tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-362462112026-06-01T03:35:34.714-04:00About the gardens of Toronto – real gardens by real people – and how Torontonians garden in them.Sarahhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01383568416622077870noreply@blogger.comBlogger895125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36246211.post-87263084169199920902016-07-22T10:24:00.003-04:002016-07-22T10:24:50.270-04:00

A bright new beginning for our blog After nearly ten years on Blogspot, Toronto Gardens has moved over to our own URL at Wordpress. Please update your links to www.torontogardens.com – and come visit. All our content, including your comments (except for the few that arrived during our transition) are over there. So it's exactly the same, only completely different. Looking forward to seeing you

Helenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14527649631254016576noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36246211.post-33985419866119567342016-07-11T21:42:00.003-04:002016-07-11T21:42:54.704-04:00

For now, please enjoy this picture of teasel. I like their silhouettes. Think of it as a "teasel-er" for what's to come. Toronto Gardens has been quiet, during the growingest time of year, because we have been occupied* with making a big change on our blog. We look forward to sharing our big reveal, soon! (*In fact, I almost wrote "occuplied" – that must be when you're occupied with a task

Helenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14527649631254016576noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36246211.post-78802164322707152052016-06-15T09:49:00.001-04:002016-06-15T09:49:25.031-04:00

Welcome to the Beach Garden Society garden tour, June 19, 2016, from 1 to 5 pm Usually, when we write up the Gardens of the Beach garden tour it's after the event. This year, in fact last night, we had a sneak preview. So I'm glad to tell you there's still time to go see the gardens. And, more importantly, there's time to talk to the gardeners in their own space. That's one of the perks of

Helenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14527649631254016576noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36246211.post-59976609058569215392016-06-05T16:40:00.000-04:002016-06-06T10:51:56.661-04:00

For months, the Minneapolis Fling committee has been scouting out gardens far and wide for you, just like our Toronto team did. Some sites, the GBFling15 had to let go – like this formal spot in the Niagara Parks Botanical Garden. It's heartbreaking for a committee to prune out great gardens, when we want to share the best of everything with our long-distance visitors. I know what the

Helenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14527649631254016576noreply@blogger.com13tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36246211.post-45577289143725312262016-06-04T12:50:00.000-04:002016-06-04T12:50:09.856-04:00

Go Through the Garden Gate in The Kingsway with the Toronto Botanical Garden in 2016 When The Kingsway was first developed, around the time of the first world war, the developer Robert Home Smith had a vision of creating "A bit of England, far from England." As the Etobicoke Historical Society explains, by contract, he required all homes (on large lots, many overlooking the Humber Valley) to

Helenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14527649631254016576noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36246211.post-79289352653733959482016-05-20T20:20:00.000-04:002016-05-20T20:20:33.513-04:00

A bouquet of tulips from my garden, in light from my window Call this post: I'm going to show you pictures of these tulips until you beg me to stop. Tulips are amazing in a vase. They continue to grow and change for days. One day, the morning light caught the bouquet I'd picked last week, and suddenly my camera was in my hands. And I couldn't stop looking. Petals Feathers Tears

Helenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14527649631254016576noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36246211.post-61136151665566157362016-05-16T00:46:00.000-04:002016-05-16T00:46:11.827-04:00

Tulipa 'Parrot King' is a kingly parrot tulip Yes, I've had problems with squirrels and tulips. Who hasn't? It almost put me off ever planting tulips again. But I've learned that the best way to foil squirrels when growing tulips is to grow more tulips. Like the British way of making tea: Plant "one for me, and one for thee (you nasty little squirrel), and one for the pot." (They can't snap

Helenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14527649631254016576noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36246211.post-84948855347171740172016-05-10T22:22:00.002-04:002016-05-10T22:22:49.997-04:00

Virginia bluebells (Mertensia virginica), looking lust-afterable in a Beach garden Virginia bluebells are native North American spring ephemerals and they're just fabulous – in any garden but mine. Wish my shady garden had the moisture they need to be as happy as they are here. You want them, too. You know you do. Mobot tells you more. Grow some for me while you're at it.

Helenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14527649631254016576noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36246211.post-51453116242948471132016-04-22T20:21:00.000-04:002016-04-22T22:54:43.863-04:00

You get an underworld view of daffodil bulbs in Persephone by the Toronto Flower Market and various local growers, including Sarah Nixon of My Luscious Backyard whom we ran into at the show. Happy Earth Day. A perfect time to share earthy thoughts that make us think. These scenes are just a few from the Gladstone Hotel's annual alternative garden show Grow Op, taglined "Cultivating Curiosity

Helenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14527649631254016576noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36246211.post-34076810891768429112016-04-20T10:49:00.002-04:002016-04-20T10:50:51.794-04:00

No. Unfortunately not a picture of a Toronto garden. Not yet. Nearly a year ago, I photographed this in the display garden of Sunset Publishing in California, sighing that it would perk me up before my return to the brownery back home. Well, Facebook just reminded me of it, so I thought I'd share it here to perk you up, as well. Think Spring, friends! And don't you love that circular arbor?

Helenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14527649631254016576noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36246211.post-31463117497258237542016-04-03T21:31:00.000-04:002016-04-03T21:31:51.048-04:00

Joe Fafard's cows in the meadow of Toronto's Financial District Last night's double-digit minus temps and today's snow make me feel like these gals look. Resigned.

Helenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14527649631254016576noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36246211.post-9042694723361666372016-04-02T22:35:00.002-04:002016-04-03T12:45:54.442-04:00

In a tableau I might call "Pardon My Dust" (which you might not have noticed if I'd not pointed it out) I hope to show that even my most lowly terrarium creation in the brandy snifter can add something cool to a tabletop setting. The book pretty much has it all: Design, materials, containers, plants, maintenance, and how-tos. A shocking months and months have passed since I received my

Helenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14527649631254016576noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36246211.post-91535487216409075382016-03-25T13:59:00.000-04:002016-03-25T13:59:36.042-04:00

Canada Blooms 2016 may be over, but my mind keeps returning to this show garden from Jacob's Gardenscape. I don't know which criteria earned it the Most Innovative Garden award, but the gabion fences were really interesting. If you've spent time on the trails along Toronto's Don or Humber rivers, you've probably noticed the original purpose for gabions. Typically, these big,

Helenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14527649631254016576noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36246211.post-32991501399812316332016-03-23T16:19:00.001-04:002016-03-23T16:19:05.595-04:00

I think these lovelies might be the turkey-tail fungus (Trametes versicolor). You'll correct me if I'm wrong. There are many (many!) things I don't know, but I know what I like. Something that falls into both categories is tree fungus. Despite the damage they cause to the forestry industry, I find tree fungi to be fascinatingly decorative. And that's what today's blog is all about.

Helenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14527649631254016576noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36246211.post-62945363619987154102016-03-20T13:16:00.000-04:002016-03-20T13:16:09.901-04:00

The water garden from Genoscape won four awards at Canada Blooms in 2016: Outstanding Large Garden, Outstanding Use of Water, Best Overall Creativity, and Judge's Choice for Garden of the Year. It was a standout. It's the last day of Canada Blooms 2016. Many exhibitors told me they thought it was the best show in years. So I'm sorry that this is my first post – when you have mere hours to go

Helenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14527649631254016576noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36246211.post-13021767489957756172016-02-04T15:09:00.001-05:002016-02-04T15:09:20.253-05:00

Add caption This is our earliest-ever official Toronto Gardens snowdrop sighting – I noticed my usual earlybird snowdrop was up yesterday, February 3, 2016, but it had likely awoken a few days before. Our neighbours S and B have a nice little patch blooming in their front yard, too. Prior to this, the earliest we've posted on snowdrops has been the end of February 2013 (although, I have seen

Helenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14527649631254016576noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36246211.post-20525363665218337392016-02-01T16:49:00.002-05:002016-02-01T16:49:39.825-05:00

Toronto's downtown skyline from the corner of First and Channel Avenues on Ward's Island For over 20 years, whenever we crossed the bridge to our summer home on Ile d'Orléans, in the St. Lawrence River just outside Quebec City, I'd take in the view of the broad river and forested mountains and say a little prayer, "Don't ever let me take this for granted." It's easy to become blind to the

Helenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14527649631254016576noreply@blogger.com10tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36246211.post-89090850429704735372016-01-21T11:08:00.000-05:002016-01-21T11:08:42.224-05:00

No heavy snow to weigh down the grasses along Lake Shore East, January 2016 Perhaps we dreamed of a White Christmas in December 2015, but a dream was all it was. And the snow has just kept on not coming. Toronto often has little snow on the ground in January, but this year has been a stark contrast to the previous two. While we have had some precipitation in the form of rain, the protective

Helenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14527649631254016576noreply@blogger.com11tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36246211.post-5647301142807162422015-12-13T18:05:00.000-05:002015-12-13T18:09:39.557-05:00

At the My Luscious Backyard, workshop magic began with this foraged wreath kit – a great package of scavenged materials On December 5th, 2015, Mr TG dropped me off at Propellor Coffee in the west end – and lucky for me he did, as I found on my way home with my delicate foraged wreath in hand. The subway was closed west of St. George. My return trip required a series of interesting dance moves,

Helenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14527649631254016576noreply@blogger.com14tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36246211.post-73621851141782381702015-11-30T22:36:00.002-05:002015-11-30T22:36:41.585-05:00

The Toronto Botanical Garden's entry garden in January 2013 Today, we'll put November to bed, and tomorrow we'll wake up to December – which some feel means the end of colour in the garden. Well, all the leaves may be brown, and the sky is grey… but when we go for that walk on a winter's day, that's not such a bad thing, is it? Last June, when Paul Zammit, head of horticulture at the Toronto

Helenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14527649631254016576noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36246211.post-56330060634297765572015-11-29T23:45:00.000-05:002015-11-29T23:45:53.933-05:00

What is that – a flower spike? Could it be? It is! My Clivia is blooming! This was a year for miracles in the garden. Not only did the Hoya I'd tended for 30 years bloom for the very first time this spring – it did it three more times in succession over the summer! And the Clivia I wrote about two years ago – suspecting the plants were virusy – put out two flower spikes this summer. What

Helenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14527649631254016576noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36246211.post-17498772618069770112015-11-28T14:09:00.000-05:002015-11-28T14:17:31.437-05:00

Beautiful Crothers Woods will now be an official environmentally significant area in Toronto. Our beautiful ravine systems are one of the best things about Toronto, counteracting the concrete and condos, right in the very heart of the city. We are fortunate to have so many stunning, wild areas in Toronto: places where nature does the gardening for us all on its own, creating ultimate

Sarah Battersbyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14163915859252415035noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36246211.post-87562490336151701372015-11-27T22:24:00.000-05:002015-11-27T22:24:14.988-05:00

Gorgeous, creamy and scented Rosa 'Windermere' from David Austin Today, I'm grateful for this lovely 'Windermere' rose, sent to me to trial and planted in spring 2015. Ultimately growing about a meter tall and wide, this rose easily fits into the Microgarden. And, unlike some David Austin roses I've tried, the heavy-headed flower doesn't sag. It's creamy white and deliciously fragrant,

Helenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14527649631254016576noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36246211.post-65385164907787044132015-11-26T23:01:00.005-05:002015-11-26T23:01:42.240-05:00

Tables set amongst the vegetable rows at Muir Ranch School Farm "A day of thanks for the blessing of the harvest" – that's what Thanksgiving is about. And if we did it earlier in the year (even earlier than we [ahem!] sensible Canadians do), I imagine Thanksgiving dinner might feel something like the farm-to-table dinner I had the pleasure of experiencing at Muir Ranch in Pasadena, California

Helenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14527649631254016576noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36246211.post-50210843186021132232015-11-25T22:34:00.001-05:002015-11-25T22:34:28.672-05:00

In High Park, June 2015 – a patch of spontaneously regenerated wild lupines (Lupinus perennis) I've seen wild lupines in Iceland and in Nova Scotia. But I had no idea that Ontario was also a habitat for this lovely legume (Lupinus perennis). Then we visited High Park this June with the Toronto Fling and learned how efforts to restore the native black oak savannah there is helping native wild

Helenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14527649631254016576noreply@blogger.com5