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© Frédérique Guay 2025
Plants common names: Common reed, Canada goldenrod, Common milkweed
Botanical names: Phragmites australis, Solidago canadensis, Asclepias syriaca
Parts of the plants used: reed (leaf, woody stem, bast) ; goldenrod (bast) ; milkweed (silky floss, seeds)
Pulp composition: ⅓ reed, ⅓ goldenrod, ⅓ milkweed
[Common reed]
Identification: Eurasian, non-native, invasive. Tall, sturdy grass. Thick, stiff stems that feel hollow and smooth. Grows 1.5–5 m tall, rigid, and grey-green to pale yellow. Old stems remain standing through winter, then collapse into a slow-decomposing mat in spring. Spreads aggressively by long creeping stolons that can extend several meters each year. Large feathery plume at the top (purple-brown in summer, beige and fluffy in fall). Leaves long and flat, tapering to a point, arranged alternately up the stem. Seeds grow in a large, fluffy plume at the top of the stem. Each seed is tiny, attached to a fine hair. In late summer, the plume looks purple-brown and more compact. By fall and winter, it turns pale beige, becomes very soft and feathery, and the seeds easily brush off onto your hand.
Ecology: Common reed is a grass that grows densely in roadside, wetland, agricultural ditches, vacant fields and disturbed soils. Large population at Jarry park. Creates dense, tall stands that shade out native plants, reduce biodiversity, and alter hydrology by trapping sediment. Seeds are dispersed through wind. Rhizome networks allow high carbon sequestration, but monocultures can disrupt natural wetland functions. This plant has a very high transpiration rate, which makes it quite efficient to absorb pollutants and decontaminate soils.
[Canada goldenrod]
Identification: A native plant that belongs to the Asteraceae family. Typically 1–2 m, forming dense clusters from spreading rhizomes.Stems are tall, slender, and unbranched until near the top; colonies often form a golden flowering patch in late summer. Leaves are narrow, lance-shaped, sharply toothed, arranged alternately up the stem; leaves often have three prominent veins. Leaves and stems may feel slightly hairy or rough to the touch. Flowers are bright yellow inflorescences arranged in arching, plume-like clusters. Each head is small but packed with many tiny florets. Blooms from late July to early October. Seeds are tiny, light brown seeds attached to white, fluffy pappus hairs, easily carried by wind after the flowers dry.
Ecology: Grows in meadows, abandoned fields, roadsides, and disturbed soils, and so grows often near common reed. Plays a critical role for pollinators: one of the last abundant nectar sources for bees, wasps, butterflies, and beetles in late summer to fall. It supports specialist insects, including goldenrod-dependent gall flies and parasitoids, creating micro-ecosystems on a single plant. It provides winter habitat: stems trap snow, shelter ground insects, and create structure for overwintering species. Seeds are dispersed through wind. Contributes to soil stabilization and early meadow regeneration.
[Common milkweed]
Identification: Native plant that belongs to the dogbane family. Typically 0.5–1.5 m, upright and sturdy, often forming loose colonies through rhizomes. Stems are thick, unbranched, and covered in fine hairs. Leaves are large, oval to broadly lance-shaped, are opposite and feel thick, almost velvety. Flowers are highly fragrant (one of my favorite nectar smells) spherical clusters of pink to purplish, sometimes greenish-white star-shaped flowers. Nectar-rich. Bloom from late June to early August, with peak bloom typically in July. Fruit pods are green and mature to brown and split open in late summer–fall to release seeds attached to silky white floss. Seeds are found in the pods, flat, brown, and adapted for wind dispersal.
Ecology: A native meadow and field plant essential to Monarch butterflies; it is the only larval host for monarch caterpillars. It produces abundant nectar that attracts bees, flies, wasps, and butterflies, a potent plant for pollinator diversity. It grows with vitality in disturbed open soils such as old fields, railways, roadsides, gardens where it spreads through rhizomes. Increases soil organic matter and can stabilize degraded sites with its deep root system. Seed pods release silky floss adapted for wind dispersal. The latex sap protects monarch larvae from predators; part of the broader ecological defense network.
HARVESTING
Date: Sept. 27, 2025 [Goldenrod and reed] ; Oct. 15, 2025 [Milkweed]
Site: Prairie de Louvain, Montréal, H2N 1V6, QC.
Time: 3hours [Goldenrod and reed] ; 30min [Milkweed]
Notes: Goldenrod, reed and milkweed were harvested at Prairie de Louvain, a public site with a large open area that nests a pollinator field and veggie garden amongst the garment district. This area is being turned-over to welcome social and community modular housing (2026). At harvest, I used gardening shears to cut goldenrod and common reed and tied my bundles of materials with old bike tubes. Goldenrod, reed, and milkweed grow side by side there and reed is a feral competitor for space. Goldenrod was easy to snip with a dense bast and wood stemp. Reed is more robust as the leaves and long fibers of reed are almost a bit rubbery. I would sometimes have to snap a few times. I would consider larger gardening sheers, maybe more sharp. I harvested them under the moon after multiple days of high-intensity sun. Plants were very dry due to lack of rain this early Fall season. I harvested mature reeds that were about 5 ft tall, and the young goldenrod was about 3 feet tall. Milkweed was collected later on site, same location. I only collected pods that were unopened, not fully ripe.
[Reed]: During harvest, common reed plume (fluffy top of plant) were covered in plastic bags to mitigate seed propagation, as they are a resistant “invasive” feral plant. Due to the height of the plants, you can take a handful of plants and gently bend to the side to access the top of the plants. Cover the fluff with a plastic bag, snip the top off, then place in a garbage bag. I decided to keep the seeds and turn later into a biocomposite (I will boil and blend to stop the seed propagation). I harvested about 2x67 L garbage bags of plants, but will use only a small portion for this project, the rest for later use.
[Goldenrod]: I harvested younger plants as mature plants hold long-held relationships with this urban ecosystem. I harvested only the plants that were on the beaten path or did not have galls as goldenrod larvaes are inhabiting the single plants. I harvested about 1x 67 L (1 Large Garbage bag). I will only use a small portion for this project, the rest for later use.
[Milkweed]: Harvesting in late Fall is important as the plant is a host and food for Monarch larvaes. You need to wait until the full cycle is complete. I harvested only the pods that were not fully ripe (unopened), and collected about 30 pods. This is over a large area and collected only about 2 per hosting plant. The pods filled two large ziploc bags.
PREPARATION
CUTTING
Date: Sept. 28, 2025 [Goldenrod and Reed]
Time: 2hours
Notes: Prior to retting in water, I cut the plants in sections of about one foot using gardening shears. I kept all parts of the plants (leaf, bast, stem). Both plants were separated in different containers.
OPENING/DRYING
Date: Oct. 15, 2025 (Milkweed)
Time: 20min
Notes: After harvesting, and prior to retting in water, I dried the pods for 3 days to release moisture. Then, I opened them following the line that shows from top to bottom. I used my thumb nail to open it, then pulled the silk from the inner tail of the pod. I released the silk (fluff) and seed directly into a bag. This helps in containing the fluff as they are very volatile.
RETTING
[Reed]
Starting/ending dates: Oct. 1 - Oct. 29, 2025.
Additives: No additives were used.
Method: Outdoor water retting
Total Retting Time: 28 days (4 weeks)
Notes: I have retted the 2x67 L bags of reed materials in a 120L container in my backyard. The lid was left open for the whole period and the vessel was about 80% filled, with materials being densely compacted. I added the pre-cut one foot pieces of the reed and covered it with bricks to help the materials soak at first. I used rain water collected to fill the container. During week 1, I stirred the vessels every day and made sure the bottom of the container was being turned over to the top, and vice versa. After this, I stirred only once a week. The color of the water changed after 2 weeks, and the pungent smell showed up at week 2 ½. The smell of fermented reed is one of the strongest smells, similar to horse manure, but amplified. Be AWARE. Reed clippings were removed after 4 weeks, when plant fibers were more easily stripped. Vessel liquid was emptied into the garden beds and some was saved to ferment milkweed silk at a later date. Due to the smell, it is highly recommended to keep the retted reed outdoors. DO NOT bring indoor. Leave outdoors until cooking.
[Goldenrod]
Starting/ending dates: Sept. 27th - Nov. 18, 2025.
Additives: No additives were used.
Method: Outdoor water retting
Total Retting Time: 52 days (7 weeks)
Notes: I have retted the 67 Liter bag of goldenrod in a 120L container in my backyard. The lid was left open for the whole period and the vessel was about 60% filled, with materials being densely compacted. I added the pre-cut one foot clippings of the goldenrod and covered it with bricks to help the materials soak at first. I used rain water collected to fill the container. During week 1, I stirred the vessels every day and made sure the bottom of the container was being turned over to the top, and vice versa. After this, I stirred only once a week. The color of the plants changed at week 2 ½. At week 4, we could visibly notice microorganisms in the water vessel (which you could not with reed). The fibers were still hard-ish to separate after 4 weeks. The smell of fermented goldenrod is much sweeter than that of common reed, a smell mixed of vinegar/honey/grass, much more manageable. Goldenrod was removed after 7 weeks, when plant fibers were more easily stripped. Woody stem is still very much hard but fibers can be stripped. Vessel liquid was emptied into the garden beds.
[Milkweed]
Starting/ending dates: Oct. 28 - Nov. 7, 2025.
Additives: Retted liquid from reed
Method: Outdoor water retting
Total Retting Time: 7 days
Notes: I have retted milkweed silk and seeds in a one gallon glass vessel, in the backyard. The lid was left open for the whole period and the vessel was about 10% material, the rest was liquid. I used the saved retted liquid from reed to accelerate the decomposition period. I stirred the vessels every day. The color got darker after 4 days. On day 7, the water was more reddish and silk was more easily stripped. No microorganisms were visible to the eye. The smell was not as pungent as reed or goldenrod, but still present, also due to the fact that I used the reed liquid.
PRE-COOKING
To help stop the retting process and mitigate fibers smells, I cooked my fibers separately for 30 minutes with a solution of water and a bit of white vinegar, only for the reed and goldenrod. Was not necessary for the milkweed. From there, I only cooked the fibers I needed for the sample.
[Common Reed]
Date: Oct. 29, 2025
Time: 30min
Weight of dry fibre (grams): 120g
Amount of water: 12 L
Vinegar amount (grams): ½ cup
Rinsing: Soaked in water for 30 minutes after cooking. Then rinsed 2 times.
Notes: Reed was cooked in one foot pieces.
[Goldenrod]
Date: Nov. 18, 2025.
Time: 30min
Weight of dry fibre (grams): 110g
Amount of water: 12 L
Vinegar amount (grams): ½ cup
Rinsing: Soaked in water for 30 minutes after cooking. Then rinsed 2 times.
Notes: Goldenrod was cooked in one foot pieces.
DRYING
[Common Reed]
Date: Oct. 29- Nov. 2, 2025
Time: 48hrs
Method: On racks with one box fan.
Notes: Pungent smells of manure are still very much present despite the cooking in vinegar. To be aware.
[Goldenrod]
Date: Nov. 18-21, 2025
Time: 48hrs
Method: On racks with one box fan.
Notes: Pungent smells of fermentation (less than reed) is very minimal after cooking in white vinegar and water.
COOKING
[Common Reed]
Date: Nov. 2, 2025
Weight of dry fibre (grams): 120g
Amount of water: 3 L
Soda ash amount (grams): 24g
% weight of soda ash/weight of dry fibre: (20% of soda ash) x (Weight of Dry Fiber)
Cooking time: 3h00
Rinsing: Soaked in water for 30 minutes after cooking. Then rinsed 6 times in a mesh cloth and strainer.
Notes: As I used all parts of the plants, it takes a very long time, despite the retting process, for the wood stem to be pliable. After 3 hours, the rubbery leaves were breaking down nicely while keeping their strong fiber resistance. Cooking seemed necessary despite the retting process, especially as I am using the wood stem as well.
[Goldenrod]
Date: Nov. 21, 2025.
Weight of dry fiber: 220g
Amount of water: 6 L
Soda ash amount (grams): 44g
% weight of soda ash/weight of dry fibre: (20% of soda ash) x (Weight of Dry Fiber)
Cooking time: 2h00
Rinsing: Soaked in water for 30 minutes after cooking. Then rinsed 6 times.
Notes: Goldenrod has a strong woody stem. After 2 hours, the fibers would be easily pulled apart with hands. I did not have to steam or scrap with tools.
[Milkweed]
Date: Nov. 21, 2025.
Weight of dry fiber: 80g
Amount of water: 3 L
Soda ash amount (grams): 16g
% weight of soda ash/weight of dry fibre: (20% of soda ash) x (Weight of Dry Fiber)
Cooking time: 1h30
Rinsing: Soaked in water for 30 minutes after cooking. Then rinsed 6 times.
Notes: After 1h30, the fibers were easily pulled apart with hands.
STRIPPING
[Goldenrod]
Date: Nov. 21, 2025
Time: 1h30
Quantity: 220 g
Notes: I stripped the bast fiber with my hands, and removed the woody stem. I would split in the middle of the stem with my hands, then push my thumb down the core stem. After removing the woody stem, I lost approximately 50% of the weight and it brought down the weight of cooked goldenrod to 110g.
BEATING
[Reed, Goldenrod and Milkweed]
Date: Nov. 21, 2025.
Method: Blender
Time: 2 hours to blend all pulp, 20 min to cut materials in 1 cm pieces.
Beating time: 1 min per blend.
Notes: Prior to beating, I cut all materials in about 1cm pieces. I have blended all the pulp individually. I have added about 1 tablespoon of fibers per blend, with about 3 cups of water. I would blend at the highest level for 1 minute and hold the lid. Milkweed was blended with seeds although I only blended with the seeds that were entangled in the fibers. As the material was soaked in water, the seeds sank down and I could leave behind to bank those seeds and share with the community.
SHEET FORMATION
Date: Nov. 23, 2025.
Time: 1hour (to make 6 sheets including setting up time)
Sheet formation: in a VAT with a homemade wooden mold and deckle of a 8.5 x 11” dimension.
Notes: I soaked my individual pulp overnight. Then, I mixed 80g of milkweed pulp (strained but not dry) with 80g of goldenrod (strained but not dry) with 80g of reed pulp (strained but not dry). I mixed pulp with a small bamboo broom. I set up the VAT in a 112L container with about half full water. I wanted a thin-medium thickness sheet. Water drains a little fast. Formation aid did not seem necessary as I still have time to move the water and disperse pulp equally.
PRESSING
Date: Nov. 23, 2025.
Time: 5min
Pressing method: With a wooden rolling pin and a towel wrapped around (mimicking paint roller technique).
Notes: I placed the sheet on a 16x12” cotton sheet and put another one on top. Then I rolled evenly across the sheet surface.
DRYING
Date: Nov. 23- Nov. 25, 2025
Drying method: Air dry, flat.
Notes: I used a large box fan, in an open area. It dried the sheets for 48 hours, keeping the sheet between the two cotton fabrics. That way they did not curl. I put crystals and rocks on the edges of cotton sheets for the paper to not blow away.
RESULTING PAPER
Sheet characteristics: The resulting paper is fibrous, you can see particles/specks from seeds. It is pliable. Would not be the best for drawing or ink. Could work for blockprinting, dyes, anthotypes, synthetic paints, book cover. Pulp is moldable for sculpture and has a strong bond.