Letters to the editor

I picked up a copy of the magazine, Ontario Gardener Volume 20, Issue 2 2019 last week and was somewhat astonished at the article I read on page 15, in regard to “What’s eating my roses”.

Japanese beetles: “Milky spore is not harmful to humans, animals, birds or other insects or plants. It is not approved for sale in Canada so you may have to order it from Amazon where it will be shipped to Canada”. Maybe there is a reason why it is not approved for sale?

Basically, the author is advocating breaking the law. Pesticides are no longer allowed to be used on lawns in Ontario, but if I wrote an article advocating crossing into the USA to purchase these chemicals it would be an irresponsible act on my part. I know people do this, but they are not approved for sale in Ontario.

I’ve been gardening for over 40 years and have a Diploma in Horticulture and would never tell anyone to just ignore our Canadian laws and smuggle in bulbs or garden chemicals or anything else for that matter. For a magazine to suggest this is quite surprising.

There are many ways to deal with Japanese beetles, one very simple method is to just knock them into a bucket of soapy water, or grow plants they don’t like, eliminate the monoculture of a lawn etc.

Judith Renaud

Thank you, Judith, for your comments. We are not suggesting anyone break the law. Indeed, neem oil is in the same classification, but while the raw product is not available to sell in Canada without a license, it is not illegal to purchase it. The issue is that this bacterium is not necessarily effective for use in our soil temperatures, something I should have researched more carefully, and it ONLY works against the Japanese beetle larvae.

Thank you for bringing this to my attention.

Dorothy

First, may I say how much I enjoy your magazine. It’s one of the few I go through from front to back as soon as I get it. Thank you very much for the effort that goes into it. I put together a 32-page newsletter 6 times a year for 18 years, so I have some inkling of what it’s like to get a newsletter or magazine out to the public on a regular basis.

I wanted to ask if you would be interested in a story about my garden and how I manage, not being able to walk and losing the use of my hands. It’s tricky. I have to rely on other people, but I do have a vision for it and it is coming along quite well.

Seven nicely weathered half wine barrels are my places to putter because they are at the height of my electric scooter. My husband, Ron, set them all up for me about six years ago and I have enjoyed gardening in them ever since. However, we live on a fairly large corner lot and since having five very tall Scotch pines cut down, I have been in-filling the space that they took up. I’ve also taken a junky corner of the lot to a very pleasant looking scooter-accessible space. And, we also have a very private fence-in backyard area that features a bubbling rock and adjustable slip-covered bed. It’s a wonderful place to read and nap during the summer.

I also paint the flowers and blossoms from my dogwoods and other shrubs along with the flowers of my generous neighbours. I turn my paintings into cards and send them out to my friends on their birthdays. At 78, the paintings give me something to take my mind off my pain and the garden is a pleasant recreational distraction as well. I am also a writer and photographer so I could probably come up with something next year or 2022 that you could use but I don’t know if you’re interested at all. I imagine a lot of your readers are older and some of them might have physical disabilities that they must consider while still gardening. My story might prompt a

few more of them to come forward. If I know there’s some interest, I can take photos that might work.

Linda D. Crabtree, St. Catharines, Ontario

A painting by Linda Crabtree.

I am really loving the new issue! It's big and chock-full of information! I live in Alberta and my son and his family live in Nova Scotia and I have already shared some of the info on growing peppers because they are always trying to improve their crop there.

The only thing I feel bad about is that because of COVID-19 you don't get to travel to do your stories and all those amazing gardeners out there don't have the pleasure of meeting you.

I always look forward to the magazine every month but I will even more so now!

By the way, I did a double take when I saw the photo of my fairy garden.

Wendy Mallard, Stony Plain, Alberta

It’s been a hard year, not meeting gardeners, for sure. Hope you like the picture of your shed on the cover of this issue!