Garry Oak Meadows

Here on southern Vancouver Island we have have some large parks with old Garry Oak trees set in natural meadows with rocky outcroppings.

These tree are the only native oak trees in Western Canada and they are associated with a unique ecosystem known as the Garry Oak Meadow. In the spring the meadows are carpeted with the deep blue of the Camas flower and the bright yellow of buttercups.

These meadows are such beautiful places to walk on a sunny day. Many of these trees are very old and some of them are dead and dying--and they have their own stark beauty.

And in areas where they remain natural there are new Garry Oaks at various stages of growth.
These areas are dwindling as more and more building takes place around this area, but fortunately there is growing awareness of the need for protection.

These photos were taken in Uplands Park on Sunday. Over the next week or so the Camas will come into full bloom and the meadows will turn into drifts of deep blue. Beautiful.

You can see that Geordie and Maggie enjoy it too. Sorry for including so many photos. I just couldn't decide which ones to leave out.