Whether your country is part of the Commonwealth as mine is (Canada) or not, you may have joined me in having some quiet thoughts about the remarkable woman everyone knew as Queen Elizabeth II. Even if you’re not into monarchies, you have to give her credit for her steadfastness and grace under pressure throughout a…
You say elderberry. I say elderflower. Tomayto, tomahto. Whatever you call it, Sambucus nigra ssp. canadensis is a wonderful shrub for the garden offering a spectacular variety of bonuses to the gardener. You can even make music with the stems. (More about that later.) Here are 8 admirable attributes that I love about this elegant…
I love to combine annuals with the goal of creating ultimate sensual overload. Proof: check out my eyeball-searing circus of a container planting, with super bright flowers that appear to swing through the air on upside down trapezes. But I realize one can’t continually decorate one’s patio or pathway with planters that can also be used…
It’s a given that daisies are the happiest of plants so when you fill out a container planting of them with equally cheerful flowers like petunias and calibrachoa in bright shades of pink, yellow, and red, it’s so easy for the whole thing to take a sharp turn into crazy clown town. So how do you…
Sure, you could go traditional and plant a maple tree on July 1st in celebration of Canada’s big 150. Or you could flaunt your patriotism a tad more quietly with a Canadian-bred, new for 2017, velvety red rose. But if what you really want is to go all-out, in-your-face “Hooray For Canada!!!” then bright red and…
There’s nothing like appalling winter weather to make you think about upholstering every square inch of your home in softness. Nesting writ large. If you go that far–giant pillows scattered everywhere and you sunk up to your chin in layers of loopy afghans–consider that cozying up your garden next spring can be done much the same way.…
A pruned Norway Maple, shot at the Connon AVK Nurseries, September, 2016. Norway maples (Acer platanoides) have a bad rep in Canada and the U.S. these days and there’s no denying that they’ve earned it. Introduced to North America from continental Europe in the mid-1700’s, the tree’s impressive adaptability (see What’s Not To Love, below)…
One of my favourite early spring flowers is Iris reticulata. I love everything about them–their scent (as sophisticated as any French perfume), their size (so cute!) and their deep bluish purple colouring accented with a bright yellow stripe and delicate black spots running down the centre of each petal. Then I discovered Iris danfordiae. These…
I thought ‘Limelight’ hydrangeas–with all those minty fresh flower heads the size of my head (see directly below)–were the bee’s knees. Then I discovered ‘Wedding Gown’. The blooms of the aptly named Hydrangea macrophylla ‘Double Delights Wedding Gown’ (also known as ‘Dancing Snow’) really do make you think of ruffles and lace. ‘Limelights’ will always find a…
There aren’t many “Top Performing Flowering Shrubs” lists these days that don’t include Hydrangea paniculata ‘Limelight’. And for good reason. They’re easy to care for, widely available and offer a lot of shrub for the money–growing up to 8′ high and wide. But when it comes to ‘Limelight’ hydrangeas, there’s so much more to love. Let me…
Small is relative. When I went looking for a small evergreen to fit into a narrow garden bed I have in the backyard, it seemed most nurserypersons’ version of dwarf varieties was my version of gigantic. A shrub growing to the height of 15 feet is not my idea of small. So I could’ve hugged John…
When I first saw this mesmerizing flower at Sissinghurst Castle Garden in the Weald of Kent (which is a fancy way of saying in a bit of South East England) I had no idea that the plant was actually a North American wildflower. All I could think of was that all those delicate white and…
Globe thistle (Echinops sphaerocephalus) shares its name with a cuter-than-cute hedgehog from Madagascar (Echinops telfairi) because of their uncanny resemblance but, by the light of a recent super moon, I thought the plant looked very nearly like a teeny, tiny exploding planet. Almost, but not quite. Planetary explosions must be massively messy and the head of a globe thistle has to…
Lilies are the glamazons of the flower world. But have you ever got up-close and personal with a gorgeous lily, taken a good whiff of that heady scent and then backed away only to have a friend say you look like you just gorfed down a ballpark dog and got mustard all over your face…
Reflections On A Life in Exile
Saint Andrew’s Forest Farm Blog
a chat over the garden fence
There's always room for one more plant.
a little garden near Gawler
.....and nurturing my soul
Gardening in Prince Edward County, Ontario, Canada
The life and loves of a plantsman
if your garden is bigger than a courtyard, but smaller than an acre
Exploring the Depths of Curiosity
A blog about nature, home, community, books, writing, the environment, food, and rural life.
Ministry of the fence 