Thank Goodness for the Rain!

The garden, while full of spring greens, early flowers and new leaves, was starting to get a bit parched. We've had a week of no precipitation combined with very high UV levels. I was really surprised to see that some new varieties of Heuchera have shrivelled to bits of nothing.

The plant pictured here is a variegated Solomon's seal - Polygonatum odoratum 'Variegatum'. The nice thing about this plant is that it really does take heat and dry shade - I have photos taken in the worst part of the drought last year and it looked almost identical to this photo I took this a.m. It spreads much slower than its plain green cousin - and after 12 years, my patch is about a meter wide. It definitely would be one of my top ten dry shade perennials.

Tulips are Fading

The Mount Tacoma tulips are pretty even as they splatter open and fade. Was looking through photos from last year and saw that the garden is a week behind where it was last year - sort of like me. Still have all my pots to put together, and some annuals that I'd like to seed in some spots where I've determined that the perennials are not merely resting, they are indeed quite dead. Close to 27C this evening - can't believe it was 4C last week.

Was thrilled to see that a Hydrangea heteromalla that I'd started from seed in 2003 is going to bloom this year - 5 years from seed to bloom - not bad!

A Walk in the Woods

Spent the afternoon at the Hancock Woodlands Nursery tagging rhodos for a client's garden. In addition to the fields of rhodos, there was a lovely forest walk where we were able to see what our selections will look like when they are full grown.

We had the pleasure of speaking to Marjorie Hancock who gave us some great siting tips for these gorgeous shrubs. Basically the larger the leaves, the more tolerant the plants will be of shade; the smaller and squatter rhodos need more sun; and all rhodos prefer morning sun to bloom well. As Marjorie says, "There's just no point in buying them, if you don't have the proper location, because they won't bloom at all!"

Wonderful World of Ground Cover

More and more often, home owners in our neighbourhood are devoting what would ordinarily be a grassy lawn to lovely areas of interest and colour. And, instead of just having one ground cover, they are combining several types making a living tapestry.

This snap, taken on a walk yesterday, shows a great combination of creeping phlox in soft mauve, Ajuga with purple/blue flowers and a lovely burgundy and silver Heuchera. The period of bloom will last for about 2 weeks. Even without the pretty blossoms, it will still be an area of interest with the different leaf textures and colours of all three of these perennials straight through the growing season until the snow flies.

Proof Positive - Pests Don't Read

Pictured here is a "pest free" perennial called Inula royleana. The phantum creature who had a nice feed appears to be m.i.a. I started this perennial from seed in 2006 based on the description - anything that starts out with "a fantastic species from the Himalayas" has my interest right out of the gate. The fact that it had "felty leaves and immense 10cm yellow flowers" just sealed the deal!

Last year when this happened, I thought, "oh well, just a fluke." Now that I see the damage is even worse the second year, I'd say it's proof positive that the creatures did not read about the pest free feature of Inula royleana.

So, I'll remove the ugliest of the leaves and continue to let them grow - if the flowers impress this year, I'll put up with the early spring leaf damage and will keep the plants, if they aren't, it's off to the regional composter!

Girlie Tulips for the Garden

Before I got down to edging I took a quick snap of these lovely double Mount Tacoma tulips - they are holding up beautifully and interestingly enough some even seem to have multiple stems which is a nice surprise. Have five of these patches growing under my Cornus alternifolia - Pagoda Dogwood. It won't be in bloom for a couple of weeks yet, but its leaves have a lovely burgundy cast at the moment.

I've got my big long bed to work on this afternoon - about 20 meters - just have to keep reminding myself how fabulous it will all look when it's done.

Planting a little sunshine in the Garden

When there's no sunshine in the sky - it's so nice to find a little in the garden. Here is my old quince that dates back to my home's original 1950s garden.

I planted up a pot of orange ranunculus and pansies around a bright yellow smoke bush that wintered very well in the garage. Although neither the ranunculus or pansies will last through the summer months - it just makes me smile to look at the bright colours.

This is the week I finally must get to the top dressing of the lawn - yes, was on the list last week, and never did make it to the top. I'll be sure to order the mix....first thing tomorrow.

Cold, but Pretty

It's a shivery kind of day - just 8C so far. Two sweaters aren't enough. Definitely needed a windbreaker when I was out with my coffee and camera this a.m. But what a pretty sight - the rain has brought out those lovely acid green maple and beech leaves that look so pretty against the early morning sky.

Got a lot of clean-up done yesterday & providing the wind dries things up a little more, will be back out this afternoon to see if I can make a little more progress. The local Oakville Horticultural Society's annual perennial sale is coming up and it looks as if I've got a number of things I can donate - monardas and grasses all seem to have that classic donut formation letting me know it's time to share.

Designing with Grasses

Just beside the parking lot at the Royal Botanical Gardens, I found this great swoosh of Carex comans (perhaps Frosted Curls? - alas no tag). To me it looks like a lovely doggie tail wagging between the little evergreens and bulbs.

For years we've been encouraged to plant in oval and round clumps - while this planting pattern might not work for upright daisies, I think it does for soft floppy plants that have lots of movement.

Next time when you're travelling on a highway, take a look at the patterns formed by the different varieties of wild flowers...and with those examples in your mind, think about how you might want to plant your next informal garden.

Lots To Do in the Garden

Really heavy rain on Saturday afternoon - and a gorgeous day on Sunday. Was able to get into the garden and have my great big blue wheelbarrow just bursting with leaves and last year's hosta flower stocks.

This week's chores involve ordering well rotted manure & compost combination to top dress lawn and beds. The poor old lawn is suffering terribly - so I'll give it a short cut; make sure it is weed free; and spread the organic material over it all. Will have to wait at least a week or two before I seed - the evening temperatures must be above 12C or 50F for the grass to germinate.

I had hoped to establish some sort of vegetable garden in the front/side yard; but it looks as if this is not going to be. Although we've lost three trees in the yard, it seems that both the trees on both sides of our property have filled in - leaving just a few patches of truly sunny area. So instead, I'm going to find those sunny spots in my flower beds and intersperse veggies with flowers.

Still have 4 more beds to clean up - but a day or two should take care of that, and then of course there's the edging. Not my favourite thing to do, but it all looks so great after - I just keep that in mind as I work my magic around each bed.

The Rain Continues!

It's cold, just 8C today. Sitting in the living room I can see all the chores that need to be done - beds to be edged; leaves to be pulled out; branches, that are well and truly dead that need to be cut out of bushes; grass that needs to be top-dressed with compost.....and it will all just have to wait until this glorious rain stops.



This photo is from last week at the Royal Botanical Gardens - these were about the only two tulip beds that were in bloom - one was a lovely orange and other was a fantastic eye-bleeding red. A colour that my digital camera really can't seem to handle properly.



I've got doggie company today and for the next few weeks - Simba, the big old lion of a golden retriever, has come to stay. Forgotten what it's like to type to a background noise of continuous panting - brings back good memories of my old Saint Agatha.

It's raining - at last

Well, it is a cold miserable rainy day - and I couldn't be happier. It is just what the garden needs!

Count on lots of garden progress pictures tomorrow. Everytime I step out, I find something else in bud or blooming. Such a wonderful time of year.

This photo is from the Royal Botanical Gardens in the Rock Garden from this past weekend. While the tulip festival had officially begun, there wasn't a lot in bloom just yet, which is good news if you're in the neighbourhood in the days and weeks ahead - it should be just stunning.