Photo: Alyson Skinner

Okanagan Landing Elementary School students planted native shrubs and flowers to help restore a grassland hillside behind their school.

By planting 3,800 native trees, shrubs, grasses, and wildflowers across the region, the Okanagan Similkameen Stewardship Society made a significant investment in local habit this year.

In a statement released Monday, the organization said it was attributable to the collaboration of more than 200 volunteers and partnerships with landowners, municipal parks, conservation areas and other non-profit organizations.

Highlights include the riparian restoration at Kelowna’s Thomson Marsh Park, where 380 native plants now support local bird, amphibian, and reptile populations.

At Okanagan Landing Elementary in Vernon, Mrs. Troidl's class became stewards of their grassland hillside, planting nearly 150 plants for pollinators and other wildlife.

“While the Okanagan’s mountain forests are abundant, our valley bottoms—where wildlife like American Badgers, Tiger Salamanders, and Burrowing Owls thrive—are under pressure from human activity,” Lia McKinnon, OSS stewardship biologist, said in the press release.

“We’re focusing on grasslands, wetlands, and riparian habitats because they provide essential resources, without them, wildlife cannot survive, no matter how much forest remains.”

Riparian areas, which host over 80 per cent of local wildlife, are a priority for OSS.

By planting native vegetation, these ecosystems not only support wildlife but also combats erosion, filters pollutants, and provides shade, creating cooler water refuges for species like salmon.

Grasslands, covering less than one per cent of BC, are another focus. Despite their fragile nature and vital role in supporting 30 per cent of species at risk, they are often overlooked.