o
CARNATION, SCARLET LUMINETTE
ALL-AMERICA SELECTIONS
BRONZE MEDAL 1982HYBRID
PLANTING CARNATION
SEEDS DIRECT IN THE GARDEN
Direct seeding can be successful under two situations. . .where summers are cool, and where winters are mild.
Where summers are cool, sow seeds as early as the ground can be worked in the spring. Cover with clear plastic to speed up germination. Your carnations will bloom from late summer until hard frost.
Where it is warm, sow seeds in late summer for bloom the following spring. The hardy seedlings will live through the winter. Count on the mass of blooms coming in with the spring roses.
Concentrate seeds in a small nursery bed protected from insects, snails, and birds. Seedlings transplant easily and suffer virtually no shock if handled carefully.
May
1982
Volume 9, Number 3
In this issue
Cover photograph:
A Tea Garden in Japan. Photo by Tom Torizuka, a graduate of Tokyo Agriculture University (Landscape). Since coming to Canada, his commissions have included the design of the gardens of the Japanese Embassy, Ottawa, and the Japanese Consul-General, Edmoriton.
The Japanese Garden / 5
The Six Most Popular Perennials / 10
Keep your eye on the Centre / 13
Alternatives to the Petunia / 14
Now is the time / 16
The Wall Garden / 19
Welcome to Joni Coletto / 22
Horticultural Advisory Committee
Gerda Ferrington, Hal Price, Ken Reeves, Otto Rlchter
William Rock, Laurie Scullin
Executive Director: Tom Thompson
Editor: Fredrik Kirby
Advertising: Shirley Kirby (416) 226-0996
Graphics and Printing Thorn Press Limited, Toronto
General lnformatlon ISSN 0380-1470
Trellis is publishedin the months of January, March, May, July, September, and November and distributed on or about the 15th of the month previous by the Civic Garden Centre, 777 Lawrence Avenue East, Don Mills, Ontario . M3C 1P2. Telephone: (416) 445- 1552 The Centreis locatedin Edwards Gardens, at Leslie Street and Lawrence Avenue East, the geographical centre of Metropohtan Toronto. Itis a non-profit gardening and floral arts information organization with open membership. Subscriptions to Trellis are only available through Centre membership (10 per year). Opinions expressed within do not necessarily reflect those of the Centre.
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by Jane Donnelly
A man and his wife, worn out by the concerns of the day, sit quietly gazing at the landscape before them. A rugged mountain rises to the north. From the depths of the gorge a rushing stream, freed at last, falls in a silver torrent to a small lake. The lacy leaves of a Japanese maple give dappled shade to the ferns and mosses growing at the pool s edge. The careworn faces relax and anxieties vanish.
The landscape they are contemplating is not a real landscape, but is contained in a small city garden. The mountain is a large rock. The gorge is composed of steep-sided
lesser rocks. The lake is a free-form fibreglass pool. The tumbling water is recycled by means of a small pump. The windswept pine had been purchased at a nursery and lovingly trained, over the years, to resemble a mountain-top giant.
Similar word-pictures appear in two of the many excellent books on Japanese garden design. They portray so aptly the true quality of the Japanese garden that [ have taken the liberty of recounting a similar allegory here.
This garden is no less contrived than our western style gardens, but its rhythms and patterns reproduce and
Private garden in Japanese home.
Photo: Tom Torizuka
symbolize those of the natural landscape. They are designed to disguise the work of the human hand. Stones and trees are laid out asymetrically to suggest rugged naturalness. Colours are muted browns, greys and greens, with subtle counterpoints of colour in flowers, berries and leaves to mark the passage of the seasons. Even though it may be confined to a small courtyard, the effect is one of seeing nature as a whole. The amount of control involved gets to the heart of Japanese gardening. It is this control that gives it a primeval naturalness. Such a garden must be seemingly
casual, but every stone and shrub must be carefully selected and just as carefully placed.
The Japanese have one of the most highly developed senses of aesthetics in the world. The ancient, animistic Shinto religion, and the beauty of their land have made these people keenly aware of nature. It was, however, Zen Buddhism which had the greatest influence on the development of the contemplative quality of the Japanese garden. The temple garden was designed to nurture spiritual discipline.
In the land of their origin, Japanese
Photo: Tom Torizuka
The Japanese garden is nature on a microscopic scale. Nature is symbolized, not copied. Asymetrical lines and odd numbers in groupings give the impression of an incomplete and natural setting. The viewer is encouraged to use his imagination to complete the scene. The Japanese garden, particularly the sand and stone gardens, may be likened to abstract paintings.
To quote the Time/Life series, A westerner, when introduced to Japanese gardens, develops a new way of looking at a garden, and through the garden, a new way of looking at nature. In Japan, landscaping is considered to be on the same artistic level as music and painting.
The Japanese for centuries have considered the outdoors as an extension of the house. It is only in the last few decades that North Americans have been remodelling old houses and designing new houses in order to take full advantage of the garden.
gardens range all the way from the vast parklike grounds which once belonged to the nobility, the contemplative gardens of the Zen temples, the ritualistic tea garden, to the tiny courtyard garden of the private home. In urban 20th century North America we are primarily interested in the smaller garden which is often shaded by neighbouring trees and buildings. Lists of plants which are suitable for this type of garden with a Japanese influence can be found in books in the Civic Garden Centre library. Many of these plants are available at Toronto area nurseries.
Should you wish to emulate the Japanese, the entire garden may be redesigned, or just a corner, using fencing or shrubs as dividers. A patio, porch, balcony or even a small room may be converted into a Japanese garden.
One of the most charming ideas | have seen has been incorporated into the plans for renovating a single-story Don Mills home. At the end of a hallway a long narrow window reveals a tiny enclosed viewing garden no more than four feet wide. This would be an ideal spot for a raked sand and stone garden, away from little hands and feet. Although this house has neighbours on three sides, thanks to clever landscaping, no house is visible from any of the windows. Even the street is cleverly concealed by groups of plantings.
Modern garden with old temple in Kyoto.
When designing a small garden it should be noted that the smaller the area to be landscaped, the less margin there is for error. Conversely there is a greater feeling of accomplishment when one succeeds. In a small area imbalance and poor maintenance are magnified. Pruning and thinning are of prime importance. An overgrown garden soon loses its original design. It is best to limit your choice to a very few species. One or two of the major plants such as trees, two to four of secondary plants such as shrubs, and one or two of larger area groundcovers would be adequate. Selecting dwarf and slow varieties eases maintenance. Avoid massed bloom. One very small clump of Japanese iris is preferable. Remember that spaces are important. As in all art space has shape.
No Japanese garden is complete without rocks and water. Water may be real or it may be imagined, as in a dry stream bed or a pond of raked sand. If your choice is a small pool, freeform fibreglass pools are readily available. Select one in a dark colour. Secret little woodland pools with mysterious depths are not the colour of your neighbour s swimming pool, or of the sea off the coast of Bermuda.
Rocks too should be of muted shades of grey and brown. They should be weathered and worn and should be of massive appearance. They should all be of the same geological nature. When placing them their diagonal and horizontal striations must flow in the same direction. Great restraint must be used when choosing accessories. The first rule
Private home garden.
Photo: Tom Torizuka
should be, When in doubt, leave them out . One accessory is enough for a small area. Perhaps a rustic lantern would be your choice. A branch trained to hang down over such a lantern, half-concealing it, would be particularly lovely.
At the beginning of this article, a word-picture was painted which described a small garden. This picture could be enlarged to fill a vast park, or it could be reconstructed in a shallow dish.
It has been said that the occidental garden is complete when nothing
more can be added. The Japanese garden is complete when nothing more can be removed.
The Japanese have the gift of isolating the very soul of nature. As a result, when viewing a Japanese garden one has a sense of calm and repose. Jane Donnelly is President of the Toronto Bonsai Society and a member of the Horticultural Committee of the Garden Club of Toronto.
Stone lantern in temple garden, Kyoto.
Photo: Tom Torizuka
the Six Most Popular
PCI'C i&IS
As told to Fredrik Kirby by Hal Price
These six are so common that they are in practically every garden but each has one or two little points that if one knows them, they make them easier to grow and produce much greater success.
The six perennials, in order of their blooming time, are first of all the iris so common that it is often neglected. It blooms the first week of June. Iris is so hardy, it s almost impossible to get rid of it. If you dig it out and throw it away, it grows where ever you throw it.
The iris is adversely affected by wrong planting. The rhizome should be planted not deeper than one inch. People tend to plant it too deeply and then wonder why it doesn t bloom.
Another problem is that they are highly susceptible to the iris borer, an insect which eats its way down the leaf to the root and gorges itself all summer until the plant is reduced to nothing. This problem can now be very easily controlled with Cygon 2E, a systemic insecticide that is put on the plant. Best results come from applying it with a watering can rather than a spray which has a tendency to blow over onto the tomatoes where you don t want it.
The water from the watering can falls directly onto the leaves or that which falls on the ground is absorbed by the roots. So either way, it protects the plant from insect damage.
If you use Cygone 2E and be sure the iris is planted in full sun, you ll get the best results.
To replant the iris, choose a time somewhere around the first week in August when the original leaf growth
has started to die down. The plant has been through a period of rest and is now starting into a new growth which will produce active root in the new location. Plant the iris tuber or rhizome with the growing end growing into the centre thereby giving you an extra couple of years before you need to dig it up, separate and replant.
In our succession of bloom, the peony is next. It is an unusual plant in that the oldest plants and there are many 75 years old and older are some of the best. That suggests that one of the first things to learn about peonies is that they don t like to be moved. It takes them a long time to become re-established. As with the iris, the root must be planted very shallow no deeper than two inches at the most.
As is the case with any perennial you re planting, the soil should be
Iris drawing by Brewes Scholes, member of the Civic Garden Centre
blossom well dug before you put it in.
The ants on the peony buds every year have no effect, either detrimental or beneficial. They eat the honey-like substance on the buds. The plants are unaffected.
The peony plant is said to be a great weather indicator. You know that one day after it comes into full bloom, you re going to have the biggest storm of the summer that will knock them all down! So you have to stake peonies well. For instance, put a cord around them every foot as they grow up.
In full sun and correct planting, you ll enjoya full display of peonies, in season, from now on.
Number three on the list of six most popular perennials is the old favourite, the oriental poppy. You'll find it in practically every backyard in
that old orange-red colour which many of us find tiresome.
There are new varieties now in much more interesting colours scarlets, bright reds, pinks and whites and combinations of all these colours which are much more attractive than the old orange-red one.
The poppy has no problems with any bug or disease. However, one needs to remember that it should be dug up and divided about once every five or six years. The time to do that is somewhere around the middle of July when the original leaves from this year have died down and new growth is starting to appear.
The poppy has a long tap root. When moving it, you have to be sure to get a very deep spadeful of soil because the root goes down on a well established plant, possibly eighteen
Peony
inches. The central tap root shouldn t be damaged when you re moving the plant.
The problem-free poppy, now with new colours, has become a very attractive plant.
The next perennial on our list to come into bloom about the end of June is the delphinium. It's another old favourite which has to be staked very strongly. As soon as it has finished blooming, it is cut right to the ground, fertilized and watered well. New growth will immediately start and by September, you ll have a second blooming. So you get twice as much bloom. Delphinium is the only perennial you don t leave growing after it has bloomed.
After the second bloom, let it grow as long as the frost will let it continue. The plant is a very heavy feeder so it needs lots of nutrition in the soil as well as lots of water to dissolve the fertilizer and make it available to the plant. A suitable fertilizer would be 4-12-8.
The ever popular day lily is next on our list. This again is a plant that has no enemies. It grows with a great profusion of blooms over a long period of time. The newer varieties are more attractive than some of the older ones although that is a matter of opinion. Some of the older ones are still very good. But the new ones have far more buds per branch which means a longer blooming period. Mr. Price has one in his garden that starts to bloom around the first week in July and is always still in bloom in the second week end in August. So that s about six weeks of enjoyment.
The day lily has no particular problems and gives a great display of bloom. Only recommendation is to dig it up every four or five years and replant using the outer plants in the clump. The reason is that as it matures the older plants on the inside
of the clump become overworked and have a tendency to die down leaving a bare spot in the centre. The outside new growth will give the best flowers. And last on our list is the well loved and ever popular phlox. The perennial phlox has been developed so much in the last few years that it gives an attractive bloom from the middle of July until the frost kills it, probably in late October or early November. The only problem with phlox is that it is very prone to the fungus disease, powdery mildew. This can be controlled these days with another systemic fungicide sold commercially as Benomyl.
Benomuyl is not a cure but a preventative. So as soon as the plant is grown and has leaves on it, even before it starts to go into bloom, it should be sprayed every two weeks. Again, Hal Price recommends a watering can so the Benomyl is not wasted but goes on the plant.
One should remember to cut off the phlox blooms as soon as they fade. Do not let them go to seed because the seeds will be the old original magenta shade phlox that has taken over because it's the stronger plant.
Use Benomyl and phlox will continue to bloom right up until the frost kills it.
With these six perennials, you'll have a succession of bloom from the first week in June right through until the first killing frost. These simple pointers will help you enjoy a colourful, long-lasting perennial garden.
Hal Price is the Civic Garden Centre resident authority on plants. He is past president of the Men s Garden Club of the North Toronto Horticultural Society, a director of the York Rose Society and the Hortitherapy Society of Toronto.
KEEP YOUR EYE ON THE CENTRE
Horticultural and Centre events in May and June
Events in May and June include the Centre s Plant Sale, the Milne House Flower Show, and many other shows.
Courses for the period are the Photography course starting May 5, Winter Bouquet Workshops May 3, and Four-way Bargello and Pulled Thread workshops on May 31 and June 7.
For further information phone the Centre at 445-1552.
During May IN THE GALLERY The Don Valley Art School and from JUNE 2 - 18th watercolours by Erica Gottleib. IN THE AUDITORIUM from June 2 - 18th Constance Johnson, Mary Thompson and Tib Green will be showing their work.
May 3
May 3
May 5
May 5, 6
May 14
May 22, 23
May 30
May 31
June 5
June 6
June 7
June 14
June 22-23
June 27
Rhododendron Society of Canada
Rare plants: Sale 6.30 p.m. Auction 8.00 p.m.
Winter Bouquet workshops start Photography Course starts
Flower Arranging Basic courses start at 1.30 p.m. and 8.00 p.m.
CENTRE'
S SPRING PLANT SALE
10.00 a.m.4.00 p.m. Come early for the best selection. There ll be annuals, vegetables and usually some perennials and house plants, all grown by our members.
We ask members donating plants to the sale to bring them to the back doors of the Floral Hall (at the east end of the building) on Thursday May 13 between 10.00 a.m. - 4.00 p.m.
Orchid Society Show Saturday: 12.006.00 p.m. Sunday: 10.00 - 5.00 p.m.
African Violet Show 11.00 a.m. - 5.00 p.m. 4-way Bargello workshop 10.00 - 3.00 p.m.
Rhododendron Society of Canada Show
1.00 p.m. - 5.00 p.m.
Toronto Bonsai Society Show 11.00 a.m.5.00 p.m.
Pulled Thread Workshop 10.00 a.m. - 3.00 p.m.
Toronto Bonsai Society. Demonstration by Melba Tucker from California.
Civic Garden Centre members welcome. 8.30 p.m.
Milne House Flower Show Tuesday 12.009.00 p.m. Wednesday 12.00 - 5.30 p.m.
Canadian Rose Society Show 1.00 p.m.6.00 p.m.
LILAC TOUR For members of the Civic Garden Centre a tour to the ROYAL BOTANICAL GARDENS: is being planned for THURSDAY, MAY 27, 1982. The bus will leave the C.G.C. parking lot at 9 a.m. and should be back by 4 p.m. The lilac tour, luncheon and lecture will cost $15.00. Please contact the office with name and money to ensure a seat.
Alternatives to the Petunia
by Tom Powers
Whether they are aware of it or lent annual ground cover. It is also efnot, a number of home gardeners fective in hanging baskets or planter have been ignoring numerous oppor- | boxes in full sun or partially shaded tunities to incorporate new forms, areas. If trimmed frequently to keep it textures and colours into their annual | in bounds, it will make an attractive plantings through the addition of edging plant as well. distinctive, although seldom used, The bronzy-green, heart shaped bedding materials. leaves provide a pleasant background
Not realizing the potential uses of for the dense 3/4 clover-shaped pink the less widely grown annuals, the flowers which are freely produced all consumer invariably passes up the summer. Polygonum will not tolerate likes of Gomphrena, Talinum and frost, so care must be taken not to set Polygonum for more prominently the plants out too early in the season. merchandised varieties. These items Sanvitalis procumbens (Creeping often get buried at the back of seed Zinnia) is another good choice when and nursery catalogues or listed in a floriferous trailing plant is required small type next to splashy, full-page for an annual ground cover, edging promotions for plants such as White material, rockery subject or for use in Cascade petunias. planters and baskets. When given a
In an attempt to offer its visitors light, well-drained soil in full sun, ever changing, imaginative annual Sanvitalia produces a myriad of tiny bedding plants, Cullen Gardens and 3/4 golden yellow, single zinnia-like Miniature Village in Whitby, Ontario, | blossoms with dark purple centres. utilizes many unusual annuals, in The low growing 5 to 6 plants addition to the more popular types. In | form dense mats which will flower 1981, the Gardens were designated profusely from early summer until an All-America Selections Show frost. Try this one if you are looking Garden for the purpose of displaying | for a suitable subject to fill a few of and promoting the latest All-America | those hot, dry pockets in the garden. award winning annuals.
The dwarf cultivar Buddy of
The immense public interest and Gomphrena globosa (Globe requests for further information Amaranth) was deservedly popular at regarding many of the novelty plants Cullen Gardens last season. It formed grown here is largely responsible for 6 to 9 compact, ball shaped plants the publication of this article. Some of | which were literally clothed in rich the annuals featured at Cullen purple coloured 1 papery clover-like Gardens in 1980 and 1981, as well blossoms. The blooms on Buddy are as several types that will be included short stemmed; however, they still in the annual bedding in the summer make an excellent fresh cut or dried of 1982, are discussed here. flowerfor small arrangements.
Polygonum capitatum (Fleeceweed) Even though plant height is slightly is a vigorous 3 to 4 tall creeping variable and the occasional white plant that has proven to be an excel- ! flowered rogue crops up, Buddy
makes a good low bedding subject in full sun and sandy, well-drained soils. Summer heat and drought do not seem to adversely affect the performance of Gomphrena.
The rich flower colour is especially attractive when used in combination with plants such as dusty miller, ageratum and pink fibrous begonias or geraniums.
Cuphea ignea (Cigar Flower) is a useful addition to a mixed planter, the rock garden or as an unusual edging material. The foot tall plants produce numerous small, fiery red tubular flowers with black and white tips. This colouration is responsible for the plant s popular name, Cigar Flower.
The plants do equally well in sun or light shade and respond well to a location with moist, rich soil. Cuphea blooms continuously as an outdoor bedding plant or even as a houseplant in a cool, sunny room.
Santolina Chamaecyparissus (Lavender Cotton) is actually a perennial which will usually survive a Toronto winter if given some protection or if there is sufficient snowfall. It has aromatic, silvery grey, fern-like foliage which tolerates frequent hard prunings. This is one of the favourite plants for use in carpet beds or formal knot gardens.
When trimmed on a regular basis the plants can be maintained as a low 3 to 4 tall formal edging. If allowed to grow to their full 15 to 24 height, Santolina will begin producing 3/4 golden yellow, button-like flowers in July and August. The silvery foliage combines well with almost any flower colour in the garden. They perform
best in full sun in poor, sandy dry soils.
The full, airy panicles of Talinum paniculatum (Jewels of Opar) create a delicate haze of light pink in the landscape. The numerous small individual flowers only last one day and are then gradually replaced by tiny reddish black seeds. The presence of both the flowers and seeds at the same time on the 24 panicles makes an interesting combination.
Talinum makes a beautiful and unusual filler for use with fresh cut roses from the garden. It can also be used effectively in borders, rock gardens and planters.
The plants are very tolerant of heat and drought; however, they do prefer a light, well-drained soil in full sun.
Pennisetum setaceum (Fountain Grass) is a versatile, tall annual grass. The 2 to 4 bristly spikes of light rose to purple flowers spray out gracefully from the centre of the clump and nod in a fountain-like fashion. The plants do well in any location which offers them full sun and average garden soil conditions.
Singly or in groups, Pennisetum makes exceptional accent plants in borders, around streams or near garden pools. They can also be planted closely to form an unusual medium height annual hedge. Flower spikes can be cut and utilized in dried arrangements if they are gathered before they mature.
Brassica oleracea (Flowering Cabbage and Kale) are equally impressive whether they are used for beds, borders or in pots.in the late fall garden. Thick green leaves comprise the 12 rosettes which open after
several frosts to expose beautiful rose, white or purple interiors. Individual plants resemble gigantic roses and never fail to spark much interest and comment.
The Flowering Kale forms an open fringed, 12 diameter head while the Flowering Cabbage producesa slightly taller and more headed plant. The Kale is edible. The plants often remain colourful and in relatively good shape into December if weather conditions are not too severe.
The list of attractive, unusual bedding materials which deserve more prominence is an extensive one and | could not even begin to introduce
more than a few of the outstanding types at this point. To obtain seeds of these and other varieties of lesser known annuals, consult seed catalogues such as Stokes Seeds, Dominion Seed House and Park Seeds. Alternatively, you might pay a spring visit to one of the larger retail garden centres such as Weall and Cullen, which is known for their diverse selection of summer bedding material.
Tom Powers, a graduate of the Niagara Parks Commission School of Horticulture, is horticulturist for Cullen Gardens and Miniature Village in Whitby.
Now isthetime
by Ernest Pope
(May 1 - June 30th)
May and June are not only the busiest, but the make or break months of the gardening year.
Here are a few basic time table reminders.
Ernest Pope is on the Advisory Committee of the Civic Garden Centre and an active member of the Men s Garden Club and North Toronto Horticultural Society.
petunias, geraniums also to sow the seed of carrots, beets, beans. Time to prune the early spring flowering shrubs like forsythia and flowering almond before they start to set buds for the following year.
May 1st This is the time to dig and fertilize the beds and spaces for the planting of annuals. Also to plant outdoors cold tolerant vegetable seeds, such as lettuce, spinach, radish, onions, peas.
May 15th Time to buy annuals for planting out later in the month. (Blitz impatiens is a must.) Crabgrass control should be put on the lawn now. It is expensive but most effective. The seeds of this weed do not germinate until approximately June 1st. Peonies and delphiniums should be staked and tied up now.
May 24th Time to plant out the hardier annuals, such as snapdragons,
June 1st Time to plant out the more tender annuals like tuberous begonias, fibrous begonias, celosia, fuschia impatiens, nicotiana, etc. Also tomato plants and the seeds or plants of cucumbers, melons, squash peppers, etc.
June 15th Ideal time to spot spray the weeds in the lawn with either 2-4-D or Killex. If infestation severe feed lawn with weed and feed. To prevent almost certain mildew on perennial phlox and frequently tuberous begonias, the first spraying of a fungicide, such as benomyl should be made, and repeated every two weeks until the plants are in bloom.
SPRAYING ROSES
Probably the most important time to spray roses during the entire growing year is just after the first flower buds have formed in May.
A miniature (less than one half inch long) pale green black headed caterpillar, called a leaf roller, will eat holes in the buds and ruin the June crop.
After doing the damage it rolls or curls up the leaves often gluing them together with webbing that it spins, hence the name leaf roller .
They are easy to destroy by merely using a spray, such as Malathion or any other made for killing aphids and sucking insects. One thorough spraying seems to eradicate this pest and they do not return again the same year.
If you don t spray during the season you may be very lucky and not get black spot or mildew, but getting leaf rollers is a forgone conclusion.
PLANTING WINDOW BOXES AND CONTAINERS
A layer of pebbles or broken pieces of flower pot should be placed in the bottom particularly over the drainage holes to prevent clogging.
The soil you use should be richer than that in flower beds because the plants are almost always closer together. There is also considerable leaching of the nutrients (especially nitrogen) from the soil through run off, when they are watered. This lack of nitrogen will cause the leaves of the plants to turn a very pale green. To offset this condition liquid fertilizer such as 20-20-20 should be applied every ten days after mid-July.
A good soil mixture for the above is 2 parts loam or compost, 1 part moistened peat moss, 1 part coarse sand or perlite, and 1 part processed cow manure or leaf mold, plus one cup general purpose fertilizer (4-12-8 or 7-14-7) per bushel of mixture.
ANNUALS FOR PLANTERS
Shady location Sunny location
Tuberous Dwarf Marigolds
Begonias Geraniums
Fibrous Begonias Petunias (cascade)
Coleus Fibrous Begonias
Browallia Thunbergia
Lobelia (trailing) = Ageratum
Fuschia Sweet Alyssum
IRIS
After blooming, the unsightly flower stalks should be removed at the base. Unless you are hybridizing, nothing can be gained by leaving them to form seed pods.
Clumps should not be transplanted or divided until at least six weeks have elapsed or on about August 1st. The new roots that form as the old ones die off, are too fragile to disturb before that time. If they are, it will almost surely result in no bloom the following year.
Pine Ridge Nurseries
Home of all your gardening needs
SPECIALIZING in:
® Geraniums over 100 varieties (zonal, novelties, regals, ivies, scented, fancy leaved, miniatures.)
® Herbs
® Fuschias (over 30 varieties)
® Perennials
® Annuals
® Tropicals
@ Trees and Shrubs
® Roses
® Evergreens
We care about yourgardening problems. Come andsee us at our unique Garden Centre and Greenhouses.
the BULB BOOK
Martyn Rix & Roger Phillips Collins, 192 pages $14.95
by Brenda Cole
This new book is a most exciting colour photographic guide to over 800 bulbs, corms, tubers and rhizomes, most of which are hardy enough to survive our winters. It is rare to find the needs of both gardener and naturalist combined in one volume. The photographer and fame) has found the ideal format to do just that. The photographs are all dated and are arranged in the sequence of flowering. This is a great help when trying to identify some of
designer, Roger Phillips (of Tree Book
also appreciate the hints given on taking wild flower pictures in the field. Only a dedicated enthusiast could possibly have undertaken to research the wealth of information which is given for each species. This book will have great appeal to gardeners for both its usefulness as a reference work and for its decorative value on the coffee table.
the more unusual bulbs in the field or the garden. Each plant is shown com-
plete with roots, stems, leaves and flowers, with a scale and date given.
also been photographed growing in growing in the Tien Shan mountains, a bluebell wood in England, or a stand of foxtail lilies growing in the Hindu Kush were enough to reawaken my dormant wanderlust.
In addition, where possible, they have their natural setting. A carpet of tulips ation for me. In this book we hope to
In the introduction Dr. Martyn Rix writes Bulbs have a particular fascinshow something of the beauty and diversity of bulbous plants . This they have done and more.
Rix, until recently botanist to the Royal Horticultural Society, has complemented Phillips work with a masterly text. The introductory pages give an insight into general distribution, native habitats, collection, conservation, cultivation and care of bulbs. Amateur photographers will
Brenda Cole, trained as a horticulturist at the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, England, is garden columnist for The Citizen, Ottawa.
WONDERLAND
OF BULBS
Send $1.00 for our new catalogues, refundable on first order.
The multitude of rare and interesting bulbs listed, over 700 varieties, many difficult to obtain elsewhere, will prove to be a revelation. By far the most complete bulb catalogue in Canada.
C. A. CRUICKSHANK LTD.
Since 1925
Canada' s LeadingBulb Specialists
1015 Mount Pleasant Road Toronto M4P 2M1 488-8292
the Wall (Garden
by Wayne Ray
Do you need more back yard freedom and space? Fewer flower beds but more flowers? Thinking of removing that hard-to-care-for slope and don t want to put in a rock garden? Why don t you try a wall garden!
A wall garden will economize space and permit a larger lawn with all the flowers on a vertical wall instead of in
vground beds.
As with any garden, particularly a wall garden one must start from the ground up. The wall should be constructed of sandstone or limestone blocks of reasonable size and from two to eight inches thick, layered similar to a dry wall. The stones should be slanted slightly to the rear for better support and should be held apart by one to two inches of good sandy loam soil, not garden dirt.
The soil should be packed to the back of the cracks and crevices to prevent any air pockets. The smaller the stones the smaller the spaces of soil between them.
If your yard is not suitable for a wall garden don t despair, for you can work twice as hard and build a double wall! With a double faced wall each sloping inwards towards the top you get twice as much growing space in a very small ground area. The space between the walls should be filled with enough soil to form a good rooting base for larger plants.
The next important step is the
Single Wall
Double Wall
planting of the wall. The best time to construct and plant a wall is in March or April in order for the plants to establish themselves before the next winter.
It is best to place the plants in the wall as it is being built, making sure to spread the roots well in the spaces before adding the next layer of stones. Another alternative is to mix seeds with a moist sandy loam and press firmly in the crevices. Cover the area with moss to retain moisture and prevent birds from eating the seeds. Bear in mind the size of the plants on maturity and be sure not to plant too closely, or a large plant above a smaller one.
Walls do not have to be directly in the sun and should be planted according to its own micro-climate. If the wall is to be shady and moist don t forget the non-flowering plants ie: hardy and decorative ferns. Don t be afraid to use an old retaining wall by adding soil to the cracks and crevices and planting carefully in order to avoid damaging roots.
Most trailing and other hardy rock garden plants can be used in a wall garden ie: alyssum, baby s breath, campanula, sedums, sempervivens, and smaller ornamental grasses. So in closing, in the spring break out your shovel and your green thumb and good luck.
Soil
Spacing
Wayne Ray, a graduate of the Niagara College
Department ofHorticulture, is groundskeeperfor the residence of the University of Toronto President. He recently set up a horticultural therapy program at St. Michael's Hospital.
PRUNING SPECIALIST
All types of trees and shrubs pruned properly
Tree pruning Insured Willing to barter
Brian Sinclair 762-5828 anytime
Pleasant Way to Earn as an Amway distributor of nationally known products; in your own neighbourhood if you wish. We train you.
Phone Slade Hopkinson 497-1636
Weekdays after 5.30 p.m.
Weekends anytime.
Single-flowered marigolds have a single layer of ray petals around a tufted centre.
WILLOW FARM NURSERY
Buy direct from the grower a wide variety of EVERGREENS ¢ SHRUBS ¢ TREES
We are always available for consultation on what and where to plant.
On HWY #48, 1 MILE SOUTH OF BALDWIN
Willow Farm Nursery Toronto = L Sutton Hwy. #48 Baldwin
Member: Landscape Ontario
E. & O. Kuris (416) 722-5849
Mini Rose Nursery
Specializing in Miniature Roses
For 1982 Listing write
Florence Gahagan
P.O. Box 873, Guelph, Ontario N1H 6M6
Welcome
Joni Coletto
We welcome Joni Coletto to the Civic Garden Centre as Assistant to Executive Director Tom Thompson.
Joni is a graduate of the Niagara Parks Commission School of Horticulture the only girl in her graduating class and worked for the Niagara Parks Commission for a total of seven years.
One of her major achievements while there was the building of the greenhouse garden shop in the new information centre in the Parks greenhouses in Niagara Falls.
Joni radiates enthusiasm for the Civic Garden Centre. She wants to tell the people about the marvelously unique book shop and library. She wants to involve children, students, the disabled, and the community at large in the Civic Garden Centre activities as she firmly believes that people are becoming much more interested in horticulture and nature generally. At the same time, she hopes to teach some courses at the Centre.
One of her prime interests is fruit tree production. Just incidentally, she is a professional tree climber which, with ropes and safety gear, is something akin to mountain climbing.
Get to meet Joni soon. Her enthusiasm is catching!
International Orchid Centre
EXOTIC ORCHID PLANTS
Potting media and accessories
(416) 961-7335
1098 Yonge Street, Toronto
"@Country Squires
Garden PERENNIALPLANT
SPECIALISTS
e Creeping phlox N Daniel eo ® Fuldaglut sedum
A3 a1 from Germany \9 e Variegated Physostegia
Rock garden plants and alpines from the mountains of the world. Vigorous herbaceous perennials, ground covers, dwarf shrubs, herbs.
Almost 200 sedums, 100 sempervivum, 20 different species and varieties of dianthus, geranium, thyme, veronica, primula, lychnis and, campanula and a full range of miniature roses and iris.
1982 OPEN DAYS
Saturdays, Sundays and Holidays from April 17 to June 13.
OPEN DAILY: June 19 to August 18
Steeles Ave. 2 miles west of Highway No. 10
SQUASH, JERSEY GOLDEN ACORN
ALL-AMERICA SELECTIONS BRONZE MEDAL 1982
WINTER STORAGE SQUASH
You grow these during the summer and store the fruits through the winter for baking or pie-making.
There s good news about a nutritious new winter squash that grows on a bush. You don t have to put up with tripping over twenty-foot-long vines.
All-America Selections gave Jersey Golden Acorn squash a medal for 1982. You get three times as much beta carotene from Jersey Golden Acorn as from regular green Danish squash. Your body can convert beta carotene into Vitamin A. Good for you, and the squash tastes good, too.
You don t have to wait until winter to enjoy Jersey Golden Acorn . Pick the young fruits at golf-ball size and eat them as finger food. Some say they taste like artichoke hearts, others pick up the flavor of baby sweet corn. Leave four or five fruits per plant to mature. You can buy seeds of this new variety at most seed displays.
HOW TO GROW JERSEY GOLDEN ACORN SQUASH
Plant seeds one inch deep, 2 to 3 weeks after the usual date of the late frost. Earlier starting may cause yellow, stunted plants.
Make raised beds or flat-topped mounds by digging-in several inches of manure and sand. Fast-draining sand retains heat and speeds growth. Manure supplies nutrients, and improves water penetration and retention without becoming soggy.
Snip off the mature fruits as soon as the vines dry down and before a hard frost. Leave short stems attached; if you break these off you may make a wound where rot can enter.
Brush off soil gently; don t wash the fruits. Store in a cool, dry place. Don't pile the fruits; lay them in a single layer, well separated for ventilation.
LWhite Rose
CRAFTS& ~ NURSERY v
Growers and distributors of quality garden plants and craft products
NOW 8 beautiful garden stores to serveyou
HAMILTON 2500 Barton Street East Parkway Plaza Centennial and Barton St. 560-1600
ETOBICOKE
1582 The Queensway Between Kipling Ave. and Highway 427 255-0725
SCARBOROUGH
1306 Kennedy Rd. South of Highway 401 North of Lawrence Ave. 755-5345
MISSISSAUGA
335 Dundas St. E. East of Highway 10 West of Cawthra Rd. 277-2727
CAMBRIDGE
NEWMARKET 561 Hespeler Rd. 55 Yonge Street Highway 24 South of Davis Drive 500 yds. S. of Highway 401 895.2457 621-5281
WHITBY UNIONVILLE 1242 Dundas St. E. No. 7 Highway West of Thickson Rd. East of Anderson St. 668-7505
East of Woodbine Ave. West of Kennedy Rd. 297-3330
Open 7days a week
Shop without going shopping, the Amway way. Amway products delivered to your home. Phone Slade Hopkinson 497-1636.
Weekdays after 5.30 p.m.
Weekends anytime. Does your next social event simply have to
Ian A. McCallum, B:Sc.(Agriculture)
446-1040 9:00 - 5:00 Monday to Friday