasive status when they start taking over and disturbing the biodiversity in the area. And like most things, there is a spectrum of how bad they are and their priority level. Some are prioritized if they are not yet prolific in an area. So if they start sho

WHAT IS STEWARDSHIP?

Stewardship is the act of taking care of fish and wildlife habitat by people like you

WHAT WE DO

OSS works directly with local residents in order to support and assist them in caring for important natural areas. Over the past ten years, since our inception in October 2013, OSS has undertaken an array of initiatives including outreach and neighbourhood initiatives, one-on-one contact with land managers, community and government partnerships and collaborations, and has made significant contributions to wildlife habitat restoration and enhancement throughout the Okanagan and Similkameen valleys.

Meet our Team

WHERE WE WORK
OSS works in the Okanagan and Similkameen valleys, primarily on the traditional and unceded territory of the Syilx/Okanagan and Secwepemc people, throughout the Regional Districts of Okanagan Similkameen, Central Okanagan and North Okanagan. This region is an exceptional place, known for its spectacular landscapes, iconic wildlife, amazing outdoor recreation opportunities, world-class wines and diverse agricultural products. The region is also home to some of the greatest concentrations of species diversity and species at risk in Canada and is one of Canada's most endangered natural systems.

Map showing locations of over 125 wildlife habitat stewards