The next Nova Scotia Wild Flora Society member’s meeting will be at The Museum of Natural History, 1747 Summer St. Halifax, and by Zoom, at 7:30 pm.
What started as an anecdote about an old apple became a years-long research mission for friends and colleagues Simon Thibault and Karen Pinchin. The pair of them worked together to unearth a centuries-old story of the Belliveau Apple, a distinct variety of apple found in the Acadian villages of Clare in Southwest Nova Scotia. By digging through family archives, genealogical records, and a nearly-forgotten email exchange, Pinchin and Thibault would find and highlight the history of this nearly-forgotten apple, and lead them all the way to the Oxford Food Symposium. Today, the duo continue their work in helping tell the story of the apple, and all that it represent: agricultural knowledge, culinary and cultural heritage, and a calling card of Acadie.
Simon Thibault is a journalist, food writer, editor, and radio producer based in Halifax, Nova Scotia Canada. His work examines the intersections between food and culture, and the stories found within. His first book, Pantry and Palate: Remembering and Rediscovering Acadian Food was shortlisted for the Taste Canada Award. He and his work have been featured in The Globe and Mail, CBC Radio and Radio-Canada, The National Post, The Huffington Post, Chatelaine, The Old Farmers Almanac, and more. He currently works as the Non-Fiction Acquisitions Editor at Goose Lane, Canada’s oldest independent publisher.
Karen Pinchin is an award-winning journalist specializing in investigative and longform reporting. Her book, Kings of Their Own Ocean: Tuna, Obsession, and the Future of Our Seas won multiple awards, including the Paradigm Prize from the Science Writers and Communicators of Canada, the Evelyn Richardson Non-Fiction Award, the Margaret and John Savage First Book Award, and a Silver Medal at the Taste Canada Award. For more than a decade she has worked as both a staff and freelance reporter and editor specializing in food systems and science journalism.
CBU’s Centre of Excellence for Healthy Aging is running a biweekly program for seniors with dementia or at risk of dementia and their caregivers at the Judique Community Centre. The next meeting is at 1:00pm on Thursday Sep. 18, and they have asked NSWFS if anyone would be interested in accompanying them to share plant identification and wild foraging tips with their participants. Bob Kennedy from NSWFS will be meeting them at 12:45 in the parking lot of the Judique Community Centre. If anyone else is interested in joining the walk, please contact bob@grimsey.ca
Due to the possibility of lightning in the forecast for Sep 7, Allison MacNeil’s hike to see the Marsh Elder (Iva frutescens – rated vulnerable provincially) has been moved to Saturday Sep. 20 at 10:00am. Sunday Sep 21 will be held in reserve as a weather day. The field trip will still be at Blue Beach near Lockhartville. This is because the restrictions for hiking in wooded areas remain in place for Kings County, 
The Williams Lake Conservation Company, Backlands Coalition is celebrating Shaw Wilderness Park’s 5th Birthday on Monday, September 15th. The party is at Purcell’s Cove Social Club, 16 Shipside Lane, Purcell’s Cove, starting at 5:30.
Because of the limitations of the ban on hiking in the woods due to the current drought conditions, the trip to Yarmouth and SW Nova Scotia scheduled for August 22-25 has been cancelled. However, we will be doing a day trip to the lakeshore by Jeremy’s Bay campground in Kejimkujik National Park on Saturday Aug. 23 to look for the Manyflowered Marshpennywort in bloom. Please contact bob@grimsey.ca if you are interested in joining us.
Allison MacNeil is being supported by the NSWFS in her research of the Marsh Elder – Iva frutescens. She has offered to host a field trip to see this rare plant in its native habitat at Kingsport Marsh on Sunday Sept. 7. We expect to find many other plants of interest in the marsh as well. Details to follow.
