As the Garden Grows

Happy New Year Gardeners

Tricia — Tue, 05 Jan 2010 00:43:39 +0000

Happy New Year!

I’m hoping that all of my fellow gardeners and gardener wannabees are happy and healthy as we start this new year.

I know for many of you your gardens are now dormant since it’s winter and it’s too cold for leaves on our plants let alone flowers! However I’m sure many of you are making plans for Spring.

I haven’t done this for a few years, but this year, cme February or so I’m going to set up my seedling trays and start planting seeds. If I remember correctly you have to start Asters, Impatiens and a few other plants quite early in order to have big enough plants for the end of May or early June planting. Of course, the majority of plants that I’ll start indoors don’t need to be planted until March ie Tomatoes.

Luckily I have a good stock of seeds in my cool basement storage. I hope that most of them are still viable! I also collected seeds off a number of my plants this year ie Cosmo, Cleome, Liatris etc so I’ll be planting some of those in little pots and others right in the garden beds ones the soil is thawed in the Spring.

I know that growing some of my own plants will cut our costs greatly. As I said I haven’t grown my own seedlings for a few years now … instead I’ve purchased annual flowers and some veggies at a nursery in late spring or early summer … but enough of spending money on things i can grow on my own! I just have to get started early enough.

Do you grow some of your own seedlings? If so – what types of plants do you start indoors during the winter?

It was a green Christmas!

Tricia — Mon, 28 Dec 2009 01:33:17 +0000

Well, for the first time in a few years we had a green Christmas here in Toronto.

I think in the time I’ve lived in Toronto (about 25 years now) we’ve had more green Christmas’ than white ones, but for the last few years we’ve had lots of snow at Christmas.

It actually rained quite a bit on Christmas day and the following day. Kind of nice to have the mild weather – at least we didn’t get the freezing rain and ice storms that so many people in the US seemed to have during the holiday!

Did you have a green, icy or white Christmas in your area?

Normally in the winter time I hope for a good snow cover for my garden as the harsh winter winds and low temperatures are hard on the plants if they don’t have some snow cover to insulate them … but as of right now it’s fairly mild out and the garden and lawn got lots of moisture with all that rain!

Hopefully when it starts to get really cold here again we’ll get some snow. Yeah … I think I’m wishing for some snow – odd I know!

Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays to all of my regular readers and new visitors. I hope that you had a great time visiting with family and friends!

It sure feels like winter here!

Tricia — Thu, 17 Dec 2009 00:06:30 +0000

I know it’s not winter yet, but it sure feels like it here in Toronto.

Last week we got our first real snow. It wasn’t much – only about 2 cm and it was pretty much gone by Saturday when the weather warmed up and it started raining.

As sad as it is to say goodbye to the garden for the winter, it was nice to see the plants dusted with snow, and roses and rose buds lightly dusted with frost.

Last week when the snow storm hit we had heavy winds and it looks like at least one of my roses took a beating. The rose had a growth spurt in September and even though I wanted to cut down it’s extra long stems I didn’t because they had buds on them and I hoped to see their blooms before it got too cold here (I did, once it was freezing!). So the rose got battered in all that wind and it looks like two long stems broke off. They’re still attached, but hanging by just a bit bark.

Have you had your first snow yet? Is it starting to get “winter cold” in your area? If so, how is your garden fairing, and does it look nice even when covered in snow?

Our roses don’t know when to quit!

Tricia — Sun, 22 Nov 2009 22:51:26 +0000

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Can you believe that I still haven’t finished putting my garden to bed for the winter? Ok it’s not that bad … we only have a little bit of gardening work to do, but still … it’s almost the end of November and we could have our first snow fall any time!

We still have to cut down the sunflowers in the front boulevard. They are starting to look raggy and they need to come down. We also have a few plants that have died down that I should cut down as well, like the balloon flowers that have died down and who’s stems are now falling over onto our front walkway. LOL

Thanks to the much warmer than normal temps we had about two weeks ago (hey it reached 20 C (68 F) two or three days in a row) we have roses blooming! The Breath of Life climbing rose, both of our Iceberg roses, Octavia, Lavender Dreams, Baron Prevost and Jaques Champlain are all blooming. Full true roses!

They are lovely, but it’s a shame that they are blooming because it’s getting colder and I don’t doubt that we’ll have snow within a week or so.

Here’s a photo of Lavender dreams that I took a while ago. I still can’t believe that the plant is putting out more blooms even though it’s reached zero a few times in the last week.

Is anything still blooming in your garden as we approach winter?

Some of the last flowers of Autumn

Tricia — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 00:31:27 +0000

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It was a beautiful weekend! I think we might have had a very late Indian Summer here in Toronto! The temps got up to 17 C or 63 F and tomorrow’s going to be warm for this time of year too.

Of course, the warmer weather probably isn’t doing my garden much good as it has been cool here for a few weeks and in a few days it will be cool again. Yep, the garden is pretty much shutting down for the winter.

I still have some roses that seem stuck in bloom and some rose buds that haven’t opened and that probably won’t, but most of my flowers are dying down.

About two weeks ago my New York Asters were in full bloom – now they are fading although there’s still some pale purple/ blue color on the plant.

Here’s what the flowers looked like when they are at the height of their bloom-

The pink salvia was also putting out new blooms – but they too are pretty much gone now as well.

My Liatris plants stopped blooming by late August or so, but they developed seed heads in September and October.

I collected the seeds off of some of the Liatris stocks and planted them in a few sparse areas of the garden. Perhaps in a year or two I’ll have more Liatris coming up in areas that desperately need some permanent plants.

Has your garden begun to shut down for winter?

Just about time to put the garden to bed for the winter

Tricia — Mon, 02 Nov 2009 03:20:30 +0000

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It’s hard to believe but November is here.

It’s starting to get colder and the leaves are falling off the trees and my garden plants. It’s time to start putting the garden to bed for the winter.

As far as gardening goes I dislike this time of year the most.

Yes I still have some flowers blooming, but it won’t be long before the first snow arrives and my garden will be awash in white. It’s a long wait until spring and new garden life – isn’t it?

In the last two weeks I’ve spent some time closing down the garden. Trimming plants and removing plants that have died down. We’ve put away our patio furniture and just this past weekend all the solar lights and torches were put away for winter. Tropical plants such as my Passion Flower vines, Hibiscus and Jasmine have all been brought inside as they can’t withstand our very cold winters here in Toronto.

There isn’t much left to do, other than cover the garden beds with tree leaves that have been falling heavily over the last few days. Soon the trees in the area will be bare – but their leaves will be protecting my garden beds.

I still have to cut down the sunflowers that I grow in the front boulevard …

They are still blooming and most look pretty good – but I know that won’t last. Perhaps next weekend we’ll chop them down … oh yes I mean chop, normal garden pruners just don’t do the job on Sunflowers thick stems.

Have you started getting your garden ready for the long winter? What do you do to prepare your garden?

Lawn care tips from Spring through Autumn

Tricia — Sun, 25 Oct 2009 22:09:53 +0000

Now that Autumn has arrived and the garden is winding down it might be time to think about the health of your lawn.

Here in Toronto there’s a ban on pesticide and insecticide use (not that I used them on my garden or lawn anyway as we are fully organic) so for some, it’s become harder to maintain the quality of their lawn.

The best defense against pests and weeds is a healthy turf, so I thought I’d post some lawn care tips that you can do now and in the spring to ensure that your lawn is healthy.

Autumn Lawn Care

Autumn is the best time to apply grass seed, repair damaged areas and thicken existing turf.

If you have weeds growing on your lawn take some time to carefully dig them out of the ground or if you are so inclined apply an appropriate weed killer to affected areas.

We usually aerate our lawn in the fall and late spring. Aeration will increase the amount of air, water and nutrients getting to the soil, which will strengthen grass roots and help create a healthier lawn. We use a simple two pronged tool that we can push into the earth with our foot, but I believe you can rent an aeration machine at your local hardware store.

A great time to fertilize and reseed the lawn is after aerating.

We also cut the grass at least once during this time of year (mower set to 2 – 3 inches) and give it a watering if it’s been dry.

Spring Lawn Care

If you live in a cool area that gets snow or a lot of moisture in the spring it’s best to stay off the lawn until the ground has dried and it’s firm to walk on.

Begin your spring lawn care by raking up dead grass, leaves and any other debris that might have accumulated throughout the winter season.

If your lawn is uneven or has “frost bumps” this is also a good time of year to roll out the bumps with a light roller.

Aerate the lawn – particularly in high traffic area and then apply a slow release lawn fertilizer. You might purchase a fertilizer with a crab grass preventer if that’s been a problem in previous years.

Spring through fall Mowing guidelines

As spring progresses you should apply grass seed either to the whole lawn or at least to thin areas. Remember a lawn with healthy thick turf will have fewer weeds.

Once the grass begins to grow and it’s time to mow it, remember to set your lawn mower to cut at a height of 2 to 3 inches and in the summer especially when it’s hot and dry outside raise the mower another 1/2 to raise drought resistance. Mowing short weakens the root system and gives weeds a chance to compete with the grass.

Mow in different directions and alter the pattern each time if you can. For example, go north-south, east-west, clockwise, counter-clockwise, diagonally, and so forth. This will cut more leaf surface on weeds that may tend to lean in the direction of mowing and may help the grass compete with them. It also reduces soil compaction and turf wear from the wheels.

Sharpen your mower blades at least once a year. Dull mower blades tear-off rather than cut grass blades. The torn leaves give the lawn a whitish caste and may leave it more vulnerable to disease problems.

It’s fine to leave the clippings on the lawn and if you have a mulching mower that will chop up the clippings further as it will speed up their decomposition. During the summer, clippings decompose and return nitrogen and other nutrients to your lawn. The decomposition is slower in cool weather.

Watering your Lawn

It’s best to water your lawn deeply, but infrequently rather than water regularly, but lightly – as infrequent and deep watering encourage deep roots.

Most lawns require approximately 1 inch of water per week. Use a rain gauge, coffee tin or aluminum pie plate to measure if the correct amount of water is being applied. High spots and south-facing slopes will need more water than other areas. Apply less water in shady areas that receive less than 4 hours of direct sunlight daily. Grass under large trees will need more water since the tree roots will consume water and the tree canopy may intercept rainfall.

Early morning watering is ideal as you’ll lose less water through evaporation. Watering in the evening or at night leaves the grass wetter long and can contribute to the development of diseases or fungus growth.

If you have a hot dry spell during the summer don’t be alarmed if your grass browns. It’s normal for it to go dormant during these kinds of conditions. It will come back nicely once the weather cools again.

Hopefully some of these tips will help you have a healthy lawn next year!

Lady Bugs Everywhere!

Tricia — Fri, 23 Oct 2009 01:47:18 +0000

On Tuesday I spent some time outside in the garden with my husband. It was a nice Autumn day reaching about 16 Celsius (60 F) – warm compared to the last two weeks!

My husband was busy fixing a storage area and I’d come outside to take some photos of my fall blooming flowers – Monkshood, and Toad Lilies in particular. Much to my amazement I noticed that there were Lady Bugs everywhere!

I mean, hundreds … maybe even thousands!

I guess the warmer weather drew them out. I’ve noticed that this happens at least once every fall, but most often in September. However I haven’t seen this many lady bugs in one day in a few years!

We had to shake them off every time we went into the house! I’m sure we brought a few in with us.

I wish they’d come out like that in June or early July when the aphids are eating my new rose buds!

This past summer was so cool that I don’t recall even seeing any lady bugs until August when we started getting our normal hot humid days that had been missing in July and part of June.

It rained most of the day yesterday so I didn’t see any lady bugs – but I didn’t really expect to – at least not in such high numbers. It’s been my experience that there’s usually only one day each year of such high lady bug levels. (sometimes there’s also a day of small gnats – usually in the fall too, but I didn’t notice one this year). I did see a few lady bugs flying around outside in the early afternoon today … but then the winds picked up and it got cooler so I guess they found shelter.

Have you had a day when you saw a lot of Lady Bugs or other insects this year? Have you notice that this seems to happen every year?

I certainly hope that seeing so many lady bugs the other day is a good sign for next year. I love having lady bugs in my garden as they eat the aphids and I believe some of the other pest bugs that damage my plants.

BTW I’ll post some of the photos I took the other day soon!

Finally getting some much needed rain

Tricia — Wed, 23 Sep 2009 22:16:08 +0000

I don’t know if your area has been affected by lack of rain, but I was just about to start doing a rain dance here in Toronto because it had been so long since we had rain.

We went from sometime near the end of August until the 21st of September without rain. 24 or 25 days!

I’m sure those without gardens or lawns didn’t mind the lack of rain, but anyone who tries to keep a nice yard or garden was probably longing for rain.

That’s a long time when you have a thirsty garden! I guess it’s a good thing that we weren’t having typical warm Toronto temperatures during that time as the cooler temps (especially at night – one night went down to 6 C (42 F)) made it easier on the plants water needs.

During this time the city even put out a request asking residents to water trees near their property. I’ve never heard a request like that from the city.

We haven’t had much rain over the last three days … just a few short showers or sprinkles, but it helps! I do hope that we get a good rain before we go into another dry period.

How’s the weather in your area? Have you been hoping for rain too?

Summer’s coming to an end

Tricia — Mon, 21 Sep 2009 02:05:34 +0000

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It seems that summer went by so fast and here we are at the second last day of summer! Did summer go by fast for you too?

Well either way, the garden is doing well. Roses, daisies, Asters, Sedum and many other plants are still blooming. Even my Hydrangea is still putting out a few blooms.

Our Raspberries are happy as well. They’re still producing berries! Just this afternoon my husband was out picking a small container of fresh raspberries off the plants. Yum. We’re just about to have them on some ice cream – double yum.

What’s blooming in your garden as we wind down to Autumn?

As the Garden Grows

Happy New Year Gardeners

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It was a green Christmas!

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It sure feels like winter here!

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Lady Bugs Everywhere!

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