Environment
Toronto Tree Tour a Treat
This past weekend I had the opportunity to check out one of the walking tours organized by LEAF (Local Enhancement and Appreciation of Forests). This green roof edition of the Toronto Tree Tour featured a visit to 401 Richmond and 215 Spadina, and stops at a few notable spots in between.
In addition to visiting the amazing rooftop greenscapes, this 2-hour tour was chalk-full of fun and interesting facts about trees and plants along the way. For instance I learned that the English Ivy that envelopes the exterior of 401 Richmond is likely the oldest tree or plant in the area. Also, even though I thought Toronto was a well-forested city, our tree canopy covers only 17% of the land area, which is paltry in comparison to the 40% tree cover in Washington D.C. Planting our rooftops would certainly go a long way to cooling down our city, improving the air quality, and providing really neat public spaces for us to enjoy.
A photo slideshow of the visual highlights of the tour, after the jump.
The next edition of the Toronto Tree Tour moves to Parkdale and happens on August 22 from 7:00 - 8:30pm. RSVP early as the tours are limited to between 20 and 40 people and they do fill up.
Discussion
4 Comments
Sort By Oldest First / Newest First
Subscribe
I just wanted to let everyone know in case they were not aware that you do not have to wait for tree tours or arts festivals to enjoy that wonderful green roof. It is open to the public all summer except when special private events are scheduled there which fortunately is not all that often. Also if you contact the 401 Richmond main office you can book the rooftop for your own personal events. Just keep in mind that you'll be doing the public a favour by booking your event after 4pm. I believe the roof closes to the public at 6pm every night.