Grasses are invaluable in a wide diversity of designs for the garden landscape, putting on an extended winter show of various-shaped blades, once vibrant with many summer colours. Now is an ideal time to plan garden and landscaping ideas. I use graft paper to design how the garden could look in reality, as it’s much
Grasses in the landscape
Try These Annuals
What could be more satisfying than a flourishing sunny garden? However, not all plants enjoy full-sun locations and many prefer cool, shady areas. If you’re planning to grow a sunny garden, examine the conditions your plants will be growing in. Is the garden exposed to full sun most of the day, or will the plants
Never Too Early To Think Gardening
Early-spring bedding plants can be successfully grown indoors by using artificial light sources. The initial decisions of choosing lights and temperature may appear complicated but don’t be discouraged. After selecting a few basic lights, the remaining steps develop into an enjoyable “learn-as-you-go” experience, similar to most garden ventures. Artificial lighting comes in a mixture of
Hardy Grapes Perfect For The Prairies
A Prairie gardener’s dream may be to grow grapes to the same perfection as those grown in milder climates. Although overwintering the larger, seedless, table varieties on the Prairies is still a bit uncertain due to our colder growing zone, we can still raise a wide selection of hardy grapes that rivals any other for
Try Something New Next Year
Growing new and different vegetables in the garden is not only a challenging hobby, but also helps to add interest and appreciation for meals. This year I had selected several to try. Caraflex Cabbage from Veseys Seeds caught my eye with its atypical shape ending in a high point, similar to the popular shape of
A Final Blast Of Autumn Colour – for Sep. 16, 2010
Wow! – the word used in seed catalogues to describe the display put on by the showy Rudbeckia for impressive scenes in the garden, and for cut arrangements. Start annual Rudbeckias, or gloriosa daisies, from seed next year to bloom continuously throughout the summer and well into fall. Similar to the native Prairie Rudbeckias, they
Leafcutter Bees Are Valuable Pollinators – for Aug. 19, 2010
Alfalfa seed growers employ leafcutter bees to profitably pollinate their crops by putting shelter houses with nesting boxes throughout the field in rows. The shelters’ entrances face southeast to avoid the west winds and to receive the warmth of the morning sun. Each nesting box has countless tunnels, where after mating, the female lays about
Try Growing A “Salad Bowl” Garden
While the snow and wind raged outside the greenhouse in early March, I made plans to exchange some shelf space in my hobby greenhouse for a few small gardens; yet still leave ample shelf room to raise bedding plants. My idea was to have early produce for the table as well as the fun of
Why Not Grow ’Em Big?
Most bedding plants fall into the group of short to medium in height. Taller varieties are frequently overlooked due to the idea that they should be positioned only near the back of the garden. However, as well as providing traditional backdrops, screens and hedge-like looks, with careful planning, more stately species can be used amid
When The Sap Starts Running — It’s Spring
You’ll know if you have a good tree as the sap will start flowing the moment you draw out the bit. How can we identify when spring has actually arrived? Perhaps it’s when the snow disappears and we begin sporting sandals and shorts instead of the heavy winter snowboots. Not for me. It arrives on
Cyber-Savvy Farmer
