EVENT RECAP: SWAN LAKE FIRST NATION, MB – Prairie Ojibwe Environmental Tour and Potluck

On July 6th, Prairie Ojibwe Environmental hosted us at the gardens, lake, shorelines, and trails in Swan Lake First Nation for a tour and potluck. Our tour hosts and guides were Elder David Scott, an Ojibwe Environmental expert, and Finnley Rachul, who Dave has been teaching as his main apprentice for the last 6 years, as well as many other young people through their paid youth environmental stewardship program. The two of them have been working with school divisions, municipalities, watersheds and many others to provide education on environmental monitoring techniques using both traditional and scientific approaches.

It was a hot day so we set up the shade tents for a potluck lunch and folks filled their plates as we gathered in a classic Young Agrarians intro circle to learn each other’s names and a little about what each of us are up to. Then, Dave and Finn took us into their beautiful permaculture “chaos gardens” where we learned about guild planting, mulching, fruit trees, and perennials. There were a lot of experienced gardeners on the tour so we all jumped in for 30 minutes to pull out grass and other “unwanted” plants. Then we did a quick 10-minute weed pull in the chicken run where there was four-foot-tall ragweed that the chickens did not want to eat. It’s amazing how much you can get done during a 30-person weeding blitz! While there, we saw many songbirds, blue jays, a black-headed gull, and a hawk interacting with each other overhead. Dave and Finn gave us some insight into their interactions, and what the different calls can mean. Finn even shared that on a hike in a recent year, a blue jay led him back to his lost dog!

Next, we all jumped in our vehicles and drove down to the dock at Swan Lake. Dave showed us how the hybrid cattails (a mix of the European and native cattail) had taken over the shoreline and how they are not very nutritious to the muskrats and beavers. Dave and Finn shared with us how industrial agriculture has negatively impacted the health of the lake and how they are working to educate more people about these effects.

Then we walked up the trail where we saw beaver activity, and Dave explained how they are working with the beavers to encourage wetlands and riparian zones. He talked about the trees interacting with each other, how you can tell what’s happening with the soil by what trees are there, and how many there are of each species. We tasted some tender young hazelnuts, nettles, and fireweed, and of course said hello to many other plant friends. We ended the tour at Dave’s place, where Dave and Finn showed us the rain garden, told us stories about working with the animals to co-create the habitat, and shared some great herbal steam advice.

Thanks to all that came out and joined! And a huge thanks to Elder David Scott and Finnley Rachul for hosting us and for all of the amazing work they do! If you missed the tour but are interested in their work or would like to help out for a day, head to their website.