Last Monday was Victoria Day here in Canada, a national holiday that was once the official day to celebrate Queen Victoria’s birthday and is now simply our unofficial kick-off to spring. This weekend also semi-reliably marks the moment when danger of overnight frost has passed–at least for most Canadians. Hence, gardening centres finally fling open…
I didn’t know “up close landscaping” was a thing until I discovered a page about a ruffled Pansy on the Proven Winners website. The plant was described on the site as “a frilly flower that looks great in containers and ‘close-up’ landscapes.” (More on those pansies below.) What is all this about Close Up Landscaping?…
Planning on adding some native plants to your garden this spring? Good for you! All the bees and birds will thank you. Keep your eyes open because there are plenty of choices out there these days. But if you’re trying to figure out what to buy based on the information on a plant’s label, you…
I’ve moaned about the limitations of gardening in a true woodland setting (Rocks! Tree roots! More @$#*?! rocks!) but there are a great many wonderful benefits, one of which is the variety of native spring flowers that plant themselves and then pop up reliably every spring independent of my ministrations. Starting around the first week…
When I first spotted this thing from a distance, growing on a birch tree in southwestern British Columbia, I assumed it was a kind of ivy. But when I got up close to it, I realized that each leaf had its own unique shape. I had to know what it was and how I could…
Down an unassuming lane in the countryside of Vancouver Island, a half-hour’s drive north of Victoria, is an extraordinary feat of landscape design. I’ve been wanting to visit this garden for a long, long time and then, just a week and a half ago, we finally made it there. I knew we were going to…
We’re already in the middle of April and I’ve just found out that butterfly season is already well underway. These bedazzled bugs start making their appearance in Canada as early as March in balmy British Columbia. It won’t be long before Ontario is in peak butterfly mode. What’s the panic, you may ask? It’s surprising…
I love a good gardening tip that saves time and effort and–big bonus–helps the environment. One of my favourites is to use gone-past-sell-by fruits and dinner leftovers cleanly and efficiently in your garden without having to compost. Sure, there are good reasons to start composting, top of the list being you reduce food waste and…
One of my favourite signs that spring is on its way is the sound of bird song. After months of listening to the crunch of ice under tires and the crack of branches breaking under the weight of snow, that exuberant trill from a goldfinch or the unique melody of a sparrow is a genuine…
I couldn’t believe the inventiveness of this fellow in Australia (that’s him in the video below) who, after discovering a frog living in his fence post, proceeds to fine tune a better home for the wee thing (whom he names Frod) after a series of night ops-style observations. With some fancy 3D printing and a…
Hallelujah! Spring has officially sprung. Ok, it’s tomorrow but my patience for the return of sunny skies and warmer temperatures has run thin. In celebration, I’d like to share some of my favourite spring plant stars. These 6 spring flowering plants are dear to my heart because of their lovely colours–shades from dusky to brilliant…
Judy Garland may have sweetly elevated rainbows to technicolour cliche, but they’ve always been happy, shiny wonders–ever since the sun’s rays met air-borne water droplets and there were sentient beings around to take notice. Now they figure in myths, superstitions, beliefs and symbolic declarations the world over. Marvelling at a rainbow’s beauty is a moment…
When I started writing this post I had every intention of waxing poetic about the virtues of Snake plants. I realize that, as houseplants go, they’re about as run-of-the-mill as you can get and yet I found myself looking at them in a new light. My guy and I had offered to temporarily take care…
If you’re a big fan of mushrooms, like me, you might have enjoyed that video on how mushrooms can save the world six different ways that I mentioned in my last post. If that’s the case, then you’ll be just as excited as me to learn that, in addition to mushrooms potentially cleaning polluted soil…
Who doesn’t love a new year trend report? A little crystal ball gazing can be wonderfully entertaining. Granted, most predictions shouldn’t be taken too seriously unless it’s your doctor or your accountant who’s doing the predicting. But a garden trend report can be practically life-giving when enjoyed in the middle of a long, cold winter.…
More And Less lists are replacing New Year’s resolutions and this makes sense to me. Compiling a list of what you’d like to do/see/manifest more of as well as what you’d like less of in your life seems, well, just easier–less intimidating, more approachable and (getting down to brass tacks) more achievable. I’ve never been…
I realized we were officially in the grip of pre-Halloween hysteria last week when I was fishing out my wallet to pay for some items in our local pharmacy. A woman swept past me, one hand gripped on a trailing child, the other pointing towards the back of the store. In a loud, theatrical whisper,…
Autumn is officially here and, just like the garden itself, gardening topics are dwindling as winter sets in–at least if you live north of the 49th parallel. From now til spring I’ll be posting a little less often but I promise to keep in touch as inspiration strikes. I find reaching out to my fellow…
A week ago, one little bright red maple leaf fluttered to the ground just outside the back door of our cottage on the Bruce Peninsula in southwestern Ontario. Me and my guy were horrified. The turning leaves in autumn in Ontario (as well as most of eastern Canada and parts of northeastern United States) is…
Foodscaping has been a hot gardening trend for years now. What goes around comes around. In a past blog post, I explored how a lot of “new” foodscaping ideas are actually pretty old. Gardening with edibles is simply a terrific idea. A real win-win. But, I have to admit, there are times when I’ve grown…
Love to Garden? Learn Some Helpful Tips And Tricks To Help You Get That Green Thumb
Life is an interesting journey. These are journals, stories, reflections of a traveller of this journey. (songoftheheartsite@gmail.com)
for OCA Visual Communications BA (hons)
Where observation and imagination meet nature in poetry.
A blog about life in Wellington, New Zealand
Plants, veg and chickens: a cottage garden on the edge of Brussels
This blog is about gardening in the north.
Discovering the joy of art
Do not go where the path may lead, instead go where there is no path, and leave a trail -Ralph Waldo Emerson
Ministry of the fence 