One of the first flowers to make an appearance in the spring garden is the pansy — and it is one of the last to cease blooming in the fall. Pansies are definitely cool-weather plants, and in fact, they sometimes take a blooming holiday in midsummer during the hottest weather, and that is acceptable because
Growing from seed
Time to rejuvenate foliage plants
By now we contemplate the days becoming longer and providing more hours of sunlight for our indoor plants — soon houseplants will begin a resurgence after a long period of semi-dormancy. Because the plants will be coming into “full growth mode” as light levels increase, now is the perfect time to do some cutting back,
Cupboards gone to the devil!
Although I am no interior designer, I have learned a few things about design from planning outdoor landscapes and I have applied some of those design principles to “interiorscaping.” It seems to me that one of the most difficult places in the home to decorate is that space above the kitchen cabinets. This is particularly
Mona Lavender – a great flowering plant
If you walk into a large garden centre during the winter, you might very well observe large pots of particularly attractive plants sporting lovely panicles of lavender blooms atop shiny, dark-green foliage. The plants may be as high as a metre and almost as wide. These plants are Plectranthus ecklonii “Mona Lavender,” and would have
Farm home grounds winner
A Minnedosa farm couple has won the Chapman Museum Shield from the Manitoba Good Roads Association for the best farm home grounds — District 4. Allan and Barb Dalrymple operate a farm just northeast of town. The RM of Minto nominated them for the award. When you travel north on Bison Drive, you come to
Valentine for a gardener
Fresh cut flowers and jewelry seem to be the items of choice for a lot of people when they are out shopping for something to give that special someone on Valentine’s Day. There is nothing wrong with choosing either blooms or bling, but if your special someone is an avid gardener who loves all plants,
Looking after an orchid
Garden centres and retail shops were offering a great variety of orchids — most of them phalaenopsis or moth orchids — during the pre-holiday season because they make such great gifts. If you received one as a Christmas gift or if you purchased one as a gift to yourself, you might be wondering how to
Non-farm home grounds award
A Minnedosa, Manitoba gardener won the Fort Distributors Ltd. Shield for Best Country Non-Farm Home Grounds — District Four in the Manitoba Good Roads 2011 Home Grounds Competition. The award will be presented to Erna Stemmer at the association’s annual awards banquet in Brandon in April. Erna’s garden is located just south of town in
Check Plants Regularly For Pests — Especially Ones That Were Brought In For Winter
FREELANCE CONTRIBUTOR Gardeners who have houseplant collections must be vigilant during the winter months to catch any insect infestation before the insects get out of hand and do irreparable plant damage. A single aphid might get into the house before freeze-up or a few may have hitched a ride inside on some vegetables or plants
An Ongoing Green Display
As we adjust ourselves to the thought of winter, avid indoor gardeners like me continue to invent ways to enjoy colourful plants in our homes. Of course we can purchase any number of inexpensive flowering plants from retail centres, use them as display plants until they cease to bloom and then discard them, but because
Cyber-Savvy Farmer
