Office Gardening II

Office gardening is a funny thing. It's charm is found, I think, in the storytelling the flowers and plants provoke. I like the messages and, being given the confidence, some are almost allegorical - plants mean something to their owners, also the reasons why they planted them, and what results they had - were they tragedies or comedies, or whether it's a conversation about an office plant, or a gardening experience - people see the plants and they start talking.
I was once handed a gardening journal/photo album belonging to a woman in the cafeteria just because she saw that I had my copy of Canadian Gardening in my hands for lunch hour reading - ever since we trade comments about our green thumbs. I love that.


There are crazy plants growing in offices all over the campus. There are office gardeners all around me - and it's really fun to have this subculture of soiled-minded companions around me all day. I'm feeling balanced, enjoying the best of all my interests - and I couldn't be happier.

I'm envious of the folks with the more sourthern exposure, even though I hear it's almost too good to be true, causing Professor Melon's kin to become a plethora of plantlings (I'll report after I've seen it for myself heh heh). I don't get sun for a long period, but what I do get is pretty intense - which results in a daily/morningly balance of priorities as I squint at my monitor so the plants can soak up the rays while they shine. I'll have to make better use of the odd corner window that does get afternoon sun.

The Gardenia died. This is not shocking. I tried, it died...so I can confirm that plants that like warm moist sunny condition will not survive in places that lack all of those things. :P RIP


Professor Melon was in a sad state this morning after four days of long-weekend neglect, but I quickly rushed him to the bathroom for some sink therapy, and he perked back up by lunchtime. Whew (he had me worried all weekend).

Everybody else was fine - dry, but fine. I wasn't as worried about them as the Melon - they're still very small (probably due to lack of sunlight and humidity ha ha), but they're growing, slowly.

The Peppermint smells spicy and delicious - just as I imagined it would. I'm pleased with this plant and believe that it will do fine in the problematic conditions <- it's a mint afterall.

glossarial

verklarende woordenlijst

• glossary of horticultural terms
  
• illustrated glossary from Ohio State University
  
• The GardenWeb Glossary of Botanical Terms currently contains 4400 terms relating to botany, gardening, horticulture and landscape architecture

pottery 1

Easter Monday nursery hopping

The Office Garden will welcome a new member tomorrow, a Peppermint Mint(mmmm) plant adopted today at Landale. It smelled so familiar in there - springtime in the greenhouse, I'm anxious to return to the gh. Landale had a lovely selection of ivies and herbs - and that new Green Wizard Rudbeckia I read about recently! note to self to return nearer to planting

We nursery hopped over to Vanderwees, more for camera fodder than any other reason, where the beginning of the season couldn't be hidden. They've opened up access to more greenhouses since our last visit, allowing us to wander through row upon row of the zonal geranium/petunia hanging basket. I shouldn't gibe at them so - hours of deadheading them at the gh has converted me to appreciate the geraniums buds; and I'll even credit the spendor of one year's window box to the pair of butter yellow petunias I planted(stuffed in between the lophospermum and many others) - but I'd just rather see row upon row of something different, something new.

What did surprise me was bumping into a bust of my boss; I laaaaughed even though it's uncomfortably eerie how much this garden statue looks like Dennis.
Hannah was the quick one with her camera here, I don't know why I didn't take one - maybe the shock of seeing him, and having him watch me as I took pictures of the giant green thumbs emerging from the ground beneath his lichened head...



I hope these green thumbs aren't the new gazing ball of gardening. This is the first I've seen of them, and as amusing as they are in the camera's eye, they're just not in my gardenerd's eye.


*edit, on April 14th Dennis bought "his head", after having that picture Hannah took as their computer screen saver for a week hah hahaha haaa. I took pictures of him with his head, but my camera card died (grr)(I will retake). A very funny addition to the gh indeed, even better -> the thing is hollow hah ha haaa. We could plant his head! *grin*


The herb varieties interest me, not only visually but with what I can do with them in the kitchen. I'm plotting how to allot more plots and pots for herbs. So many flavors!

The Orchids were something I enjoyed seeing row upon row of...

berry interesting

From Katsi Cook on Women's Uses for Berries

Volume One, No. IV of INDIGENOUS WOMAN; the official
publication of the Indigenous Women's Network.

.... Over 250 species or berries and fruits--strawberry, red raspberry, currant, elderberry, juniper berry, cranberry, bearberry, to name a few - in Native America are gathered and utilized for their nutritional and medicinal value. Berries are delicious when eaten raw, crushed and mixed with water and maple syrup or honey for drinks; mixed with soups, bread, puddings and meats, and dried for winter storage. The berries, leaves and roots can be collected and used together or separately and drunk as a medicine tea. Among the Haudenosaunee (Six Nations Iroquois), the wild strawberry is regarded as the "leader" of the berries. It is the first berry food to appear in the spring and this sacred plant is gathered at that time and eaten as a blood purifier....

to read the article, click here

Being Backyardovich

What I loved most about my garden was how much it changed over the years. Ultimately, I think it did evolve into what I had hoped for - or at least I can say I satisfied myself with what I wanted to accomplish in the space and time I had. I have the same expectations and unexpectations for my new garden - I have a plan (or so I think), but I hope the years here change the outcome.

(note: the Garden Planner plan is not complete - just a first draft - I will make a good copy with exact measurements soon. I didn't fill in the beds with all the flowers, just enough to get an idea of what would be where)
Immediately it was apparent that nooks needed to be distiguished. It's a long narrow area that in danger of becoming an alley garden - or, if I was let loose without a plan, a long narrow jungle. I like the idea of creating some sort of eating area near the back fence. Between the eating area and the shed would have to be a gate, an entrance from the back lane (with a solid lock on it). A small greenhouse is in the plan, which we'll erect in front of the shed (with enough space between the two structures to move things about, but not enough to waste space). The shed (8.5' x 10') is snazzy and new, and too convenient to lose, but it's not ...pretty; it's positive attribute is that it is neutral, and presumably easy disguise. Perhaps if we don't mention the shed, we'll just forget it's there - until we need to stow the Claw;).

The house shades a significant area of the backyard most of the day. I don't want to plant a spongy shade garden next to the house, so I'm going to put it in pots. A few weeks ago I saw a picture in a magazine that I can't get out of my head. I've been trying to rely on my memory, rather than retrieving the mag from the front porch because I don't wnat to copy the idea, as much as I would like to. I want to, rather, use what I remember most and what attracted me to the design, and encorporate it into what I was already messing with in my mind. It works perfectly, and also adds a new feature I hadn't considered before - water. The first eight feet from the house would be a low deck area, not more than a step off the ground, barely enough to feel elevated...that illusion would be felt as you walk across the footbridge covering the sunken ponds. I imagine a feeling of woodland-wetlands, with a rich earthy stain (cedar decking? *swoon*).
Eight feet of decking, followed by three feet of pond, into a half moon grassy area of about 11 feet. Other than structures, the small dining area, and this deck/pond/grass space - the rest is deep bed planting space, divided into exposure-approriate "gardens".

The deck itself is large enough to provide a small corner seating area near the "entrance" (which would be the bottom right of the image {made using Garden Planner} ). I'd like the deck to have the feeling that it is just above the ground level of the plants, having them spill onto the floor. Large pots of shade plants, shrubs (Willow "Nana", browalia, hostas, ornamental grasses would create a wall on the west end - meeting closely with that large lilac & virginia creeper sneaking in from the neighbors yard.
We could fit a few chairs, a BBQ, maybe some other stuff....

I'm excited about thinking about the pond(s) (one or two)(no more than about 2.5/3' x 4') on either side of a small "dock". Pond plants (especially in this climate) will be an adventure...but even more interesting will be the creatures that'll undoubtedly become residents. One long pond would turn the walkway to the grassy area a bridge - Hannah likes this idea...

I don't think I can expect the greenhouse to get an extraordinary amount of sun(it will get plenty, bt will be shaded on one side for part of the day), which is fine - I expect I'll use it more for storage and etc. more than serious planting concerts, just because of space (it's going to be small, as will most things - none of thsi oversized *stuff*). Facing the house in front of the greenhouse will be a shade garden - ferns, hostas, lungwort, red elder (feature shrubbery), astilbe...that sort of thing. I look forward to playing with textures, scents, and lush lush foliage.

The dining area near the back gate would be paved with the same flagstone/MYO flagstone?/don't know yet - stone pathways anyway. A smallish round space - I have various visions for the style of dining set, but I'd sway towards the side of more casual, maybe something that goes well with the muskoka chairs I already own (which I'd love to stain a deep red). Sean and I saw a nice low rise table/firepit table recently that would probably fit the area. The fire pit didn't even look like a fire hazard, being small, like a round hibachi cooker in the centre of a round ceramic table. It sat low, inviting people to even sit on the ground (which I often like to do) - which would be perfect with the chairs.
It could also be slightly more formal, like a outdoor dining set - but I think the previous idea is more us.

The dining area would be surrounded in a kitchen garden, herbs (in pots too!), sun plants, honeysuckle, tomatoes at hand, snack whilst you sit, heh heh.
I also like the idea of having this area slightly set apart from the house. You'll have to venture through a few other places before you find this nook, and in a few years, by August, the plants will form a wall alive with distance and space and food.






...to be continued...

waiting for the worms...

footprints in the snow in front of the house

April 7, 2007

online rose gardening

• 
  
  Two old-fashioned, but still very effective, weapons for
  combating rose pests are companion plantings (Lavender, Catmint, Clematis) and nontoxic sprays (dormant oil).
  
  
  
• 
  
  Most insects despise the scent of members of the onion
  family, and of some other pungent herbs .
  
  
  
• 
  
  Successfully head off trouble by scatter garlic, chives,
  oregano, and tansy plants throughout the garden.
  
  
  
• 
  
  Marigolds (the Tagetes minuta or Calendula officinalis
  species) can provide attractive borders while keeping the destructive nematode (a microscopic rootattacking worm) at bay.
  
  
  
• 
  
  Tomatoes, petunias, lavender, and chrysanthemums can also
  serve as effective pest repellents in the rose garden.
  
  
  
• 
  
  You can concoct a homegrown insect discourager by mixing
  ground onions, garlic, and hot peppers—in just about any proportion you have on hand—in a gallon of water. Let the smelly solution steep overnight, strain the liquid, and spray the brew over your rosebushes.
  
  
  
• 
  
  Forceful streams of just plain water will help to break up
  invasions of spider mites.
  
  
  
• 
  
  For serious insect infestations, however, you may need to apply a product whose sole active ingredient is natural pyrethrum (an insecticide made from the dried flowers of Chrysanthemum cinerariaefolium).
  
  
  
• 
  
  Sink banana peels in the rose bed, they'll love the potassium!
  
  
  

Rose links from CanadianRoseSociety.org

and from HelpMeFind.com/roses:
I'm looking for Compassion, born the same year I was, an apricot-pink climber. *swoon*

Another I'm increasingly interested in is Golden Showers.

(This site also boasts a great rose glossary, very handy!)

Care and Maintenance tips from OldRoseNursery.com

rules for rodents

Chipmunks were responsible for looting everything from rose buds to peas and whole zucchini to just about everything in my garden. Those little pirates absconded with so many treats right before my eyes - damn them for being cute!

I haven't seen too many chipmunks around the new house, but the kangaroos are rampant. At least they appear to be kangaroos, from the size of 'em, but I think the species is "squirrelish".

things to know about squirrels:

• crocuses are their favorite, second are tulips
• toss moths balls or spinkle the area with bloodmeal
• plant imperials (Fritillaria imperialis) or some rhubarb nearby
• plant only daffodils and hyacinths - squirrels won't touch them
• use wide-gauge hardware cloth to make an underground cage for blubs or place a piece over the bulbs after planting. No need to remove cloth in spring - its holes are large enough for the bulbs to grow through.
• cover the tulip bed with a layer of sharp gravel

Other plants to keep unwanted critters at bay include Barberry, Russian Olive, Rugosa Rose, Blackberry, Blue Spruce, Firethorn, Holly, Sea Buckthorn, Hawthron, Japanese Quince...

More on Banashing Bothersome Beasts

dormant oil recipe

Very early in spring, while trees and shrubs are still dormant, is the time to add domant oil to the bark and buds of ornamental, flowering trees and shrubs, roses and fruit crops. The oil spray suffocates overwintering insects and prevents their eggs or larvae from developing. Spray before the buds break and when the temperature is above 4.5°C.


To make dormant oil, mix well:
1 cup vegetable oil
2 tbsp mild non-anti-bacterial hand/dish soap

salty

Tomatoes and peppers relish a spoonful of Epsom salts because the white crystals contain magnesium. All plants use magnesium for photosyntesis and most soils contain an adequate supply, but using Epsom salts as a fertilizer for these plants increases their flower and fruit production. Epsom salts help roses grow in the shade as well.

Add five millilitres of Epsom salts per litre of water to your roses' fertilizer three times during the growing season.

I think I've over salted my Office Gardenia.

Beyond the Zone

Going Beyond the Zones

An internet-based project organized by Natural Resources Canada

Canada's plant hardiness map map was originally developed in the 1960's for trees and shrubs. It has also been used for perennials but it was not originally developed for that purpose.

Their aim is to go beyond a single general map and develop potential range maps for individual species of trees, shrubs and perennial flowers. The approach is to develop a climatic profile for each plant using new continent-wide climate models. These climatic profiles will be mapped giving an indication of the possible range of each species.

To do this they need participation from experts and the public all over Canada, and ideally the United States as well. Contributors need to identify what plants, from a comprehensive list, survive at their location. Once enough data are entered to develop a climatic profile the range maps will be generated. These range maps will be continually updated as more data are submitted.

Contributions will be visible on interactive web maps and
will help define the climatic and geographic limits of plants.

conservatory story

More fodder for my camera than for my gardening appetite, we visited the conservatory today, and now I want a Lemon tree. Of course I can not have a lemon tree *sigh*.....

Hannah found the lemon tree and was already photographing the blossoms by the time I caught up.

I was lost in the cacti, deciding that a Ferocious Aloe should be added to the Office Garden. I wonder what people would say if I suddenly swapped the bulbs on my desk with a Ferocious Aloe - no one would mess with me, mwhahaha....By the time I met Hannah at the lemon tree, she was into the bulb room.







The lemons are huge.


Some other photos - flowers speak for themselves:

Daffy

Easter Lily (macro)

pussywillow

Lilly


Bird, of Pardise

palm droplettes

pinkies

soiled entry I

some good things to know about soil:

• One group of fungi (mycorrhizae) live in association with plant roots, and improve the take-up of nutrients from the soil.
• Acid soils tend to be deficient in phosphorus and sometimes contian excess manganese and aluminum.
• Alkaline soils tend to lack manganese, boron, and phosphorus.
• Earthworms dislike acid soils, but clubworm and wireworms are common in acid conditions.
• On alkaline soils, potato scab occurs more frequently.
• The pH of soil is usually controlled by its calcium level.
• Calcium is an alkaline element, lost through leaching.
• Alkalinity can be increased by liming or adding mushroom compost.
• Loam soils have the ideal balance of mineral particle sizes, with between 8 and 25 percent clay.
• Lime binds clay soil particles together into crumbs by a process known as flocculation.

My garden thrived in thanks to deep-bed and double-digging methods that allowed me to plant densely in the small space.

• When double-digging, it is essential that the subsoil is not mixed with the top soil.
• Improve silty, compacted, and heavy clay soils with sand, gravel, and coarse organic matter.
• Clay will improve the quality of impoverished soil.
• Compost, pest, well-rotted manure are used to improve water retention in free-draining, sandy soil.
• In a well drained soil, the water is held in fine capillary pores, which are usually less than 1/160in (o.16mm) in diameter, with air in the larger pores; it is there possible for soil to be described as both moist and well-drained.

...too be continued...

information acquired from:

The American Horticultural Society
Encylopedia of Gardening
Brickell, McDonald, Cole
DK Publishing, Inc., New York, NY 1993

Ajuga

Ajuga is a member of the mint family, and like most mints, its rapid growth rate may create problems. If this invasive attribute of Ajuga is a problem, it may be necessary to use some type of edging material to keep it within bounds.

Ajuga tolerates a wide range of soil conditions as long as soil is well drained. The soil pH should be somewhere within the range of 3.7 to 6.5. It may be grown in any type of light from full sun to full shade. The leaves will tend to be smaller when grown in full sun, but the plant will produce more flower spikes. Ajuga prefers moist soil, but will tolerate drought remarkably well.

Established plants should be set or transplanted in the garden in early spring. Plant them 12 to 15 inches apart, being careful not to plant too deeply. The crown should never be covered with soil or the plant will rot and die. Ajuga is propagated by division, which can be done in fall or spring. The runners are easily removed from the mother plant when they are young. Removal of these offsets will become more difficult as they age, because they will become entangled in the main plant. It is a good idea to remove these runners periodically anyway, even if they are to be discarded. This will help to keep the plant contained.

Pruning is done by either mowing or cutting the foliage back to the ground. About every third year, large, crowded groupings should be thinned out to reduce the chance of crown rot. As non variegated foliage appears on variegated forms of Ajuga, it should be removed. This will prevent the plant from reverting back to it's original green form.

(I did not write this, I don't know where it came from)

Hannah, Rock Stacker

Hannah arranged rocks from her collection in the garden. Inukshuk, RukshukTM, Hannahshuk - I loved them and I hope she'll do the same in our new garden.

Rosebud and the Dragon

The North-West Corner

It changed regularly. I moved plants around probably more than I should have, but I was willing to risk mistakes because there's no better way to learn (trial and error). Sometimes plants behave differently than expected, and that's okay - I'm willing to accommodate.

I had a very small space, less than half that I do now. The north-west corner began as my primary "butterfly garden" but as some plants (ahem, Delphiniums, Speedwell) grew uncontrollable, billowing, and drooping all over the others, who, over the years changed faces from time to time until it became mob of representatives. Bugleweed (ajuga) smothered the creeping Plox but there were still plenty of prickly purple blooms last year to prove that Plox can't so easily be outed. I had (surprisingly) some Coreopsis (C. verticillata ‘Moonbeam’ ) that reappeared year after year, I know, I don't believe it either, but it was there, beaming out from within the thicket.

Rudbeckia became a smash hit last year with a swarm of brown eyed blooms, that mixed so well with the Veronica. There were Daisies too, but they just came out of nowhere (from some planting at some time, but they had naturalized to the area, which pleased me muchly. I did nothing but thank them for coming). The painted Daisies were removed, and I don't think I'll try them again. They were spindly.

Those Delphiniums. What can I say - I love that plant, but groan at the thought of the maintenance. I'll plant them again in the new garden because I do like (love them) them and I can't imagine a cottage garden without them. I've never had great luck with Foxglove, but I will plant those again too. Lupins though, no....we'll leave those wolves in the woods, thanks. Too bad - they remind me of being young, in my jungle.

Hydrangea, yes - I need one of those. Which one will depend on what I can find. That Weigela made an incredible show the last few years, another one of those is on my list (the hummingbirds loved it). There were Butterfly Delphiniums in there too, and some white Jacob's Ladder, Tall Garden Pholx (pink) (but I think that got smothered by the speedwell). Heuchera Coral Bells, and some moonbeam Yarrow were also planted.

The rose was Winchester Cathedral (where my parents once watched the changing of the bells *how romantic*). It didn't survive last year, but it is the first rose on my list for the new beds. At the time of the picture here, I hadn't planted anything in that spot yet - so there's a gap. Winnipeg Parks was chosen and planted a little late in the season - I took it with me in the move so we'll just have to wait and see how it does. (it doesn't look dead) (it's in the bed by the porch now) Winchester was perfect in the northwest corner, I really loved that rose - blooms the size of softballs. I could smell them in Hannah's room.

Double River Wye is my favorite Daylily (most of the time, sometimes I have a hard time choosing a favorite). This one, -it's sooo pretty, the most delicious buttery-lemony yellow double blooms non-stop. (I noticed that Vanilla Fluff looks very similar, only it's color (of course) is vanilla.) Double River Wye became entangled the branches of the Weigela last year, squeezing blooms through all over the place.

The snowmound Spirea looked quite dramatic the evening I took these pictures. It was dark because of storm clouds, not the hour making the white really pop from the plant. Beside it used to be the old fashioned rose, Heritage, which year after year grew beautiful and strong but sadly, almost every bud suffered decapitation by chipmunk. Oh, I was so angry with those rodents! I will try Heritage again in the new beds. It's blooms are big like Winchester's, and I remember them being a peachy-rose-pink, a great color.

They sky that evening (when I took these dark photographs), after the storm, was amazing.