Are Poinsettias Poisonous?
Every Christmas season, people worry about poisonous plants, pets and toddlers and rightly so. A popular myth is that poinsettias are poisonous, probably due to their bright red colour. In reality, they are not really toxic; the milky sap in the leaves can cause skin irritation, drooling and sometimes vomiting if your babies decide to chew on them, but rarely anything more serious. A gorgeous … Continue reading Are Poinsettias Poisonous?
Surprise Christmas Blooms
I walked out into my garden today and discovered my witchhazel in full bloom! Hamamelis virginiana or the common witchhazel is a lovely North American native shrub hardy to zone 3. Yellow fragrant flowers appear in the fall, often as late as December as mine has done happily. Normally the flowers are obscured by the yellow fall leaves but most of them have fallen off … Continue reading Surprise Christmas Blooms
Christmas tree inferno
As I have seen cars with Christmas trees lashed to their roof around town, take a moment to watch this short video: why you should water your live Christmas tree You don’t want your holidays ending in ashes. It only takes about 30 seconds!! Continue reading Christmas tree inferno
Cat in my cupboard
Look, I have a cat in my cupboard. What she seeks in there I know not. I peer in and she stares back, Eyes glint copper and emerald. The soft thud of wooden doors Tells me she crept into the Dark recesses of her secret lair. Oft she slips out again silently, But on occasion- The shrill clatter and clang of steel pots Startle me … Continue reading Cat in my cupboard
The Solo Gardener: Tips for making fall cleanup a little easier
Now that Halloween is over I finally started my fall garden cleanup, even a professional gardener has lapses and time seems to fly ever faster…sigh. Fall cleanup can be daunting if you are doing it alone like me…I often wish I had an extra set of arms and a prehensile tail or a garden robot! However, since none of those exist yet, meet my new … Continue reading The Solo Gardener: Tips for making fall cleanup a little easier
Fall Cleanup
The early frosts here in Southern Ontario have caught most of us by surprise and sadly we now have to clean up the mushy remains of summer’s blooms. It is also time to clean up the garden in general. There are two camps to garden cleaning, one is to cut down and tidy up everything and the other is to leave everything to die back … Continue reading Fall Cleanup
Alien Invasion…of the bug kind
This past summer we have seen a number of red and black bugs flying about but recently there’s been a downright invasion! They are swarming any sunny wall and window and trying to get into our homes… What are they these buggy beasties? Well, they are known as boxelder bugs, quite natty looking with their red and black bodies and red wings. They are members of the … Continue reading Alien Invasion…of the bug kind
First Days of Fall
Finally we’ve had a decent rain here in southern Ontario and more is on the way 🙂 The leaves are beginning to turn as the daylight shortens and the evenings cool down. One of the first in my garden is Aesculus pavia or red buckeye chestnut with glowing sunshine leaves. On the other hand, the roses have gained their second wind and are showing a … Continue reading First Days of Fall
Ephemeral
Silken wings flutter Dancing among the flowers Winter what is that? Continue reading Ephemeral
Fall Planning and Planting
It was a chilly 8 deg this morning in southern Ontario…fall is in the air! Now is the time to take stock of what survived over our scorching summer and grab some deals as the garden centres get ready to empty their inventory. Just make sure what you buy has been watered well and looks healthy or it may be too stressed to survive the winter. … Continue reading Fall Planning and Planting
Garden Graces 