Jenny Fortier’s booth at the Prospectors and Developers Association of Canada conference got a lot of double takes last June.
“We had some really fun conversations, because it's not always something that people think about when they think about mining,” said Fortier, an ecologist and master gardener who holds a master’s degree in watershed ecosystems. But companies these days are more often looking for alternatives that bring added value to their properties, and wildflowers create habitats and food sources for butterflies, bees, and other pollinators.
Though her students had the knowledge and enthusiasm to start transforming their gardens, they couldn’t find the plants they wanted in local garden stores, she said. Earlier this year, Northern Wildflowers launched a line of Canada-grown vegetable seeds sourced from small, organic farmers from across the country.
Over the last three years, Fortier’s taken on more large-scale restoration projects, working with private businesses, non-governmental organizations, and municipalities to rejuvenate large swaths of land.