Let's start a growing friendship soon at a Sheridan Garden Centre.
You'll find 1t at Sheridan
Ualue With comparable prices on the most extensive selection of high quality nursery stock in Canada. ro 2
ltallty With over 1,200 types of hardy plants and trees, locally raised, fresh from the soil and Guaranteed to Grow". °
VarletY With Canada s most comprehensive listing of nursery stock and garden accessories. . . the 74 Sheridan Garden Catalogue. Now available at any of the four Sheridan Garden Centres in Metro, Mississauga, Unionville, or Etobicoke, Sheridan can supply all of your gardening needs.
Head Office: 700 Evans Avenue, Etobicoke,Ontarlo(416) 621-9111
Now to late October, 1974
Vienna International Garden Show, Six miles from centre of Vienna, Austria. 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.
May 26, 1974
Me and My Violets, African Violet show sponsored by the Toronto African Violet Society, at Civic Garden Centre. Contact: (416) 691-4450.
June 12-14, 1974
Ontario Horticultural Association Convention, at Sheraton Brock Hotel, Niagara Falls, Ontario. Contact: Mr. R. F. Gomme (416) 965-1091.
June 14-16, 1974
American Peony Society Exhibition, at Royal Botanical Gardens, Hamilton, Ontario. Contact: the gardens at (416) 527-T158.
June 22, 1974
Golden Anniversary Rose Show and Tea, sponsored by Oshawa Horticultural Society, at St. George s Anglican Church, Oshawa. Contact: (416) 7288302.
June 22-23, 1974
Great Lakes Regional Bonsai Show, at The Garden Center of Greater Cleveland, Cleveland, Ohio. Contact: (216) 721-1600.
Coming Events of notable Gardening and Floral Arts Interest
June 23, 1974
Canadian Rose Show, sponsored by the Canadian Rose Society, at the Inn on the Park, Eglinton Avenue East and Leslie, Don Mills, Ontario. Contact: Jack Blair (416) 444-9126.
July 9-17, 1974
Danish Gardens Seminar, at various sites in Denmark, including Funen, the garden of Denmark. Contact: the Civic Garden Centre.
July 11-13, 1974
International Lily Show, of the North American Lily Society, at University of Minnesota Landscape Arboretum, Chaska (Minneapolis), Minnesota. Contact: (416) 233-4900.
July 13-17, 1974
American Association of Nurserymen Convention, at Four Seasons Sheraton Hotel, Toronto. Contact: Mr. H. H. Stensson (416) 822-4841.
July 20-21, 1974
Lily Show, ofthe Ontario Regional Lily Society, at Royal Botanical Gardens, Hamilton, Ontario. Contact: (416) 2334900.
If it s about Gardening . . . ask Toronto s Civic Garden Centre. Membership, including ten issues per year of TRELLIS only $5 for 12 months.
This Month s Articles
Gardens Canada introduces two new Plants T
18
And, may I now have the fifth Last Word ? 22
Regular Short Features
Coming International Events, 3; Herblock Loames, 8; Gardening Events Calendar, 12; Volunteers, 17; Shop, 20; School of Floral Decoration, 20; and Library, 21.
Other Notes of Interest this Month
Garden Chrysanthemums are Dollar-Stretchers, 14; and Vegetable Garden protection from Insects, 17.
The Front Cover
Daffodil bulb production in British Columbia yields tons of bulbs annually of unusually high quality. Photo taken near Bradner. Story on page 22.
Civic
Garden Centre Board of Directors
Mrs. K. G. (Audrey) Allman; R. H. (Roy) Bainard; Mrs. J. H. (Betty) Billes; J. (Jack) Blair; J. E. (John) Bradshaw; Mrs. D. P. (Elizabeth) Bryce; G. P. (Geoff) Clarkson; E. A. (Ed) Endersby; R. A. (Reg) Mackenzie; G. A. (Gib) Milne; E. R. (Ernie) Pope; Mrs. E. (Flavia) Redelmeier (Chairman); Mrs. F. W. (Genevieve) Robertson; W. (Wilf) Sanders; L. C. (Larry) Sherk; Mrs. R. (Helen) Skinner; T. W. (Tom) Thompson; D. H. (Dave) Yerex.
Staff for Civic Garden Centre and Trellis
J. C. (Jim) Boyd, Executive Director; A. C. (Art) Drysdale, Associate Director and Editor; Mrs. J. W. (Awdrey) Clarke, Executive 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 (35 for 12 months). Opinions expressed within do not necessarily reflect those of the Centre. This is Volume 1, Number 5.
THE CIVIC GARDEN CENTRE Telephone 445-1552
What it is
« A non-profit gardening and floral arts centre for the dissemination of information to amateur gardeners 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
o Operates Canada's most complete public horticultural library
« Responds to over3,000 gardening questions annually
o Organizes, in both spring and autumn, garden talks and demonstrations on a wide variety of subjects and at different levels
« 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
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
o 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
JOHN BRADSHAW
SATURDAYS
beginning at 10 a.m.
SUNDAYS beginning at 8:10 a.m.
Good for Everything You Grow
Mother Earth Composted Cattle Manure for all seeds and ideal for transplanting cuttings evergreens
African Violet Soil Potting and Planter Soil best for tender-rooted for potting all young plants plants And, many other fine products g HILLVIEW FARMS LTD. Farms and production: LicardiOfios: R.R. # 4, Woodstock, Ontario G. R. (Dick) Sc;le, (519) 537-7942 Sales Manager (416) 231-0589
In 1973, as a celebration of 50 years of existence of a nursery trade organization in Canada, the Canadian Nursery Trades Association, in conjunction with the Canadian Ornamental Plant Foundation, sponsored a program known as Gardens Canada . Gardens Canada was responsible for introducing and promoting six new Canadian-developed hardy plants to gardeners across Canada. The plants promoted last year were: the rose Flamingo Queen , DeGroot linden (Tilia cordata DeGroot ), little giant cedar (Thuja occidentalis Little Giant ), blue acres juniper (Juniperus horizontalis Blue Acres ), Sheridan gold euonymus (Euonymus fortunei Sheridan Gold ), and Springsyde daylily (Hemerocallis Springsyde ). Of these, all but the blue acres juniper remain available at garden centres and nurseries for this season.
For 1974, Gardens Canada is introducing two more new Canadian-bred plants Agincourt beauty lilac (Syringa vulgaris Agincourt Beauty ) and Maybride crabapple (Malus Maybride ).
The Agincourt beauty lilac is a beautiful deep purple cultivar developed by Mr. Leonard Slater, of Agincourt, Ontarfo. The lilac is exceptional because of its large individual fragrant florets up to 1'% inches in diameter, and as well for its unusual compact habit of growth. The growth habit makes it extremely suitable for planting on small city lots where the larger-growing varieties tend to get too leggy and unattractive after a number ofyears. The plant matures at a height of ten to 12 feet, and is hardy as far north as Sault Ste. Marie, Sudbury, North Bay, Timiskaming and Kenora in Ontario as well as in Winnipeg.
Leonard Slater was presented with an award of merit from the International Lilac Society for his work in hybridizing
Gardens Canada introduces two new Plants bred by Canadians
Art C. Drysdale, Editor
Agincourt Beauty and another yet-tobe-introduced white flowering cultivar, Slater s Elegance , with similar attributes. The award was announced at the society s second annual convention in Boston last May, and presented to him by Dr. Leslie Laking of the Royal Botanical Gardens, Hamilton, June 21 last year during the Ontario Horticultural Association s convention in Guelph.
The Maybride crabapple is an outstanding ornamental tree, developed at the plant research institute of Agriculture Canada in Ottawa. The buds are pink before opening to a pure double white, and the flowers are larger than average. A profuse bloomer early in its life, Maybride produces small red fruit in the fall to contrast with its glossy green foliage. It matures at a height of 15 feet and is hardy at Sault Ste. Marie, Haliburton, Ottawa and similar areas.
Agincourt beauty lilac hybridized by Mr. Len Slater available now. Colour separation courtesy Sheridan Nurseries Ltd.
It was a sunny morning in early June. The sunbeams, having discovered a path down Five-Lanes Road between the ancient beech trees, had turned right at Herblock s gate and were now beaming down warmly on his kitchen garden.
At any other time Herblock would have beamed back at them just as warmly for they were the answer to his prayers after a long spell of wet weather. But this morning, by a sort of solar paradox, they only deepened the shadows that clouded his brow. You see, Herblock was struggling with a riddle in social ethics so perplexing that there was no room for distractions, not even sunbeams.
The two principals in the crisis that was complicating life for Herblock were firstly the widow Meekings and secondly the widow Bramley. Not that the orderofnaming has any significance for he was equally fond ofboth ofthem, especially Mrs. Meekins. Had he not brightened her whole life by transforming her hitherto maggoty, worthless apples of two years ago into a crop the following year ofsuch matchless perfection that she was the envy of all her neighbors on Five-Lanes Road. His little plastic sleeves had worked this miracle. And, we all know how fond we are of those we have benefited.
On the other hand, if he had been forced to a choice it might easily have been the widow Bramley. He could remember times when her sweet smile and cheery greeting had set a mood so rapturous that the only way he could express his happiness was in song. Not right then ofcourse, but later in his garden.
Providence, all good and wise in what it gives and what denies, had given Herblock profound insights into the mysteries of gardening but denied him
Herblock Loames and the Two Widows in which Alf plays the Stellar Role
l. B. Lucas*
even the most rudimentary common sense in coping with women!
With the same evenhanded justice it had reversed these two attributes when handing out talents to Herb s great friend, Alf. And, so it was to Alf, as an authority on women, that Herb now turned for advice.
It was the busiest time of the year for the two friends and when Herb turned up in Alf s potting shed later that morning, Alf at once knew that something of the greatest urgency had brought him. Lowering to the floor a mountain of flats he had been carrying, he found Herb a chair, and then sat down and prepared to listen.
Alf , began Herb, widow Meekins, you know un?
tAye.
Widow Bramley, you know un t00? Aye.
It was a matter of extreme delicacy and Herb hardly knew how to approach it. After some hesitation he began again.
Both neighbors.
S Aye"
On Five-Lanes Road.
Eh, lad, know that t0o0.
A long pause followed.
Wha s trouble, Herb?
Both getting serious.
* * *
It appeared, as Herb told his story to Alf, that what had been at first a simple problem had been vastly complicated by Herb s inept attempt to deal with it himself. Some lighthearted joking with the two ladies about his approaching 60th birthday had suggested to each of
*Mr. Lucas is a Canadian lawyer whose law practice has always taken second place to his interest in dwarf fruit trees. Author of The Footloose Gardener, a fun book about his travel adventures, this series ofgardening fables is first published in Trellis. This is episode two.
8 / May 1974
them the identical idea of giving him a birthday dinner and Herb, in his innocence, thought the way out of his dilemma was to feign illness.
In his anxiety to make his illness believable he called in the local M.D. This was a mistake. After listening to Herb s inventory of his symptoms the puzzled M.D. was unable to make up his mind whether Herb was threatened with high or low blood pressure, stomach ulcers, gall stones, or a brain tumor. About the only ailment that could be safely ruled out was housemaid s knee. So he administered a strong purgative, some painkillers and sedatives, and then ordered him to bed for a week.
In these circumstances anyone less inept than Herb would have taken the doctor into his confidence and had a good laugh with him. Instead, he submitted to being drugged and put to bed and was soon fast asleep.
The reader would need to be as unimaginative as Herb not to see where all this was leading. Let us draw a veil over the next two days and over the procession ofbroths, custards, and invalid jellies that kept arriving in his kitchen from the two solicitous ladies. Suffice to say that on the third morning the invalid decided that the situation was getting too complicated for an amateur and had walked the two miles down to Alf s greenhouse and, as we havejust related, placed the whole case in his competent hands.
Alf, like a good general, began his campaign with meticulous care. Soon, by discreet inquiries, he had a detailed inventory of the two ladies likes, dislikes, prejudices, temperaments, and idiosyncracies. Finally, after much thought, he selected two facts which, if exploited with sufficient skill, would, he hoped, prove to be their Achilles heels. When his plan of campaign was finally perfected he told Herb to invite the two ladies to dinner to celebrate his recovery and to include him.
The great day arrived. Herb, in a freshly laundered shirt and his company black coat and shoes received the ladies at the gate and conducted them on a tour of his kitchen garden with Alf bringing up the rear.
Whas that, Mr. Loames? inquired Mrs. Meekins pointing to several single rows of garlic between single rows of carrots, cabbage and tomatoes.
Garlic , replied Herb. Keeps aphids and some other insects off vegetables. Some use chives with roses, and onions with some other vegetables, but garlic does better job on all of un.
That row of asparagus , said Mrs. Meekins, why don t you have garlic alongside em too?
Oh no , said Herb in a shocked tone, that would never do. Garlic and asparagus would never get along together at all. Tomatoes, basil, or parsley, they d all be happy with asparagus but not garlic.
Ah think if ah had to spend an evening wi your vegetables ah d choose asparagus and its friends , commented Mrs. Meekins dryly. Wha d you do wi all that garlic?
Ah eat it , replied Herb, with a guilty glance at the author of this scenario for he loathed garlic even more than he detested telling the brazen lies in which Alf had coached him.
Ah use it in everything ah cook. And, feeling he might as well be hung for a sheep as a lamb he added, Ah (Conclusion on page 10) Herblock Loames.
Herblock Loames
(conclusionfrom page 9)
like to suck a clove or two when ah goes to bed. Champion to make un sleep.
Mrs. Meekins, who had suddenly lost all interest in Herb s vegetable garden, asked to see his flowers. But here again was the ubiquitous garlic under the roses.
Chives keep aphids off roses same as garlic but ah never eat chives, too mild after garlic.
As the party took their places at the
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dinner table Alf was satisfied he had eliminated the garlic-hater as a candidate for Herb s hand and could now concentrate on the fanatical teetotaller, Mrs. Bramley. He accordingly fired his opening gun by handing her a large whisky and asking her what mix she liked in it.
Mr. McWhinney, ah v never tasted liquor in my life and ah don t intend to start now. Having delivered this blast she said she wanted to give him a demonstration and, going out to the garden, she returned with a wriggling cabbage worm which she dropped into her whisky. It instantly straightened out, rigid and lifeless. What lesson do you learn from that, Mr. McWhinney?demanded Mrs. Bramleysternly.
Alfdrained his second double Scotch neat and examined the exhibit closely.
Ah d say, Mrs. Bramley , he announced judicially, if un has warrums un ought drink lots of whisky.
* * *
It would be too painful to follow the course of events as both ladies rejected the garlicy main course and nibbled on crackers and cheese; as Herb, almost as averse to liquor as Mrs. Bramley, obediently downed two double Scotches and, shortly thereafter, brought them up again; as the two ladies, seizing on Herb s stomach upset as a pretext, then took their departure.
And so, as the curtain comes down on the final scene of Herblock and the Two Widows, we see Herb, pea-green but happy, gripping Alf s hand and swearing eternal friendship and gratitude while Alf, smirking modestly, dismisses his brilliant double victory as a trifle anyone would do for his best friend.
* * *
But what is this we see? Could the curtain be going up again? Yes, up, up, it goes. The scene has changed. We see Alf s potting shed. Alflooks up from his potting bench to see who his visitor is, as the door opens and Herb comes in. Eh, lad, an wha s trouble this time? Backfired. Backfired?
Worse 'n ever. Boogers both tryin damnest to reform me!
Have you a Forsythia shrub in your garden? Ifso, NOW is the time to attack it with a pair ofpruning shears yes, immediately after it has finished flowering.
To prune Forsythia, be sure to have a good pair of pruning secateurs or shears, and start by taking out the thickest, oldest branches from the bottom of the shrub. Be sure nor to just prune off the tips of the longer branches, but rather, remove entire, dark-in-colour branches from the base of the plant. If you have not pruned your shrub in this manner before, then you should remove about one-third of the oldest branches judiciously so that the shrub retains its same basic shape, but is much thinner. You will note, in fact, that the thinner branches that you decide to leave will appear weak and straggling. Do not be alarmed, these will soon develop into stronger growths once the older branches are gone. By the end of the summer this year you will see that your shrub is almost back to the same size as previously, but the growth will be much more vigorous, and next spring you should have a much more floriferous shrub than you have had previously.
An historical plant
The story ofthe fine yellow flowering shrub, Forsythia, really started with the Chelsea Physic Garden which I visited six years ago. It is located on the Thames Embankment in London, and there I saw the original Forsythia which Robert Fortune brought from China in 1843. It is a Forsythia suspensa the magnificent drooping, and spreading form of the shrub.
Robert Fortune, a young Scot, was in charge of the greenhouse of the Royal
*Mr. Bradshaw is Canada s best-known garden broadcaster and writer. His broadcast is heard each Saturday morning at 10:07 am over radio CFRB, and his column appears weekly on Thursdays in the Toronto Sun.
Spectacular Forsythia its history is involved with Terrariums
John Bradshaw*
Horticultural Society at Cheswick in the early 1800s. In 1843 the Society sent him on the first of two plant collecting journeys he was to make for them. Later he made one for the East India Company and then one on his own. His itinerary on the latter trip covered Formosa, Java and the Philippines. His contributions to our gardens of today are many, including, Anemonejaponica; Aconitum autumnale, the autumn-flowering Monkshood; Dicentra spectabilis, bleeding heart; Viburnum; Forsythia; Taxus cuspidata, Japanese Yew and Deutzia, to name just a few.
A portable greenhouse
None of this would have been possible without the invention ofthe Wardian case by Dr. Nathaniel Bagshaw Ward, examiner to the Society of Apothecaries at the Chelsea Physic Garden. His hobby was collecting and preserving butterflies. One day he placed a chrysalis in some soil in a glass bottle and covered it with a lid. Not long afterward, minute vegetation appeared on the earth, which eventually (Conclusion on page 14)
Forsythia suspensa was the first golden bell introduced to the western world. Photo shows plants of same species used in a modern setting, planted along top of a wall; their weeping habit takes away otherwise harsh lines. Sheridan Nurseries photo.
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. All events begin at 8:00 pm unless otherwise stated.
Sun Mon Tues
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. Wed
Southern Ontario Orchid S. 2 at 1:00 pm (759-1439)
Georgina Brock (Wilfred) 3 H.S. June Show (432-2592)
Men's Garden Club regu- 4 lar monthly meeting
Library open 1 to 5:00 pm
Rhododendron and Azalea 9 Show at 1:00 pm (447-8046)
Library open 1 to 5:00 pm
Art Show from 9:00 am (322-] 6 8935)
Toronto Bonsai S. (782-2403] 0
Agincourt G.C. Spring Show (294-1701)
Library open 1 to 5:00 pm
Art Show from 9:00 am (82223 8935)
Library open 7 to 9:00 pm
Ajax G.C. Rose Show (942-] 7 0155)
E. Toronto H. & Dahlia S. Rose Show (691-3665)
Kingsway-Sunnylea H.S. (239-9316)
Mount Albert H.S. Rose & Iris Show (640-1922)
Westway H.S. (247-6093)
Woodbridge H.S. (851-0300)
Library open 1 to 5:00 pm
Markham H.S. Rose Show24 (294-3267)
North York H.S. Rose Show (221-2158)
Roseland (Weston) H.S. (893-1288)
Library open 1 to 5:00 p.m.
Library open 7 to 9:00 pm
Highrise Gardeners of To-] ] ronto regular monthly meeting
Aurora H.S. Iris Show (727-6232)
Pickering H.S. Iris Show (282-2441)
Library open 7 to 9:00 pm
Leaside G.C. Rose Show] 8 (481-0192)
N. Toronto H.S. Iris & Rose Show (488-4749)
Thornhill H.S. (889-0231)
Library open 7 to 9:00 pm
Brampton H.S. (459-0119) 25 Lakeshore H.S. (278-2517)
Lake Simcoe (Sutton) H.S. (476-3087)
Pickering H.S. Rose Show (282- 2441)
Richmond Hill H.S. (884-1407)
Schomberg H.S. (939-2146)
Library open 7 to 9:00 pm
Etobicoke H.S. (i
Library open 7 &
Light Gardening regular monthly
Unionville H.S. (297-1430)
Uxbridge H.S. Iris Library open 7
Cloverleaf (M G.C. (278-1590)
Library open 7 &
Brooklin H.S. (655-3790)
Swansea H.S. (7
742-5255)
5
Thurs Fri
Rhododendron Society of ] Canada Annual Rhododendron and Azalea Show in Grimsby (447-8046)
Library open 1 to 5:00 pm
Canadian Iris Soclety Toronto Group Iris Show at 3:00 pm (889-0231)
Newmarket H.S. Spring Show at 2:00 pm (895-4145)
» 9:00 pm
Group -] 2
Library open 1 to 5:00 pm
] 3 Riverdale H.S. Iris Show] 4 Oshawa H.S. Iris Show at ] 5 meeting (466-4235) 2:00 pm (728-8302) Iris Show i Show (852-6959)
» 9:00 pm Library open 7 to 9:00 pm Library open 1 to 5:00 p.m.
Isslssauga) l 9 I l | Aurora H.S. Peony Show2o (727-6232) East York G.C. Rose Show (425-7496)
21 Beaverton H.S. Flower Show 22 3:00 pm (426-7878)
Newmarket H.S. Peony Show at 2:00 pm (895-4145) Oshawa H.S. Golden Anniversary Rose Show (728-8302)
» 9:00 pm Library open 7 to 9:00 pm Library open 1 to 5:00 pm
Rose Shov426 Canadian Chryunthomum27 28 29 and Dahlia Society (22362-1001) 2964)
Mt. Albert H.S. Strawberry Supper at 6:30 pm (473-2120)
If you have a garden area that calls for bold fall colours, consider Masterpiece garden mums this spring. Available at garden centres, these strongly-rooted cuttings, about three inches of healthy green, will help you stretch your gardening dollar.
Masterpiece mums are individually labeled by pot or pack to show you what you may anticipate in the way of colour and shape of flower in autumn, as well as giving a full description and name. In the Masterpiece mum collection of 12 varieties that were grown by a number of garden writers across Canada as a preview last year, there was something for every preference.
These mums respond vigorously to pinching with compact, sturdy growth. Tips of the growing shoots should be pinched when the young plants are four inches tall. Use your thumb nail and index finger to nip off about an inch of the soft growth at the tip of each shoot. As new shoots reach two inches, repeat the procedure until July 10. In most cases, with growth kept short, staking is unnecessary.
If rainfall is slight, supplementary watering is a must to maintain growth. Addition of several inches of rotted compost, peat moss or leafmould to
Masterpiece garden mums may be purchased this spring in garden packs or small pots, and will develop into large, floriferous plants for September blooming.
Garden Chrysanthemums for Autumn Bloom bought now
are Dollar-Stretchers
mum beds will supplement less than perfect soil. Monthly applications of a garden fertilizer will stimulate vigorous growth.,
Natural blossoming sequences for Masterpiece mums start in mid-September and continue until frost, usually long after other garden flowers have passed their peak of perfection. From your initial small investment in young Masterpiece plants, you will find your fall garden a tapestry of beautiful colour that is the special pride ofgardeners who resist the end oftheir summer-long hobby as long as possible.
Forsythia history
(conclusion from page 11) grew into a fern and a grass. He extended the experiment by making a closed glass structure, since it was apparent that certain kinds of vegetation could adapt themselves to an unchanging atmosphere. In 1832 he shipped two cases of ferns and grasses from London to Sydney, Australia, and they arrived there safely. The cases were refilled and brought back to England. They had been on their way eight months and in all that time not a drop of water had been given to them.
The modern-day version of the Wardian Case is the terrarium now becoming increasingly popular with the advent of wide-spread use of artificial light for indoor growing. -
It was the Wardian case that enabled Robert Fortune to start the tea industry in India, and to introduce the Forsythia to England from China. Mr. Fortune brought the first Forsythia bush to the Chelsea Physic Garden in 1843 and it was still healthy and thriving against one of the walls which surround this 3% acre garden when I saw it six years ago. It was named in honor of William Forsyth who was appointed gardener in charge of the garden in 1770.
Bark Mulch Natural Material of many Garden Uses to save You Work
The increasing use of bark as a mulch and soil conditioner represents a practical environmental advance. As much as 15 per cent of a tree s volume is bark. Until recently the processing ofthis bark into useful products was considered both costly and unnecessary. Trees taken to the sawmill were first stripped oftheir bark. While their logs went on to become lumber and products, their bark was cast aside. Because it accumulated quickly, the bark was a potential fire hazard. Sawmill operators chose their only practical alternative, which was to dispose of the useless and troublesome bark quickly by burning it in tepee burners. This contributed to air pollution.
To help curtail this air pollution and to make use of this wasted, but good material, the United States forest service studied the possible uses. Increased bark mulching by home gardeners was obviously the most practical and beneficial way to make use of the greatest bulk of this lumbering by-product.
The use of forest tree bark mulch in home garden care is a lesson learned from nature. In the forest, plants use fallen bark and other natural debris as a protective coat. By laying bark mulch on your garden soil, you do the same thing you protect your plants delicate roots from excessive heat and drought in summer, and help them resist alternate freezing and thawing through the winter. With bark mulch you also help improve your soil s texture by enriching it with natural humus. Bark mulch improves the drainage ofheavy clay soils and improves the water-holding capacity of sandy soils. And, it will not crust, blow away, or wash away, under normal conditions.
Bark mulch saves you garden-maintenance time. Becuase it smothers weeds, you do less weeding and needn t trim the grass along borders. Because it prevents packing ofclay soils, you do less hoeing. Because it reduces evaporation, you need water less often. Because it breaks the force ofrain, bark mulch will prevent mud splattering on the side ofyour house and on garden crops. This means you do less cleaning. And, because it lasts, you will realize its benefits from three to six years after your initial application, with the addition of only a minimal amount of new material each year to maintain proper depth.
Bark mulch comes in a range of types and sizes. These are generally packaged in 50-pound plastic bags, containing enough uniformly sized particles to cover an 18square foot area with two inches of mulch.
Since no special tools are required, bark mulch is easy to apply. To mulch an area for the first time, remove grass and weeds around your plants and create a four-tosix-inch border between your flowers or bushes and the grass edge ofyour planting bed. This spacing will give a neat appearance and make it easier to cut your lawn. Loosen the soil, then spread your mulch. A thick application, four inches deep, is most effective for smothering weed growth and for protectingshallow-rooted plants.
Available in different sizes
You might consider placing hardwood and softwood nuggets (% to 1% inches in size) and chunks (1% to 3% inches) around trees and shrubs and as borders along fences, driveways, and sidewalks, where decorative value is important. Nuggets and chunks are also functional in planting beds. Smaller-sized bark mulch chips, called mini-chips (% to % inches), are ideal for walkways, cushioning falls under playground equipment, decorating artificial flower arrangements, in pet enclosures, and in picnic and barbecue areas. This size bark mulch might also aid you in trans(Conclusion on page 19)
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Vegetable Gardens need protection from Insect Attacks
Unfortunately, a healthy vegetable garden crop is as inviting to many insects and diseases as it is to you.
Depending on crops and climates, most gardens are infested at one time or another with cabbage worms, grasshoppers, blister beetles and cutworms. However, these pests can be effectively controlled by applying a correctly mixed spray material, such as malathion or carbaryl, on all parts of the foliage, especially under the leaves where the insects hide and most diseases start. To control such pests as aphids, leafhoppers, and mites, spray the stems and foliage of all crops with a proper mixture ofmalathion, as directed, every week to ten days during the growing season. For such pests as the Colorado potato beetle and the bean leaf beetle, one or two sprayings during the growing season may be all that is necessary.
The correct application of spray materials is important. A compressed air sprayer with a tank capacity to suit the job requirements is recommended. Tank sizes range from 1% to four gallons. For smaller gardens or patio planters, compact hand sprayers with 30- to 60-ounce capacities provide the most convenient and economical protection.
The Civic Garden Centre suggests that when spraying plants, you use a high pressure and adjust the nozzle for a fine spray to reach all foliage surfaces. Spray until all parts of the plant are covered,just to the point ofrun-off. For leafy plants such as cabbage and lettuce, be extra thorough, insects like to hide in the folds and recesses ofthe big leaves.
Some spray materials should not be used just prior to harvest. Follow printed directions on the containercarefully. For further information on spray materials best suited to your gardening needs, consult your favourite garden centre, or obtain information booklets
from the Ontario Ministry of Agriculture and Food, Queen s Park, Toronto.
Our Volunteers have had a Busy Three Months
with more to come
Eileen Brooks, Co-ordinator
Though the Civic Garden Centre functions with a nucleus of paid staff members (mostly part-time), it depends to a very great extent on volunteer labour.
A variety of activities connected with the Centre have helped speed the dreary end-of-winter weeks into spring for many of our volunteers. With the usual wonderful co-operation, approximately 160 members have volunteered their time assisting in various capacities since January of this year. Our expanding shop, with continuing new stock having to be checked, sorted and priced etc., consumes many volunteer hours. Periodic stock-taking, the spring garden Lecture series, Garden Club ofToronto flower show, National Home Show, and regular Thursday morning FantasyFlower creator-volunteers have kept many of us busy.
I regret being unable to use everyone who had wished to help at the two recent shows, mainly due to inability to allocate a mutually agreeable time-slot; for some lucky people it was a case of conflict with a vacation in the sun! Next year, perhaps? After a short lull, it will soon be time to think ofoutdoor activities, such as picking of early wild and garden material for dried-flower processing, which means all of you who have expressed interest in this will be hearing from me. To all of you who help keep the Centre alive and functioning MANY THANKS.
Civic Garden Centre Annual Meeting
Honours Jim Boyd
Art C. Drysdale, Editor
Let s not have a boring business meeting that will keep people away inother years, said GeoffClarkson, president of the Civic Garden Centre at the March meeting of the board ofdirectors. And so it was that director Gib Milne was put in charge ofthe April 16 meeting and we did nor have a boring business session.
Chairman Clarkson, who stepped down from his position at the meeting, began the formal part of the meeting by discussing the current stage of plans for the Centre s new building. He thanked the directors for their work during the year, and in fact for the many years during his chairmanship. He asked treasurer Jack Blair to read the auditor s financial statement and briefly explained the financial status ofthe Centre.
Mr. Clarkson asked Centre president-elect Mrs. E. (Flavia) Redelmeier to present the report ofthe nominating committee, and following this, it was duly moved and seconded that the slate as named be elected. The 18 directors were thus formally installed. Joining the board this year for the first time are Mrs. R. (Helen) Skinner, and Messrs. Reg Mackenzie and Wilf Sanders. Retiring from the board were Mrs. J. R. M. (Lois) Wilson, and Messrs. Irv Bailey and George Blais. Mrs. Redelmeier pointed out that as soon as the necessary bylaw could be passed by the board ofdirectors, and a special meeting of members organized, the board would be enlarged to accommodate additional persons. Until that time, two persons who were introduced at the annual meeting Mrs. M. A. (Chris) Okawara and Mr. W. A. Young would be invited to sit in on meetings by invitation. Later in the meeting, Mrs. Redelmeier also presented Mr. Clarkson with a gift as a token of appreciation from his fellow board members.
Asked to summarize the highlights of 1973 s operations at the Centre, I found it difficult to compact all of these into ten minutes. Obviously the over 20 per cent increase in membership, the expanded bookshop sales, the great extension and expansion ofgardening courses, our increased outside activities at such places as the National Home Show, the development of a new grouping of juniors the enthusiasts (for older children), and the formation of the gardening under lights group were all highlights. But then too, the additional financial support from the Garden Club of Toronto who are always available in times of monetary need, the ongoing programs of the Highrise Gardeners ofToronto, and the mere fact that the Milne House Garden Club had to move their annual fashion show out ofour building because of the need for more space all of these were part of the tapestry of 1973 operations.
Two new staff members joined the Centre during 1973, Eileen Brooks as co-ordinator ofvolunteers, who also works with our horticultural therapy group, and the dried flower activities; and Doris Weir, our shop director. Since the end of 1973, two additional staff have come to us: Les Russell, our accountant, and Marilyn Waugh, bookshop director. In 1973 we also lost the services of Marjorie Johnson in the shop, and in the first quarter of 1974, we have also accepted resignations from Dorothy Campbell, bookkeeper; and Kathy Cantlon, program co-ordinator.
Without doubt, the event ofthe night at the annual meeting, was the response by the Centre s executive director, Jim Boyd following the testimonial given him by
Tommy Thompson upon the announcement of Jim s retirement. Tom said he wantedjust to talk about Jim the way we all know him . He remembered him personally rescuing smouldering books from the library in the old Milne house first home oftheCentre when it burned in November 1962. He urged members to look for some ofthese rebound books in the library for these books had cried out we re partofthe CivicGarden Centre we want to live , and Jim helped them do that.
Tom said he would always remember Jim s quiet manner, his drawing on his pipe, and the fact that he might well be remembered as Silica Gel Boyd a reference to Jim s pioneering with the drying offlowers in silica gel and the thousands ofdollars he had made for the Centre through this project. He said he was sure many members would also remember Jim as the man who was always willing to carry something either up or down the stairs and probably eventually back again. In closing, said Tom, Ifthere was ever a man for his time, it was Jim Boyd at the Civic Garden Centre. Jim s shadow and his spirit will be around this building for one hell of a long time. And so it will, Jim having been appointed executive director emeritus.
In responding to the gift presented to him, Jim Boyd told the members that when he retired in early 1962, he ran an ad in the Globe and Mail advising he was looking for some interesting work. The Garden Club ofToronto was soon in touch with him, and three kind ladies interviewed me, but I didn t see how I had any possibility of doing thejob they offered starting the Civic Garden Centre. Said Jim, I knew little or nothing about gardening, my business contacts for financial support were almost nil since my life work had been in other countries, and to make things worse, I d just been fitted with new dentures.
Well, I don t know why they hired me, he went on, but if I've made a contribution to the Centre, you can put it down to women s intuition. Pointing out that there were no othercentres ofthis nature in Canada, he had no criteria with which to work so the operation was unique. He concluded saying that even now he was unique in that he had never heard of anyone being known as executive director emeritus before.
The new president/chairman ofthe Centre, Flavia Redelmeier introduced to the audience, George Sinclair, who will be joining the Centre s staff effective in June.
The program for the evening was a lively, illustrated talk about the horticultural aspects of the new Metropolitan Toronto Zoo by zoo horticulturist, Ken Brown. He showed slides ofsome ofthe animals already on site, the pavilions complete or under construction, and the many exotic plants imported to authenticate the surroundings of the individual zoo-geographic regions.
Those members ofthe Civic Garden Centre who were not able to attend the annual meeting this year will have to await next year, when, doubtless to say, a similar star-studded program will be arranged.
Bark Mulching
(conclusionfrom page 15)
planting trees and shrubs. Since it helps keep soil loose and aerated, bark mulch chips reduce damage to roots when they are transplanted into new soil.
You will find shredded bark mulch valuable for many uses among them the mulching ofground cover, planting beds, and grass seeding on steep slopes, where it displays a notable holding capacity.
You will find that laying a carpet of bark mulch brings you many rewards, for in application and maintenance, bark mulch will require only the minimum oftime and effort from you, while giving you time offfrom the normal cares ofweeding and watering.
Trellis /
19
Centre s Shop features decorative Wall Tiles and Unique Vine Supports
Mrs. Doris Weir, Shop Director
One of the reasons for which the Civic Garden Centre s shop was originally established, was the supply of otherwise unavailable gardening and floral arts aids and materials. An item that has been handled by our shop for a number of years, and is still not generally available elsewhere, is three types of Wayward Vine Supports . These are small disc-like pieces with flexible wire looped through them. Each kit comes complete with 14 supports and the cement to attach them securely to any surface. The three types are made to match: brick (red), stone or concrete (grey) and white.
At only $1.95, the Wayward Vine Supports are an economical, neat and easy way to keep vines and other climbers just where you want them. The supports may even be used indoors to hold plants growing against such hard materials on which it is otherwise difficult to attach objects. Of course, as is the case here at the Centre, the vine supports are often used as hangers for other than plants, because they blend in so well with the background.
Garden picture-taking time is here now, with the bulbs in full bloom. The shop has a full stock of Kodak film to fill your camera. Naturally, as with everything else we sell, if you are a member of the Civic Garden Centre, Wayward Vine Supports
you are eligible for a ten per cent discount offall purchases totallingover $2.
For the ladies in their kitchens, have you seen our new line of decorative English wall tiles? These are imported from England; with the decals applied and the final firing done right here in Ontario. This line was enormously successful at the National Home Show. Placed in groupings they make trendy wall decorations, or they may be used as teapot stands etc.
Wendy Hillier, in her space for the library last month, mentioned pruning shears and their availability in our shop. We have a number of different types, but like to feature the Felco Popular line made in Switzerland. Our associate director, Art Drysdale, tells me he has had a pair since 1958, and while he has not used them extensively since the mid 60s, they did receive frequent hard use while he was at school and for a time thereafter! And, his pair are still in excellent shape. To go along with the shears, we have a good selection ofcolourful gardening gloves to suit any taste.
Flower Arranging Classes begin again at Centre in Autumn
The Civic Garden Centre pioneered, with the Garden Club of Toronto, the organization of non-commercial flower arrangement courses for those interested in the floral arts. This was in 1960. Now, courses at three different levels are run during the fall, winter and spring seasons, and are ofsix weeks duration (four weeks for advanced level). Courses operate at various times, and it usually is possible to take the course of your choice either in the morning, afternoon or evening. Cost for the beginners course is just $12 for the six lessons, plus a $5 membership in the Centre, for which you also receive ten issues of Trellis.
The next series of courses will commence early in the autumn, and if you wish to be at the top of the list, why not telephone the Centre now, and leave your reservation.
As chairman of the Civic Garden Centre s library committee, it has been my pleasure for the past ten years to present a report to the annual meeting of members. This year, in a move to modernize the annual meeting, and make it more enjoyable for members, reports ofthe various aspects were summarized briefly by the associate director. However, in view of the impact of the library and bookshop activities, I thought it would be interesting for the following report to be made available to all members, and the even wider circulation provided by Trellis.
The year 1973 was a remarkable one in the history of the library and bookshop. The great successes which have been achieved are due for the most part to our dedicated and talented staff, both paid and volunteer.
After a year of planning, this library was host to the fifth annual meeting of the Council on Botanical and Horticultural Libraries held at the Centre last April 25-28. This meeting was attended by 45 representatives from the eastern, middle and southern United States, as well as, of course, from Canada. It was a most effective and successful symposium and we are flattered that the 1974 meeting, held in Cleveland, was based on guidelines set up here in Toronto. We took the delegates on tours to Pioneer Village, the Ontario Science Centre and the rare book section of the University of Toronto s Robarts Library, as part of the program. Lectures were provided by our own Canadian experts garden writer and broadcaster, Lois Wilson; author and historian, Stella Langdon; and Pioneer Village curator, Russ Cooper. Our most capable and charming librarian, Wendy Hillier, master-minded all events.
Metropolitan Toronto parks commissioner, Tommy Thompson, generously
Mrs.
Centre s Library comes closest ever to operating in the Black in 1973
Elizabeth Bryce, Chairman
led a walk through Wilket Creek Park entertaining everyone as only he can do.
Our book sales play a vital role in library and bookshop operation. Not only do the profits help in our support, but as well, the sales of books creates a greater interest in the loan of books. In 1973, the bookshop was most fortunate in having the support of a number of garden writer/broadcasters on a regular basis. These influential persons regularly promoted gardening books and their availability from our bookshop thus considerably boosting our sales to those who had not before been aware of the Centre.
During 1973, special book sale displays were organized for the Garden Club s O Keefe Centre flower show in March, the National Home Show in April, the Herb Society s sale at Kettleby in June, the Canadian National Exhibition in August-September and our own Christmas sale in November. All of this activity makes it possible for me to advise that the library services for the Centre cost only $779 for the year 1973, taking into account the Garden Club of Toronto s donation to the library in lieu of rent.
As we expand our book loans, book sales, as well as more outside displays, advice and lectures, our very limited area becomes more and more congested. Now we not only have all available shelves and window sills filled, but as well, we have had to move into the Centre s storage areas!
Two new volunteers have joined our knowledgeable staff, and along with our talented paid staff librarian, Mrs. Wendy Hillier, secretary, Mrs. Esther Field and our newly appointed bookshop director, Mrs. Marilyn Waugh should enable us to provide even better service to members this year.
If you wondered what that snow-covered mountain on our cover was doing in low-lying Holland, known for its daffodils, you had good reason to wonder. Actually, the mountain is part of Canada s rockies!
Daffodils only grow in any quantity in two small areas ofCanada and their growth is dependent on soil and climate conditions. On the southern portion of Vancouver Island there is slightly over 100 acres mainly devoted to the production of cut-bloom for the cut-flower market. It is primarily these daffodils that eastern Canadians see in early March.
The other main bulb-growing area in British Columbia is centred around Bradner in the Fraser valley, where the soil is a deep, brown, sandy loam. Here the over-100 acres area is only slightly larger than the area on Vancouver Island. However, at Bradner, the production is primarily that of bulbs, rather than flowers. Between two and three million bulbs are produced in the area each year for the Canadian market, with only a few going to the states of Washington and Oregon to the south. The industry is based on family units, with extra help being brought in for short periods at planting, digging and packing times.
The bulb-growing industry in Bradner started as the hobby ofone Fenwick Fatkin in 1914, and it has developed into one of the most important industries of the area. Mr. Fatkin had noticed, during a visit to the district, how well daffodils grew in the bush. In fact, ~one small discarded bulb produced 75 blooms.
The bulb growing year might be best considered to begin in late summer and
early fall, when the bulbs are planted. First, chicken manure is worked into the soil, and the bulbs are treated in a hot water bath containing several different chemicals for control of Narcissus bulb fly and nematodes. With the present advanced chemicals, the bulb fly is not now the major problem it was five or ten years ago. Nematodes, however, remain a concern, and constant care is taken to prevent infestation of this microscopic insect.
There are two types ofbulbs, planting stock, and saleable stock. Each year, some of the latter are planted back in order to improve the grower s stock. The more saleable stock that is planted back, the better will be the crop, but the less will be the profit for the current year. Bulbs are planted by machines at the rate (for planting stock) of four to six tons of bulbs per acre, based on approximately 25,000 bulbs per ton. If saleable stock is being planted back, there will only be about 4,000 bulbs per ton, but the rate is then increased to eight to ten tons of bulbs per acre. This great difference in number of bulbs per ton gives some idea of the increased weight of saleable stock over planting stock.
The planting depth is between three and four inches, and the machine does the planting without regard to whether or not the bulbs fall upright.
Prior to use of planting machines, in Holland and other bulb-growing areas, all bulbs were planted upright with the thought that they would not grow if planted upside-down or sideways. This theory has now been proven false, and the machine simply fills in the soil over the bulbs the way they happen to fall. No mulch is needed since the area generally receives ample snow cover to pro-
tect the bulbs. Pre-emergence weed control chemicals are usually applied between October and January, in order to reduce weed populations, and save labour costs during the busier growing season. Bulb growers note that a reduction of weeds in the fields leaves more nitrogen available in the soil for their crop.
If in any one year snow cover happens to be lacking, bulbs do not come up as vigorously, and have a poorer root system, making for a smaller bulb as an end result. The bulbs usually begin to appear at the end of January and early in February, and grow quickly by the end of February. Fertilizers, high in nitrogen, are used in spring, since robust foliage means a stronger bulb will be produced when the nutrients from the foliage are taken back into the bulb. Weed controls may also be applied during the growing season.
Occasionally, diseases such as fire blight and botrytis occur in the fields, but these are not considered a major problem. Control is obtained through the use of copper sulphate and similar chemicals during the growing season in May and June.
The flowers produced by the bulbs in the Bradner area are sold as a supplementary source of income. During the peak season, over 50,000 dozen ofhandpicked blooms are shipped each day.
Most bulbs are in the ground for two years. Digging time begins in July and extends into early August. The later the digging time, the bigger the bulbs will be. It is interesting to note that Canadian-grown daffodils are superior in appearance to all other daffs, mainly due to their shiny skins.
Sale ofdaffodils from British Columbia began, and was encouraged, during
And, may | now have the fifth Last Word ?
Art C. Drysdale,
Editor
the war, when nothing was available from Holland. Following the war, when Dutch production returned to normal, sea-freight from Holland to eastern Canada was considerably cheaper than land-freight from British Columbia to eastern Canada. For a number ofyears, therefore, daffodils from British Columbia were not marketed in eastern Canada. It was just not economically feasible.
In the last few years, however, costs have been rising steadily in Holland, and this has forced up the selling price of Dutch bulbs in eastern Canada. Concurrent with this, British Columbia bulb-growers have found that though their costs have been going up as well, improved methods now enable them to compete for the large eastern Canada market.
* Tell those people in our British Columbia office to stop sending daffodils!" Reprinted with permission from The Toronto Star.
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