Northern Lights J. A. MacDonald Jacques Cartier and exclusive Exhibition Roses.
Uxbridge Rose Farm open to the public from July 15th to September 15th.
FREE CATALOGUE on request
All the new All American varieties plus proven favourites from famous hybridizers.
FREE CATALOGUE on request
CREATIVE CRAFTS
The widest Canadian selection of all favourite creative crafts. Florist supplies Candlemaking Decoupage Macrame etc.
FREE CATALOGUE on request
NEW ETOBICOKE LOCATION
Under construction now located on north side of Queensway just east of 427. Planned opening
March 10-17, 1974
PhiladelphiaFlowerandGarden Show, sponsored by the Pennsylvania Horticultural Society, at Civic Center, Philadelphia. Contact: the society at (215) 922-4801.
March 16-24, 1974
New England Spring Garden and Flower Show, sponsored by the Massachusetts Horticultural Society, at Commonwealth Armory, Boston. Contact: the society at (617) 536-9280.
March 23-31, 1974
Chicago Flower and Garden Show, sponsored by the Chicago Horticultural Society and Botanic Garden, at McCormick Place, Chicago. Contact: Mr. R. Wintz (312) 332-2868.
March 31-April 5, 1974
The Garden Symposium, sponsored by Colonial Williamsburg, at Williamsburg, Virginia. Contact: Mrs. J. S. Moyles (703) 229-1500.
April 18 to late October, 1974
Vienna International Garden Show, six miles from centre of Vienna, Austria. Contact: the Civic Garden Centre.
May 21-24, 1974
Chelsea Flower Show, sponsored by the Royal Horticultural Society, at Chelsea Royal Hospital Grounds, London, England. Contact: the Civic Garden Centre.
May 25-26, 1974
International Lilac Society Convention, at Royal Botanical Gardens, Hamilton, Ontario. Contact: the gardens at (416) 527-1158.
June 12-14, 1974
Ontario Horticultural Association Convention, at Sheraton Brock Hotel, Niagara Falls, Ontario. Contact: Mr. R. F. Gomme (416) 965-1091.
Coming Events of International Gardening and Floral Arts Interest
June 14-16, 1974
American Peony Society Exhibition, at Royal Botanical Gardens, Hamilton, Ontario. Contact: the gardens at (416) 527-1158.
July 9-17, 1974
Danish Gardens Seminar, at various sites in Denmark, including Funen, the garden of Denmark. Contact: the Civic Garden Centre.
July 13-17, 1974
American Association of Nurserymen Convention, at Four Seasons Sheraton Hotel, Toronto. Contact: Mr. H. H. Stensson (416) 822-4841.
Flower Power! A visitor to last year s New England Spring Garden and Flower Show has displaced his offspring with several bunches of flowers purchased at the show.
This Month s Articles
may I now have the second Last Word ? 22
Regular Short Features
Coming International Events, 3; Milne House Garden Club, 8; Centre s other clubs, 9; Gardening Events Calendar, 12; Shop, 18; Library, 19; and School of Floral Decoration, 20.
Other Notes of Interest This Month
Inaugural meeting of Light Gardening group, 18.
The Front Cover
Gloxinera Patty Anne , one of the fascinating new miniatures photographed at Michael Kartuz greenhouses in Massachusetts, March, 1973. Story on page 16. Photo by Art C. Drysdale.
Civic Garden Centre Board of Directors
Mrs. K. G. (Audrey) Allman; R. H. (Roy) Bainard; 1. A. (Irv) Bailey; Mrs. J. H. (Betty) Billes; J. (Jack) Blair; G. R. (George) Blais; J. E. (John) Bradshaw; Mrs. D. P. (Elizabeth) Bryce; G. P. (Geoff) Clarkson (Chairman); E. A. (Ed) Endersby; G. A. (Gib) Milne; E. R. (Ernie) Pope; Mrs. E. (Flavia) Redelmeier; Mrs. F. W. (Genevieve) Robertson; L. C. (Larry) Sherk; T. W. g l om) Thompson; Mrs. J. R. M. (Lois) Wilson; D. H. (Dave) erex.
Staff for Civic Garden Centre and Trellis
J. C. (Jim) Boyd, Executive Director; A. C. (Art) Drysdale, Associate Director and Editor; Mrs. Awdrey Clarke, Secretary.
General Information
N Trellis is published monthly (except July and August) by the Civic Garden Centre, 777 Lawrence Avenue East, Don Mills, Ontario, M3C 1P2. The Centre is located in Edwards Gardens, at Leslie Street and Lawrence Avenue East, the geographical centre of Metropolitan Toronto. It is a non-profit gardening and floral arts information organization with open membership, Subscriptions to Trellis are only available through Centre membership ($5 for 12 months). Opinions expressed within do not necessarily reflect those of the Civic Garden Centre.
THE CIVIC GARDEN CENTRE Telephone 445-1552
What it is
« A non-profit gardening and floral arts centre for the dissemination of information to amateurgardeners and flower-arrangers
« An open membership body with over 2,000 keen gardener-members (from rank amateurs to advanced professionals) who pay only $5 for 12 months
« Home of six gardening clubs or groups with specific gardening interests
« Meeting place for specialized plant societies from Bonsai to Roses Home of some of the best flower arrangers in North America (quoted from U.S.A. author and editor, Helen Van PeltWilson)
What it does
« Operates Canada s most complete public horticultural library
« Responds to over 3,000 gardening questions annually
« Organizes, in both spring and autumn, garden talks and demonstrations on a wide variety of subjects and atdifferent levels
e Teaches non-commercial flower arranging at various levels to over 300 persons annually and encourages their competition
« Carries on an extensive flower-drying program to extend garden beauty through into the winter months economically
o Operates a Speakers Panel Bureau which brings panels of experts on various subjects to groups desirous of an informative program
o Publishes information booklets on various subjects; e.g. Preserving Beautiful Flowers
« Stages two flower shows each year and hosts numerous others
What members receive ($5 annual fee)
o Ten issues per year of Trellis
« Free borrowing privileges from the 3,000-volume library
o Ten per cent discount off all purchases of books and gardening and floral arts supplies bought from the Centre
« Opportunity to join one or more specialized member groups or clubs
« Discounts off all courses offered at the Centre
« Free admission to Members Nights held at leasttwice per year
777 Lawrence Ave. East (in Edwards Gardens), Don Mills, Ontario M3C 1P2
This issue of Trellis is dedicated to the Garden Club of Toronto s Spring Flower and Garden Show which opens up a five-day run at O Keefe Centre on Wednesday, March 6. Last year over 40,000 visited the show and crowds in other years, when the weather was better, have reached the 50,000 mark.
Having seen most of the major flower shows in both North America and Europe, I am able to say that ours in Toronto is simply the best of all in North America! Not the largest, nor the most complete, nor of the longest duration, nor visited by the greatest number of people, but the best in general terms. And, it's the only one staged on comfortable-towalk-on broadloom not too far off resembling grass which completes the picture.
This year s theme, Blooming Britain will be carried out in many different ways throughout the show: a Victorian glasshouse, an azalea walk and a London Town garden among many others in the main floor gardens section; famous British flower arranger, Marian Aaronson with demonstrations, a London park s flower beds complete with a replica of the bandstand in Kensington Gardens, and The Gardener s Arms a real English pub for snacks and refreshments all on the stage area; second-to-none flower arrangements in classes reflecting a cross-section of British life, and a mini-theatre of colour pictures of British gardens, public and private, on the mezzanine level.
The show will be open from Wednesday, March 6 to Sunday, March 10. Hours are from 10:00 am to 10:30 pm Wednesday to Saturday inclusive, and from 1:30 to 5:30 pm
Canada s best Flower Show at 0 Keefe Centre
Art C. Drysdale, Editor
Sunday. Admission is $2.50 for adults; $1.50 for senior citizens (Wednesday to Friday only); $1.50 for students; and 50c for chiidren aged five to 12. The profits from the show (which would be nil if the ladies of the Garden Club were paid even the minimum wage for their many hours of work) will this year go toward two worthwhile horticultural projects in Ontario. The first is a wildflower sanctuary to be established by the Garden Clubs of Ontario, and the second is support for an expanded
Canadians involved in Research on new Polymer which will Reduce Watering
For years, commercial plant growers have been asking for a soil amendment that would hold water and dissolved nutrients in the root zone and make them available, as needed, to plant root systems. Now, research specialists at Union Carbide Corporation have developed a granular polymer which functions in this manner.
In addition to its many commercial uses such as lengthening the shelflife of boxed plants Agricultural Hydrogel will have numerous applications for home gardeners. Some of these are: extension of the time between waterings of house plants; reducing damage caused by over-watering; encouraging rapid establishment of transplants; and aiding seed emergence, early maturity and increased yields. f
Three days prior to opening of 1973 flower show, stage display is shown above during construction. Immediately below, progress after second day with large plant material and peat moss for bulbs in place. At bottom the stage accommodating hundreds of avid visitors. Staging was by O'Keefe Centre carpenters, headed by Grant Milligan, with plant material and planting by Borough of Etobicoke parks and recreation services department directed by George Sinclair.
horticultural library at the Civic Garden Centre.
The accompanying photographs illustrate the three-day-long installation of this annual show. Work begins Sunday and the show is only barely ready by 7:00 pm Tuesday night in time for a semi-private opening-night bash.
If you have not seen the Spring Flower and Garden Show before, I commend it to you this year. If you have attended in other years, I know you will want to see this year s extravaganza. See you there!
Milne House Garden Club to take Mystery Greenhouse Tour
The Milne House Garden Club meetings are open only to club members, though membership is open, within limits, to any female member of the Civic Garden Centre. For March the club will hear speaker Mrs. Gladys Rossiter who will show her slides of the Garden Club of Toronto s 1972 tour to Europe. The meeting is at 10:00 am, Tuesday, March 19 at the Civic Garden Centre.
The theme of the meeting s flower show is The North Wind Doth Blow , and class five, Poor Thing , is particularly interesting. It is to be an arrangement of vegetables and foliage. Club president, Awdrey Allman, points out that while there may not be too many flowers in one s home, there should be plenty of vegetables, and that members should create a flower arrangement with some of the fresh vegetables before they go into the stew!
For Tuesday, March 26, Milne House club members are reminded of the welcome warmth of the Ben Veldhuis Ltd. greenhouse tour last May, after the chilly picnic at the Royal Botanical Gardens in Hamilton. Remember the fun of watching the
plants being potted, and the packing for shipment to Florida and the opportunity to choose plants for one s own home. Well, the Mystery Greenhouse Tour for club members will take place on Tuesday, March 26, and this time there will be no chilly picnic to precede! It should be the ideal event to perk up the club s members after the mid-winter school break.
Centre is Home too for other clubs and societies
In addition to the various clubs and groups mentioned in separate articles in this first issue of Trellis, there are still other clubs which operate directly from the Civic Garden Centre, and those which meet at the Centre, but are not actually connected with the Centre itself.
You
are invited .. .
to visit our greenhouses (80,000 square feet) and see our quality tropical and foliage plants, cactus and succulents plus African violets. Have your house plant questions answered by experts!
Open six days per week (closed Sundays) from 7:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. Just a few minutes off Highway 403 (Main St. West Exit).
The Men s Garden Club, open to all male members of the Centre, meets monthly and invites speakers with information of interest both to indoor and outdoor gardeners.
We also have two very active Junior Gardening Clubs divided into two age groups. Unfortunately, due to a lack of qualified instructors, there is a waiting list of youngsters wishing to join the clubs. However, if you think you would like to join, just call the Centre to register for the waiting list.
A final active club within the Civic Garden Centre umbrella is the Highrise Gardeners of Toronto a special club for apartment gardeners. This club meets every second Tuesday, and you will see their meeting night marked on the Gardening Events Calendar in the centre spread of this issue. As the outdoor gardening season approaches, the activities of the Highrise club will increase, and more will be found about their meetings within future issues of Trellis.
GARDEN ALL YEAR
A hobby without peer - for leisure, home beauty and livability - a garden that blooms all year with only a few hours' care each week.
Our catalogue contains dozens of full colour photos of prefabricated nhouses in lifetime aluminum. With it you can choose a greenhouse that is sure to harmonize with your home.
Write for your copy today!
CAMP ALLSAW
Environment Gardening and Camp Activities
Phone 249-4517 for information
S. G. Hambly, 9 Callais Ave. Downsview
PEFFERLAW PEAT
Composted Manure/Peat Mix for all your garden needs.
For your indoor garden, our soil is light and balanced to fill the needs of all your growing plants.
PEFFERLAW PEAT
Starter Mix especially developed for all seeds and cuttings.
G. T. STRAIN & SON
Cannington, Ont. Phone (Toronto) 364-6068
Work on your shade trees done by competent, professional men with years of experience. Call us early for an estimate.
1480 St. Clair Avenue West Toronto, Ont. M6E 1C7 (416) 654-7025
Indoor Light Gardening Specialists
e Terrarium lamps e Hobby greenhouses
o Wall & table ) models e Humex' ) 4, accessories
o Build-up mini- e Stewart gardengardens ware Exotic, Miniature & Terrarium Plants at The Plant Room, Hornby, 878-4984
Because of larger living rooms, picture windows that admit more light, and the availability of a greater diversity of plant materials, climbing vines are now used more than ever before for interior decoration. The vast tropical forests and the sub-tropical jungles are full of vines that are useful for this purpose. With our present day methods of interior decoration, there are as many uses for vines as for more formal plants.
Vines trailing up or down a wall will heighten a low ceiling, while growing horizontally they tend to lower a high ceiling. They also help to achieve decorative unity when used in a single window where a mass of plants are already displayed.
One of the best vines for framing your window is the passion flower (Passiflora caerulea). It is a vigorous grower that climbs by means of tendrils. You will need a supporting wire for it, as for most vines. The plant is attractive at all times but especially so when in flower with its large, flat flowers, four to five inches across, in colour combinations of lavender-white and blue. Because of their unusual structure, passion flowers have given rise to many legends regarding the Crucifixion; the ten petals representing the apostles; the showy corona the crown of thorns, and the stamens, the five wounds.
In a sunny window these flowers will be produced in profusion. The plants should be moved outside for the summer and repotted in the fall; or you may take cuttings instead and grow these during the summer for winter use.
Another favourite vine and one that is easy to grow from seed is the cup-and-saucer vine (Cobaea scan-
dens). Start the seeds, two to a fiveinch pot, but let only one grow and pinch it back when it is three inches high to get three or four stems per plant.
The wax plant (Hoya carnosa) is deservedly a popular flowering vine that requires little care. It needs a fair amount of light to produce its threeinch clusters of fragrant, flesh-coloured, star-shaped flowers. These are borne on short spurs. It is most important that these spurs be left on the plant and not cut off (as will surely happen if you cut the flowers), for the plant produces more blooms each year from the ends of these spurs. There are also a few other species of Hoya which are similar and well worth growing.
The Cape plumbago (Plumbago capensis) is a flowering vine that can also be used as a pot plant with proper pruning and staking. As a vine it will grow rapidly and lavishly bestow graceful sky-blue clusters of blooms upon your living room all year long.
In a sunny window, the trailing ivy geraniums will flourish and flower incessantly. The secret in dealing with these South African natives is to let them dry out thoroughly before watering. A connoisseur could grow nothing else but these plants, for there are ample cultivars, The Canadian Geraniumi and Pelargonium Society can supply details of availability.
If your home is drier than the Gobi desert and has enough light, you
Flowering Vines for Indoor Gardenstry even Lemon Plants and Passion Flowers
Arthur R. Buckley*
can grow two cactus-like succulent vines the rosary vine (Ceropegia woodii) and the thread vine (Ceropegia debilis). The rosary vine has stems that are studded with beadlike tubers and heart-shaped leaves. It is best for a hanging basket or pot, for it hangs rather than climbs. The same is true of the thread vine, which hangs in long strings from the pot; it has long cylindrical leaves and thin stems with very unusual flowers.
For a very startling effect once a year, try the night-flowering cereus (Hylocereus triangularis). This requires little care; in fact watering regularly during summer and sparingly during winter, with little or no feeding, is all it needs. A celebration is called for when it produces its 14inch blooms in the dead of night. Fortunately, there are usually enough blooms, which, even though they last only a few hours, spread the flowering period over a week or so.
With careful pruning, some plants such as this lemon may be trained as vines indoors. Photo by Agriculture Canada.
Agriculture Canada, Ottawa, Ontario. He continues to write gardening information columns for newspapers across Canada,.
*Mr. Buckley recently retired as ornamental plant specialist with The Plant Research Institute,
Gardening Events Calendar for March /April
Events in blue held at Civic Garden Centre; more data from the Centre (445-1552 unless a specific phone number given. All other events (in black) held elsewhere; for data call phone number given.
Sun
Southern Ontario 3
Orchid S. at 1:00 pm (759-1439)
Mon
Garden talk Vegetables You Grow Yourself Yield Better Taste and Value''--
All events begin at 8:00 pm unless otherwise stated. Abbreviations used as follows: H. = Horticultural; S. = Society; and G.C. = Garden Club. Note: Civic Garden Centre Shop and Library open 9:00 am to 5:00 pm Monday to Friday, plus additional hours listed below.
Tues
Wed
4 Men s Garden Club bus tour 5 Garden Club of' Spring Flower a1 Show at O'Keeft Mr. John Bradshaw. 1:30 and 10:00 am to 10: 8:00 pm.
Library open 7 to 9:00 pm
Library open 7 to 9:00 pm
Etobicoke H.S. |
Library open 7
Garden Club of 'K) Garden talk Getting to I I Highrise Gardeners of ]2 Garden talk Pl; Toronto's Spring Know Your Indoor Plants Toronto-Mr. Don Wain Shady Areas --\ Flower and Garden --Miss Martha Veldhuis. speaking on General Raab. 1:30 and Shoa als03'K68f9 Centre, | 1:30 and 8:00 pm
Garden talk Na ening--The Easy ~Mrs. Joan Piers 1:30 and 8:00 p
Cloverleaf (Missi G.C. (278-1590)
Library open 7 t
Garden talk All the Queen of the The Rose"--Mr. 1:30 and 8:00 p
Swansea H.S. (7§
Library open 7 1
Garden talk Fn and Small Fruits Home Garden w You Money --M Khatamian. 1:3(C
Library open
Toronto s 'd Garden :» Centre, 30 pm L742-5255) 7 to 9:00 pm
ants for fir. Alex 8:00 pm 1297-1430) to 9:00 pm
Garden Club of Toronto's Spring Flower and Garden Show at O Keefe Centre, 10:00 am to 10:30 pm
Garden Club of Toronto's Spring Flower and Garden Show at O Keefe Centre, 10:00 am to 10:30 pm
Riverdale H.S. (466-4235)
Club of 9 Toronto s Spring Flower and Garden Show at O 'Keefe Centre, 10:00 am to 10:30 pm
open 9:30 am to
Miss Marjorie Dickinson Art Show all day 5:00 pm
open 7 to 9:00 pm
Members Night--A special Welcome to Spring free to all members of the Centre. Door prizes for everyone.
open 1 to 5:00 pm itural gardLazy Way" on. m ssauga) 0 9:00 pm
| About e Garden-Bob Keith. m f2»1001) l to 9:00 pm Canadian Chrysanthemum and Dahlia Society (223-2964)
uit Trees s from the rill save Ir. Houchang D and 8:00 pm to 9:00 pm
open 7 to 9:00 pm
No matter how I try, I know I shall never convince you home gardeners to do your shrub and tree pruning now! And, I cannot say that I blame you with the cold weather that has been so prevalent. So, you may as well sit back with your seed and nursery catalogues and do some planning for your 1974 outdoor garden.
There is lots of time yet to start most annual flowers from seeds, but if you do not already have your seed, you should order it immediately, or many of the new, and even the popular old varieties, may be out of stock. If it is your first year to start annuals from seeds, start with some of the
easiest types marigolds are among these. They come in widely different varieties ranging in height from six inches to four feet. Some of the ones I like include the unbeatable nugget strain which grows to ten inches, and comes in yellow, gold and orange. Two others I recommend are Moonshot , a 14-inch plant with three-inch lemon, all double flowers; and Happy Face , which is a hedge type, growing to 20 inches, with the plants covered in golden, fully double blooms.
When you come to ordering petunias, you will be overwhelmed. Hundreds of different varieties are now on the market, and making a choice is difficult. It is best to note varieties which interest you each year during August, and then order seeds of these the following year. Remember that the grandiflora varieties have larger flowers, but that the flowers are produced in lesser numbers than on the multiflora varieties. For hanging baskets, especially those in protected locations, the cascade varieties are unexcelled, but they really are not suited to plantings at ground level. The largest white flowering cascade variety I have seen is the new Snow Cloud , however, if this variety is exposed to rain, it will look unsightly
Care for your Christmas poinsettia
If you have a shade problem either at ground level, or on a balcony where you want to have hanging baskets, Impatiens is the answer. The Elfin varieties are the smallest of the many different types available, and a wide colour range is offered.
Apartment dwellers with south or west exposures, or even those on the north or east where the available light
is good, may wish to try one or two plants that are a little different from the now-so-common petunias and marigolds. For hanging baskets in such sunny locations try Thunbergia alata, which climbs and trails. It is covered most of the summer with yellow and orange flowers with black centres. Sanvitalia procumbens, the creeping zinnia, has tiny, yellow flowers and should do well on balconies, or in a sunny spot in a ground level garden.
To repeat, it is still too early to start most annual flower seeds, and next month, we shall discuss methods of starting and when to do it. How are your house plants doing? Are the leaves curling, yellowing and falling off? Is the growth spindly and pale-coloured? The main causes of these symptoms are: not sufficient light, and too warm an atmosphere. Over-watering too, is a frequent fault. If you keep watering your plants on a daily basis, whether they need it or not, you will have them killed off with kindness before spring is here.
A bright spot where temperatures during the day are in the 60 to 70 degree range (cooler at night is ideal), and additional humidity is available, will be best for most indoor plants. Even if you have an automatic humidifier, either a separate unit, or one connected to the furnace, there is likely not sufficient humidity for many of your plants. Try spraying them with a mister bottle (available
Winter Care of House Plants and Seeds to order Now
Dieter Maier*
from the Centre s shop for only $1.73) two or three times per day.
If your Poinsettia is still bearing coloured bracts it will likely begin to fade soon. Once the bracts have faded, it is time to prune the plant back to about four inches, and repot it in fresh soil. Then, each month the new growths should be pinched back, and from early September through October, a short-day light (artificial or daylight) period should be observed. This is done by placing the plant in a dark closet each evening, and taking it out the next morning. It must be done every day. If these directions are not followed; for example if the plant is not pruned back, you will have a six-ft. plant on your hands, likely without any coloured bracts, next Christmas.
*Mr, Maier is foreman in charge of Edwards Gardens, part of the regional parks system operated by the Metropolitan Toronto Parks Department,
Impatiens is the ideal annual flower for shaded parts of your garden, and it is available in almost all colours of the rainbow. Photo by Agriculture Canada.
The photograph on this month s cover is of a new miniature, Gloxinera Patty Anne , hybridized by Michael Kartuz. To illustrate just how miniature the plant and its flowers are,the silver, out-of-focus shadow, to the right of the three tubular flowers, is a 25-cent piece!
In recent years, considerable interest has developed in the hybridizing of Gesneriads (relatives of the African violet). Much of this interest has centred on hybrid crosses between the closely allied genera of Sinningia and Rechsteinera. Some fabulous new plants have resulted, and each intergeneric hybrid is known as X Gloxinera (the X indicates a hybrid between two different genera) followed by the name of the specific new variety.
Though some X Gloxinera varieties were produced earlier, with Sinningia eumorpha, and one of the low growing Rechsteinera species as parents, the first real miniatures had Sinningia pusilla as one parent. Earliest of these miniatures were the Connecticut hybrids, developed by Carl D. Clayberg of the Connecticut Agricultural Experiment Station, New Haven, Connecticut. Of these, Pink Petite was introduced by him at the 1965 Gesneriad Society (U.S.A.) convention. Still later, he developed Little Imp and Pink Imp .
Future house plant craze will be for miniatures
These miniature and semi-miniature X Gloxinera varieties are ideal for terrarium growing because of their compact growth and free-blooming characteristics. However, they are not solely suited to terrarium culture, since most varieties also make ideal
specimen plants sure to catch the eyes of visitors to your home,
With some exceptions, all the X Gloxinera varieties currently available require medium humidity (a few require high humidity); and in most cases they must have high light intensity. This makes them ideal candidates for growing under artificial light. This preference led to the design and production in Canada of a fluorescent terrarium light on which may be placed a terrarium with one or several of the X Gloxinera varieties.
Other requirements, though strict, are simple. Since they are slow growing, care must be taken not to use excessive nitrogen fertilizers. Even though these plants are tuberous, few of them require a dormancy period longer than a fortnight. This latter, of course, is what makes them a popular house plant, doubtless the future house plant craze of at least North America. The short dormancy period varies with the two types those with a rosette habit of foliage growth, and those with an erect habit of growth. The foliage of those with a rosette habit should be removed two to three weeks after they stop blooming. If the tubers are kept moist they should sprout again in a week or two. When the erect-growing cultivars become leggy and stop blooming, cut them back to approximately one inch above the soil, and they too should soon resume new growth.
Most recently, a number of miniature, compact, and good blooming X Gloxinera varieties have been produced by the activities of Francis Batcheller, Ruth Katzenberger, Irwin Rosenblum, Ted Bona, Michael Kartuz and others, in the U.S.A. Some of
these interesting cultivars are: Benten (upright semi-miniature with hairy, pale pink flowers and shiny dark-green foliage with maroon underside), Cupids Doll (pink bloom), Krishna (flat rosette habit, light pink bloom, dark green foliage), Oengus (flat rosette, purple pink bloom, dark green foliage), Pink Flare (compact growth, hot pink flower colour and dark green leaves), and Kore (flat rosette, bright purple flowers, bright green leaves).
The most recent additions to the fascinating list include: Love Song (purple, slipper - shaped flowers and dark green foliage with reddish colour underneath), Modesta (a compact plant with salmon pink flowers),
Miniature Gesneriads provide year-round Fun and Flowers
Mrs. Leni Forsdike*
Coral Baby (a rosette of foliage, and flowers in the coral shades), Minarette (compact growth, coral flowers and bright green foliage), and Patty Anne (also a compact form with salmon-coloured flowers held above dark green foliage).
The list of Canadian fanciers of these fascinating miniatures is growing every day. I shall be pleased to hear from Trellis readers who wish further information on this form of indoor gardening that requires so little space and a minimum of attention on an irregular basis.
#*Mrs, Forsdike is owner and operator of The Plant Room in Homby (North Oakville), Ontario, and newly appointed plant consultant for Canada to the Indoor Light Gardening Society of America,
1010 on your radio gets you
JOHN BRADSHAW
SATURDAYS beginning at 10 a.m.
SUNDAYS beginning at 8:10 a.m,
Many items constantly in demand by gardeners and flower arrangers alike are not easily obtained, due to the low volume. It was as a resuit of this problem that the Civic Garden Centre s shop came into being. And, its basic raison d'étre remains the same - to supply gardening and floral arts supplies not easily available elsewhere. Some common lines of gardening items are also handled, in order to encourage new gardeners to use the proper materials.
Generally, the shop is run by volunteers who enjoy working in a selling atmosphere, though as shop director, I like to be present at least four days per week to talk with our members and friends as they come in with specific desires and ideas. The shop is open from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. on weekdays only at this time of year, though when there is an evening garden or floral arts course on in the Centre, items for sale in the shop are available to those at the course, between the hours 7:00 and 9:00 p.m.
Centre members are eligible for a ten percent discount off all purchases made at the Centre s shop, provided the total is over $2. This is added incentive to do your gardening shopping at the Centre. But do come to see us for our stock of unusual items. Particularly note the new-toCanada self-watering planters suitable for indoor or outdoor use; the glazed clay small hanging pots of various shapes, and our famous, popular Una Bruce flower containers all different.
Aund, during the Garden Club of Toronto s Spring Flower and Garden Show, we shall have a small booth on the main floor, east side. Visit with us there and see a number of exclusive
Centre s Shop serves Members with the Unusual and Difficult-to-obtain
Mrs. Doris Weir, Shop Director
lines. Visitors to Toronto especially, will be interested in many of our imported flower arranging mechanics, and special gift items. Have a look particularly at the beautiful flowers in leather by Daphne we ll have the only supply at this year s show.
If there is something special you require to make gardening or flower arranging just a little easier, just engquire at the shop, chances are we shali be able to help you, in one way or another!
Formative Meeting for Gardening Under Lights Group at Centre
Tuesday, March 26 at 8:00 pm is the date and time set for the inaugural meeting of the first Canadian chapter of the Indoor Light Gardening Society of America, at the Civic Garden Centre, Edwards Gardens, Don Mills. This chapter will actually function as a group of members of the Civic Garden Centre, and will meet regularly here. Only requirements for membership are an interest in growing plants under artificial light, membership in the Centre, and an additional $2 fee for membership within the group. Most members of the group will also wish tc belong to the Indoor Light Gardening Society of America in the U.S.A., membership fee for which is $5, and forms will be available at the March 26 meeting. Call the Centre for further information.
On February 6, the ILGSA president, George A. Elbert was at the Centre for two talks about gardening under lights, and almost 200 persons braved a bad snowstorm to hear him.
18 / February 1974
Flower arranging classes at the Centre are in full swing. This means a great demand for flower arranging books of which we have a large selection of titles to aid you. Some will help you with mechanics, others with design problems. Centre members may borrow one flower arranging book at a time; and most members return them to the library quickly, in order to make another choice.
The library is simply bulging at the seams; every book becomes a problem when we try to squeeze it onto the shelves. You, as members, can help us, and treat yourself, by borrowing a book from the library. It will give us a little elbow room, and you a chance to do some armchair gardening in this otherwise dreary season. If every member borrowed a book, the library would be able to spread a bit!
The books for young people had been jammed even more severely than the rest of our books. Recently we made a slight, but we hope noticeable, improvement. We invite the juniors especially to visit the library now to see if it is not easier and more pleasant.
As will be noted from the Gardening Events Calendar on pages 12-13, the library is open on all evenings when there is a gardening or floral arts event at the Centre. If coming for one of the many top-flight garden talks scheduled, plan to arrive a half hour early and peruse the books in the library that are on the subject of the talks in which you are interested.
Visit us at the flower show
Member, Marea Lyle has supplied us with the following review of The Flower World of Williamsburg, by Joan Parry Dutton. Oh, to be in Virginia now that April is there! If
Centre s Library and Bookshop prepare for Flower Show
Mrs. Wendy Hillier, Librarian
we could borrow these well-known words of Robert Browning, we might transpose ourselves in thought to this delightful area of the United States where we could visit for a spring holiday and find ourselves among gardens and homes of the old world.
Maybe it is because Mrs. Dutton is herself English born that she has been able to give us, in word and picture, a book that tells so vividly of the early settler and his desire to transport some of Enlgand to the new world through, above all, the flowers and gardens they knew at home. The mild climate of Virginia must have been a great help.
Here is a delightful book for a winter evening. You will enjoy the history, fine garden pictures of Williamsburg, and story of how many of our plants were introduced to America by the early settlers. The author also gives a list of flowers used in many of the dried flower arrangements for which Williamsburg homes are noted. Cost is $6.95.
Our bookshop is well stocked now in anticipation of the Spring Flower and Garden Show at O Keefe Centre. Now is the time to see us with our largest selection. Of course, if you cannot find what you want in our stock, let us know and we will do our best to order it for you. We will be moving to the O Keefe Centre from March 6 to 10 say hello to us there!
Several new titles you may wish to see are: Step-by-Step Guide to Growing Bonsai Trees by Joan Melville, $7.95; Encyclopaedia of Garden Plants and Flowers by Readers Digest of Great Britain, $25.00; Dried Flower Arrangement by Edwin Rohrer, $6.95; All Colour Book of Mush(Concluded on page 21)
The Civic Garden Centre pioneered, with the Garden Club of Toronto, the operation of non-commercial flower arrangement courses for those interested in the floral arts. This was in 1960. Now, courses at two different levels are run during the fall, winter and spring seasons and are of six weeks duration. An advanced course, four weeks in length, is also operated on demand.
Most courses are operated in the evenings as well as the afternoons, and some are now offered during morning hours as well.
The next series of basic and intermediate courses, of six-weeks duration
During one of last year's garden talks at the Centre, Tom van Ryn demonstrates the ease of proper evergreen pruning.
Photo by A. C. Drysdale.
each, will begin in mid-March. Course number one (for beginners) will be operated on six successive Wednesday afternoons at 1:30 pm and in the evenings at 8:00 pm beginning March 13. Mrs. F. W. Robertson, past-president of the Garden Club of Toronto will be the instructor for these courses. Fee is $12 for six lessons and participants must also be members of the Civic Garden Centre. Please call the Centre for application forms as classes are limited and bookings are made as received with fee.
Course number two (intermediate) will be operated on six successive Thursday afternoons at 1:30 pm beginning March 14. Mrs. T. J. F. Ross, often seen on Toronto s Channel 19 educational television with flower arrangement demonstrations, will be the instructor for the inter-
mediate course. If sufficient demand is present, the same course will be repeated on the same six Thursdays in the evenings. Fee for the intermediate course is $14.50 plus Centre membership. Application forms available by telephoning the Centre.
Persons interested in either of these courses but unable to participate due to timing will be interested to know that both levels of courses will be repeated beginning on the 24th and 25th of April (after Easter). Also, an advanced course of four weeks duration will be run, commencing Tuesday, May 14 at 10:00 am with instructor, Mrs. Audrey Meiklejohn, twice winner of the coveted Hobbs Award.
Garden talks cover all phases of gardening outdoors
This year the Centre s spring series of garden talks was expanded to 17 different topics, running almost every Monday and Wednesday until Easter. The talks are always scheduled both in the afternoon (at 1:30 pm) and in the evening (at 8:00 pm), so that interested gardeners, and potential gardeners, may attend either session for any one or several talks. The topics to be covered during the month of March, and in the first week of April, are given in the Gardening Events Calendar on the centre spread of this issue (pages 12-13). The final talk in the series will be How to Preserve the Beauty of Your Flower Garden All Next Winter given by Mrs. Kathy Cantlon on Monday, April 8. Details of all of the talks, along with an advance registration form, may be obtained by phoning the Centre. Why not do it now? Last year s spring series, and the shorter series run last fall, were successful to
Centre s School of Floral Decoration and Series of Garden Talks aimed at rank Amateurs
the point that extra chairs had to be brought into the room for most of the talks.
Library
(Completion from page 19) rooms and Fungi by Moira Savonius, $3.49; and Houseplants are for Pleasure by Helen Van Pelt Wilson, $9.25. Remember ten per cent off purchases of $2 or more to Civic Garden Centre members.
The Centre s library and bookshop are open from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. Monday to Friday, and from 1 to 5:00 p.m. Saturdays. Evenings as indicated on pages 12-13, from 7 to 9:00 p.m.
Een e seui'c es for Organic and Hydroponic Enthusiasts
Several members of the Civic Garden Centre have expressed a desire to meet with others with like interests specifically organic gardening and hydroponic gardening. If there is sufficient interest by a number of members in either or both of these subject areas, the Centre will encourage those involved to form a special group of members to meet at regular intervals at the Centre.
Organic gardening has a large following in the United States and some interest has been shown in Ontario in previous years. Hydroponic gardening the growing of plants, vegetables in particular, in a soil-less nutrient solution, has had a mixed following over the past 20 years. Please telephone your interest to 445-1552.
Prior to the beginning of the 1974 outdoor gardening season, I want to take a few column inches to tell you about the kind of season you may expect. Two factors will very quickly be evident to gardeners once spring arrives later in March. First, there is an extreme shortage of almost all types of nursery stock; and second, the prices of virtually all gardening commodities be they plants or supplies have gone up substantially.
The basic reason for the shortage of nursery stock particularly trees, shrubs and evergreens is the unprecedented demand that occurred in 1973 for all categories of hardy plants. Since it is not possible to grow plants of sufficient size in one year (some evergreens, for example, take six or more years to achieve saleable 18 inch-size); the shortage will be acute for at least two years.
To counteract this shortage, individuals should visit their favourite garden centres and nurseries early before mid-April. This will mean your order will be one of the first to be readied before supplies run out; and you'll also be able to spend some time with qualified garden centre staff before they are rushed off their feet and unable to discuss your needs with you. Particularly, new homeowners, wishing to plant extensive foundation plantings or establish shrub borders in their back garden, should visit a well-known garden centre as soon as possible. Otherwise, they will be left to their own devices in choosing plants during the May rush and will doubtless pick some unsuited varieties. An early visit assures not only a good selection but also competent advice.
The matter of higher prices, while
And, may | now have the second Last Word'?
Art C. Drysdale,
Editor
applying to all gardening commodities because of rapidly rising labour rates in a not-very-mechanized industry, will be particularly noticeable on fertilizer and plant food supplies. All basic fertilizer ingredients, very much underpriced at the wholesale level for many years, have suddenly shot up in price. However, even at the increased prices, quality chemical fertilizers remain an excellent buy and there is no cheaper substitute!
This price hike may cause a greater number of gardeners to take up composting a welcome trend, but even the most avid compost-gardener has need of quality chemical fertilizers.
The pass words for this coming season shop wisely and buy early!
* * *
Hopefully, this our second issue, will reach regular subscribers (members of the Civic Garden Centre) during the first few days of March. Our first issue was later than we had ever imagined! However, now that the initial run has been made, production of each succeeding issue should be increasingly smooth. We hope to bring each issue out slightly earlier than the previous. By the last week of May, we should be ready to mail the June issue. Then we ll have a summer break (no issues for July or August) and mail the September issue during the last week of August.
Finally, after you have read this issue, why not pass it along or send it to a gardening friend. It will only cost you a six-cent stamp to re-mail it. Just place the stamp and your friend s address upside down in the white space at the bottom of the front cover. By mailing your copy on you will be helping spread the gospel of gardening even further!
Good for Everything You Grow
Mother Earth for all seeds and cuttings
African Violet Soil best for tender-rooted plants
Composted Cattle Manure ideal for transplanting evergreens
Potting and Planter Soil for plotting all young plants
And, many other fine products
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Four steps to a beautiful lawn.
So-Green has developed an easyto follow, four step program that will guarantee you a beautiful lawn. Each step will be outlined in this publication during the coming months. Here is the first step.
March/April
To get your lawn off to a fast, healthy start, apply So-Green Premium 21-7-7. This formula contains all the nutrients a lawn needs after the long Canadian winter. If you were troubled with crabgrass last year, apply So-Green Crabgrass Killer plus 10-5-10 fertilizer now. It will kill your crabgrass and feed your lawn at the same time.
Premium is available in 50, 25 and 12%lb bags. Apply at the rate of 51bs per 1000 sq ft.
Crabgrass Killer is available in 40 and 20Ib bags and 5lb boxes. Apply at the rate of8 Ibs per 1000 sq ft. Watch this space for further steps in the So-Green Four Step Program or write to the address below for a copy of the complete program.
Trellis
Let's start a growing friendship soon at a Sheridan Garden Centre.
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