Paper short abstract:

Estuary root gardens in coastal British Columbia are both key to traditional food systems and offered little protection. In order to better understand past management practices at these sites and guide restoration efforts, an approach that merges local knowledge, archaeology and ecology is needed.

Paper long abstract:

Estuarine root gardens are coastal areas where First Nations people on the Northwest Coast of North America cultivated nutritionally, culturally and economically important root foods, such as Pacific silverweed (Pacifica anserina ssp. Pacifica), springbank clover (Trifolium wormskioldii) and riceroot lily (Fritillaria camschatcensis). These plants, and the carefully engineered and managed ecosystems that supported them, represent generations of traditional ecological knowledge dedicated to maintaining an important element of a sustainable food system. In the time since colonization began on the coast, these gardens have become impacted by intersecting factors, including climate change, industrial development, and land theft. Loss of management, driven by the removal of indigenous peoples from their territories and communities, have further impacted inter-generational knowledge about the location of root garden sites and culturally specific management practices. Further, the sites that do remain are given little protection under current legislation in British Columbia. However, an intersectional approach to the study of these sites, one that merges local knowledge, archaeology, and ecology, can help renew relationships with these sites - and, potentially, help us locate others that are no longer known. In this talk, two specific root garden sites, one in Songhees First Nation territory and one in 'Namgis territory, will be used to illustrate the range and the resilience of these food systems, and how combining these lines of evidence may help us better understand past management and guide future eco-cultural restoration efforts.