Signs of Spring

You know it has been an unusual winter when daffodils are poking through the soil in February!

These two snapshots were taken in a full-sun Hamilton-area garden over the weekend.

In my own garden, the snow crocus are starting to push skyward. It won't be long now before the bulbs starts producing some fabulous colour. Can't wait!

Garden Talk on the Evergreen Garden Market

I'm looking forward this talk on the Evergreen Brick Works Garden Market hosted by the North Toronto Horticultural Society. I have always wanted to visit the market and am especially interested to learn about the native plant selections. I'll take notes and start planning ahead for spring planting (although it feels like I could plant today....our January has been CRAZY mild.)

Toronto and area gardeners are more than welcome to attend. The talk is free. A $2 donation is suggested for refreshments. All the details are in the links.

Just In Time

I saw the first snowflake of November today. It was small and the moment was fleeting but it was snow nevertheless. Thankfully, the patio furniture is in the basement, the bulbs have been planted and the garden has been put to bed for another year.

Here's what was in this year's box of bulbs:

5 Narcissus "Variant"
10 Narcissus "Sorcerer"
30 Hyacinthoides "English Bluebells"
45 Scilla "Spring Beauty"
4 Camassia"Blue Melody"
6 Tulipa "Drumline"
10 Tulipa "Sylvestris"
20 Puschkinia "libanotica"

Crocus in early spring are just about the best thing about gardening so I have added lots:

12 Crocus "Jeanne d"Arc"
12 Crocus "Silver Coral"
12 Crocus "Pickwick"
20 Crocus "Prince Claus"
40 Crocus "Blue Pearl" (so stunning last spring I just had to have more!)
20 Crocus "Advance"
20 Crocus "Yalta"
50 Snow Crocus "Minimus"
25 Snow Crocus "Lady Killer"

Add that to all the bulbs planted the year before and the springtime garden promises to be stunning. Time to hunker down with some good books until spring returns once again.

Krazy for Katsura

I've slowly been moving the garden away from a focus on perennials to a focus on trees and shrubs. My tastes as a gardener are changing. I still love my purple coneflowers and veronica and salvia and my globeflowers and I always will. However, I'm loving the deadheading, weeding and dividing less and less every year. Scaling back the number of perennials in favour of trees, shrubs and groundcovers that will cover more garden space with less maintenance is the route I'm following.


I went to the garden centre looking for a tree to replace a sad, droopy Rose of Sharon that I had been cheering on for a decade. After a lacklustre and messy performance this summer I decided it had to go. I headed to the garden centre to find a replacement and as I pulled into the parking lot a tree ablaze in a fiery red caught my eye. It was a Katsura. Oh, I shopped around looking at all the great selections on sale but the Katsura had won me over and was as good as planted in my yard. The colour is amazing! I visit it often to sniff around...apparently when the leaves drop the tree gives off a scent similar to cotton candy. Admittedly caring for the tree will present some challenges. Katsuras like moist soil and my garden is very very dry. I will have to commit to a regular watering schedule in July and August. This will also help a Japanese Bloodgood Maple which lives opposite the Katsura and suffers from leaf scorch when neglected in the summer heat.

This isn't a Katsura. It's a maple out in Flamborough. It pretty much glows doesn't it? When mature the Katsura should take on a similar shape. It is going to be a thrill to watch it grow and glow.

Peony: Emile Debatene

I am over the moon about my new Emile Debatene peony. Just a few days ago the buds looked ready to burst. I don't have much pink in my garden and thought I didn't care for the colour. But these blushing buds caught my eye repeatedly from the kitchen door and even the upstairs window and quickly began to win me over.

Now in full bloom, these flowers have caused me to fall in love. I have to admit that I have been in somewhat of a garden rut for a few seasons. I still adore my coneflowers, salvia and globe thistles. And I still wait with great anticipation for the foxtail lilies to bloom. But there's no escaping the sameness of it all. The peony is new and exciting and I'm wondering why I never thought to grow one before.

There was a huge downpour overnight with thunderclaps that woke me up several times. I was sure the peonies would be flopped over in the mud (as a first year peony grower I didn't think I would have enough success to require hoops or other supports). But the flowers stood up well to the conditions, bowing a bit but still standing. The fragrance of these flowers is also outstanding. Welcome to the garden Emile Debatene. You just made my day.

The Gardens at St. James Park

The Gardens at St. James Park in downtown Toronto looked absolutely beautiful this weekend. I took advantage of a break in the rain to walk by and take a peek. The flowers were enough to make me forget all about our cold, soggy spring.

It seemed to me there were tulips by the thousands. The gardens are modest in size but appear expansive, largely because only one tulip type is featured. Everywhere my eyes landed, there were more and more tulips. A great effect.

The featured tulips were deep pink with a white-edged petal. Remarkably there didn't appear to be any squirrel damage.

Different varieties of tulips were planted outside the main beds including this beautiful selection featuring dramatic curves in a pink blush. There was also a deep shade bed which appeared to be a work in progress and two large beds that were more naturalistic in style but I could barely tear myself away from the main show.

The gardens are right beside St. James Cathedral which is a very impressive structure for those whose interests lean more to architecture and history.

I'm not sure if the city or a garden club plants and looks after these gardens. Whoever is responsible deserves a great big thank you. I'll be sure to visit this park again in summer to see what's growing. If it's even half as lovely as the tulip display it will be well worth the visit. If you ever find yourself at King and Church give yourself a few minutes to enjoy this beautiful space.

Showcase of Native Plants

The rain and cool temperatures have been great for the garden. Everything is looking lush and the blooms are lasting for a long time. The woodlanders like the native tiarella cordifolia above are especially beautiful right now.

Geranium maculatum or wild geranium has done very well. The blooms are abundant and the foliage is spreading into a lovely ground cover. The geranium is growing under a mature fir tree so it receives considerable shade. The soil is poor and the root competition fierce but the wild geranium is taking it in stride.

Here's another shot of the wild geranium. For a plant that produces such a delicate little blooom it's actually quite tough. This is a native plant of Ontario.

It took about three years for the wild columbine to take off but now that it has there is no stopping it. I started with a handful of plants and allowed them to self-seed over the years. They have established a lovely ring around the base of the eastern redbud. The columbine gets almost full sun in early spring before the tree canopy fills in, plunging the garden into almost full shade. Aquilegia canadensis is another great native.

I'm on a roll with the native plants. This wood poppy (stylophorum diphyllum) was a volunteer, nestled in among the wild columbine. These plants seed themselves so willingly. It makes me wonder why they aren't thriving in the wild.

Every shade garden needs some Solomon's Seal. Check! This was a pass-along plant and it keeps on giving and giving. After only a few years I have already divided it a few times. It's a very elegant plant that is great for shade. I'm not sure what variety of Solomon's Seal this is but am fairly sure it is one of our natives and a lovely one at that.