The morning of Rhodofest is for the birds, or at least, the birders.
George Clulow, an avid birder who runs a local birding blog, Burnaby Bird Guy, will be leading a birding walk in Deer Lake Park at 8 a.m. on Sunday, May 6.
“Birding is best in the morning because the park is not so crowded in the morning, the birds are more active in the mornings, singing more,” Clulow explained to the NOW.
This time of year he hopes they’ll see some newly arrived migrating birds.
“Some are coming through just in passage, others have come to breed in the park, so whatever shows up,” he said. “People always like to see raptors, eagles and such. And then a lot of the smaller birds are quite spectacularly coloured.”
They’ll also visit the park’s Great Blue Herons.
“One thing I’ll be taking them to is our spectacular heronry,” he said. “Those birds are now incubating eggs, sitting on their nests, and they’re quite a spectacular bird. The blue heron is a very large bird, but it nests way up in high trees so that’s quite a sight.”
Those who wish to attend the walk should register by calling 604-205-3003. Participants should bring binoculars if they have them, dress for the weather and stick with the group.
Rhodofest kicks off at 11 a.m. with displays of flowers and plants, in particular, the city’s official flower, the rhododendron.
“There’s a display of all the trusses of rhodos in bloom, and they’re just beautiful,” said Verna Adamson, co-chair of the festival.
The festival is put on by the City of Burnaby and the Burnaby Rhododendron and Gardens Society, of which Adamson is past president. The event includes plant sales, entertainment, activities for kids and families, and a silent auction.
But the big feature, of course, is the rhododendron garden at Deer Lake Park.
“The purpose of the festival is mainly the appreciation of the beautiful rhododendron flowers and to walk through the gardens, just the love of the flower,” Adamson said.
It is the 30th anniversary of the festival, and the city is celebrating by offering 30 prizes, according to Adamson. Everyone is welcome, from gardeners to families with little ones. The festival is ideal for those with green thumbs as well as those new to gardening, she said.
“If you’re interested and you want to learn, we have lots of people there that can tell you about the plants that we have,” she said. “The festival is a very inexpensive (place) to buy a plant to try it to see if you’d like it.”
The weather forecast for Sunday is warm and partly cloudy as of Wednesday.
“It looks like the weather’s going to be perfect,” Adamson said, adding the event is always more enjoyable when the weather is good. “The kids make kites and run around on the grass flying their kites. It’s a good day.”
Rhodofest is at the Shadbolt Centre (inside and outside) from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. Two activities require pre-registration– building a bee-friendly planter and the strawberry tea. See burnaby.ca/rhodofest.
