Pollinators
Pollinators, which include several types of insects, contribute up to 70% of plant pollination. These insects promote not only biodiversity, but also crop productivity.
As their number has been steadily decreasing over the past twenty years (pesticide use, parasites, habitat loss and climate change), the City of Vaudreuil-Dorion is participating in efforts to protect them.
The City has implemented a number of initiatives to encourage the presence of pollinators, including the installation of insect hotels and the planting of milkweed and native nectar-bearing plants in medians and public right-of-ways.
Monarch-friendly city
The monarch butterfly is an iconic species of North America. These butterflies travel thousands of miles to breed in Mexico and return to North America following the growth of milkweed, their host plant.
Unfortunately, due to degradation and loss of breeding habitat, the monarch population has declined by 90% in the last 20 years. Monarchs are totally dependent on milkweed for reproduction in Canada, hence we must ensure they are available here in the summer.
The City of Vaudreuil-Dorion is proud to be certified as a "Monarch-Friendly City". Since the summer of 2021, the City has been committed to contributing to the protection and restoration of the habitat of Monarch butterflies in order to encourage citizens to join their efforts.
A signature garden was created in the summer of 2022. The City also completed a pollinator planting behind the Maison Félix-Leclerc in spring 2022.
Insect hotels
The City also features several small insect hotels across its different installations. These structures provide protection and a place to hibernate for pollinators.
Following is a list of the different locations where insect hotels can be found:
- Forbes Fire Station
- Parc de la Canardière
- Public garden on rue Valois
- Public garden at parc de la Maison-Valois
- Public garden at the municipal library
- Installation at the entrance to the municipal library
- Jardin communautaire des Abbesses (green space on Pie-XII)
- Jardin communautaire des Loisirs (parc de Sainte-Trinité)
- Jardin communautaire des Muguets (green space on des Muguets)
- Jardin communautaire Bourget (Ilôt Bourget)
- Flowered promenade on rue Bourget
- Maison Félix-Leclerc (behind the house)
Ecological vegetation control
Since 2017, the City of Vaudreuil-Dorion has been reducing the area of maintenance or simply ceasing to maintain some of its land not accessible to the public with a view to ecological vegetation control. This type of project is in line with natural environment conservation plans and aims to promote the establishment of natural vegetation and ecological succession. This approach makes it possible to add natural environments that are prized by wildlife, where native flora will gradually become established to form a herbaceous wasteland. Over the years, these environments can even become wooded. Fallow land is just as important as forests for maintaining biodiversity: many pollinating insects, essential for flowers and crops, and birds benefit from these environments.
While the targeted areas included in the list of sites subject to ecological vegetation control are no longer mowed, in whole or in part, in most cases a clean strip of between one and three metres is maintained, in order to limit growth near public uses.