Green thumbs at the Library

Sobkowiak, who teaches at McGill University, is a frequent speaker at events around Montreal on the subject of wildlife gardens, and has previously given a presentation at the library on the subject of attracting birds to a garden. In addition to his landscaping practice, Sobkowiak maintains a farm with a nursery of over 1,000 fruit trees.

“We know people in the community are such enthusiastic gardeners we thought there’d be a great demand for this,” observed Outreach Librarian Donna Lach.

Library Director Ann Moffat noted that “The library has wonderful resources on gardening, especially now, due to a very generous donation by Stuart Robertson of books on all aspects of gardening.”

Robertson, a Westmount resident and frequent library user, writes about gardening for the Montreal Gazette and discusses gardening on CBC Radio.

The books donated by Robertson have already been integrated into the library’s circulating collection, thanks to a special effort by the library’s cataloguing staff. The books may be found on the third floor, at call number 635, and at call number 712 in the North Findlay Room on the main floor. The library has prepared a pamphlet with a bibliography of selected available gardening books; designed by librarian Laura Baiocco, the pamphlet illustrates on one page the various call numbers of subjects related to gardening, including controlling insects and garden design.

Among the great number of books donated by Robertson were duplicates of some already in the library collection. The library was able to take advantage of the donation to sell the older duplicates, thus raising money to put towards yet more books. The sale began with the recent meeting of the Westmount Horticultural Society, lasted one week, and successfully sold the majority of books at prices ranging from one to five dollars. “Gardeners are like book lovers,” said Moffat, “they love to have stuff on their subjects. They don’t care if the books are a bit old, they find it interesting.”

Moffat noted that the library’s collection includes materials on shaded gardens, and books for every kind of gardener — including the handicapped, the arthritic, or simply those short on time. There are introductory books, books for child gardeners, and picture books illustrating different flowers. Overall, said Moffat, the library represents “a real resource for the gardeners of Westmount.”

• Sobkowiak's presentation will be given on Wednesday, May 30 in the Westmount Room at 7 p.m.; registration for the event is at the library’s circulation desk, or by phone at 514-989-5386. A selection of books on relevant gardening topics will be available for browsing.