June 18, 2026: Since 2022, the Rotary Club of West Ottawa has transformed ordinary garden spaces into thriving pollinator habitats, creating places where bees, butterflies, students, volunteers, and community members can flourish together.
The Ottawa Rotary Home pollinator garden in bloom.
The idea took root at Regina Street Alternative School, where our Club launched its first pollinator garden as a hands-on environmental project with students, educators, and volunteers.
From there, the project grew. RCWO went on to establish pollinator gardens at Ottawa Rotary Home and Rotel, creating small but meaningful habitats across our community.
At the Ottawa Rotary Home, RCWO volunteers gathered on Saturday, May 28, 2022, to build and plant a raised pollinator bed. Led by Marcia Armstrong, volunteers measured, assembled, filled, and planted the bed to help pollinators survive in an urban environment while also providing visual enjoyment at the Home.
Over time, the Ottawa Rotary Home garden matured from a newly built bed into a colourful and productive habitat. What began with wood, soil, plants, and volunteer energy is now a dense garden filled with blooms during the growing season.
A bumblebee visits flowers in the Ottawa Rotary Home pollinator garden.
The impact is visible in the garden itself. Bees and other beneficial insects visit the flowers, showing that even a modest garden can contribute to urban biodiversity.
Our Club members continue to maintain the gardens at Ottawa Rotary Home and Rotel. At Regina, we work with students during the school year and help care for the school gardens through the summer months. Together, we are creating small but lasting spaces for pollinators, students, families, residents, and visitors to enjoy.
Our Pollinator Gardens
• Regina Street Alternative School (2022)
• Ottawa Rotary Home (2022)
• Rotel (2023)
The Pollinator Gardens Project reflects Rotary service at its best: local, practical, hopeful, and rooted in care for both people and the natural world. We are grateful to the volunteers, schools, and community partners who have helped these gardens grow. These gardens create habitat, offer learning opportunities, beautify shared spaces, and remind us that meaningful environmental action can begin with a small patch of soil.
From Raised Bed to Pollinator Habitat: Ottawa Rotary Home
Step 1: On site, ready to go!
Step 2: Good builders know to measure twice, cut once.
Step 3: Putting the pieces in place.
Step 4: Ready for planting!
Step 5: The planting begins...
Step 6: ...and the garden keeps growing and growing.
References
Rotary Club of West Ottawa. The RCWO Pollinator Gardens Project 2022!!! Rotary Club of West Ottawa, https://rcwo.org/stories/the-rcwo-pollinator-gardens-project-2022. Accessed 18 June 2026.
Rotary Club of West Ottawa. 2022-05-28 Planting Pollinator Garden Rotary Home. Rotary Club of West Ottawa, https://rcwo.org/PhotoAlbums/2022-05-28-planting-pollinator-garden-rotary-home. Accessed 18 June 2026.
Rotary Club of West Ottawa. The Latest on Our Pollinator Gardens! Rotary Club of West Ottawa, https://rcwo.org/stories/the-latest-on-our-pollinator-gardens%21. Accessed 18 June 2026.
Rotary Club of West Ottawa. Rotel Gets New Pergola. Rotary Club of West Ottawa, https://rcwo.org/stories/rotel-gets-new-pergola. Accessed 18 June 2026.
Rotary Club of West Ottawa. Facebook updates on RCWO pollinator gardens. Facebook, https://www.facebook.com/RotaryClubOfWestOttawa. Accessed 18 June 2026.
Published on: June 18, 2026
Prepared by: Erin Ueffing, Chair, PR Committee, Rotary Club of West Ottawa