The man who removes a mountain begins by carrying away small stones.
This Chinese proverb could just as well be a caption for before-and-after photographs of Konukson Park in Saanich, where volunteers are slowly, steadily transforming a park threatened by invasive species into a thriving ecosystem.
"It's a completely different place in there now. There's more light, more species diversity," explains Katie Turner, District of Saanich's park stewardship coordinator.
A section of Konukson Park was once overrun with English ivy, doing what it does best: spreading rapidly and smothering native species. The “after” photo reveals the impact of the Pulling Together Volunteer Program after years of weekly work, carefully digging out roots, pulling young plants, and cutting down larger infestations.
The program is a hands-on ecological restoration initiative where volunteers and Saanich Parks staff team up to restore natural areas across the region, mostly focused on invasive species.
The work seldom pauses and is needed to keep local parks in peak shape so current and future generations can enjoy them, Turner explains. "I see it as multi-generational work."
Even in small parks that have been worked on for decades, pulling out invasives is "never finished," Turner said.
"There always will be little bits, or a bird drops a holly seed – or whatever."
Asking for neighbourhood support
Several pesky invasive species are prominent in Greater Victoria, including Scotch Broom, English ivy and Daphne laurel. While some people might like their appearance and even plant them in their gardens, they unfortunately can quickly overwhelm a natural ecosystem and choke out native life.
"Instead of having 20 different kinds of plants, you have three because it takes over," Turner said.
That's why Pulling Together and the Cadboro Bay Residents Association are asking residents to remove or control invasive species on their properties.
The big five they most want help removing are ivy, holly, daphne, broom and blackberry – the last of which they ask to be completely removed, or else to "eat ALL the berries."
For all five species, the preference is to completely remove the plant, though more information can be found at cadboro.ca.
"It is very frustrating and demoralizing to watch as the invasives grow back where volunteers have already worked, often more than once before," the organizations said in an open letter to the neighbourhood.
The letter speaks to the effort put in by groups such as Pulling Together and how quickly those efforts can be reversed.
Because managing invasive species typically takes intensive time and effort, and is difficult for governments to fund, volunteers and community collaboration are integral to the cause, Turner said.
Dedicated volunteer groups across Greater Victoria sometimes spend decades on a single park.
Currently, Pulling Together has over 200 volunteers spread out over 44 sites and natural areas under Saanich Parks. A few staff, equipped with trucks, work on priority invasions where they can snuff out new plants starting to infiltrate an area.
"Really, it's a partnership between us and the community to help care for the places that people love," Turner said.
Turner highlighted some motivating factors that have brought people to Pulling Together, an initiative through the district since 1999.
Some volunteers like to focus on one park and build strong community connections through weekly group meetings. Some hop from park to park, focusing on a specific species.
But there's one motivation she said stands out the most.
"One of the big motivating factors is people loving a place where they live and wanting to do something tangible for the environment. This is something real that you can do: meet with your community and do hands-on nature ecological work."
