tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-47191995940542686972024-02-19T04:19:14.964-08:00County GardeningGardening observations from Prince Edward County, Ontario, CanadaCounty Gardeninghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12503690956429899319noreply@blogger.comBlogger43125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4719199594054268697.post-65943629056506031232014-09-20T13:32:00.002-07:002014-09-20T13:32:32.206-07:00a roof and a place to pee...What a busy week!!! The roof got put on, the electricity trench was dug and the septic system was installed. Perfect weather for it (a tad dry for the gardens though... everything is really really wilty) and on top of this, we hope to have a Real Driveway bu Monday!!!<br />
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<br />County Gardeninghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12503690956429899319noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4719199594054268697.post-25618206512932831592014-09-18T04:35:00.001-07:002014-09-18T04:35:43.060-07:00Week 4?Construction is progressing quickly, it seems. The walls are up and this week (no photos yet) the roof is being added, septic systems installed, grading and driveway are all being put in. I hope also to start work on the first new garden - a small herb garden by the back door. Here are some pictures from last week.<br />
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<br />County Gardeninghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12503690956429899319noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4719199594054268697.post-85884011178417602532014-08-31T16:08:00.001-07:002014-08-31T16:10:16.243-07:00Foundation - DONE!!<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Smokey admiring the foundation - August 30, 2014</td></tr>
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<br />County Gardeninghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12503690956429899319noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4719199594054268697.post-47878338254801244502014-08-30T03:55:00.000-07:002014-08-30T03:55:10.796-07:00Week 2A new week, a new template -- it's as much fun fooling around with templates for this blog as writing it! <br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">week 1</td></tr>
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Week 1 - hole dug, base poured<br />
Week 2 - foundation forms installed, foundation poured and forms removed, well connected (pump installed), main floor joists delivered<br />
Week 3 - tbd...<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">week 2</td></tr>
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In the garden - the end of August has been quite spectacular, both weather wise, house building wise and garden wise. (OK, a little rain would help the garden a lot, but for building it's been perfect.) The daylilies are ending - just a few of the double orange left to bloom; the Echinacea are past their prime; Rudbeckia is in all its glory. Seriously. My whole yard is awash in or<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">week 2</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">compost bin on left finally emptied and screened<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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ange and yellow from Rudbeckia and the beginning of Goldenrod.<br />
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Bonus - I sorted out my third compost bin - emptying about eight years of accumulation to find some nice compost down in there!County Gardeninghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12503690956429899319noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4719199594054268697.post-75529561516590635872014-08-15T04:16:00.001-07:002014-08-15T04:24:57.496-07:00The Burn<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Gilbert from Redtail Vineyards lights the fire</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A hot fire for a Hot day!</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;">This is where we get to destroy... love using that word in this context... destroy the Buckthorn that I've been cutting down for the past few years. Common Buckthorn - (<i>Rhamnus cathartica) - </i>was introduced to North America in the 1880's from Europe. According to Ontario’s Invading Species Awareness Program, it was used originally as a hedgerow (useful) and as a decorative shrub (doubtful). It grows quickly in full sun or shade and its stems and branches have very sharp thorns. I know... my legs and arms can prove it! So perfect to use as a pasture border, right? To keep sheep and cows in, and other critters out? Problem is it sets a prodigious number of seeds every year. By prodigious, I mean this year there are gazillions of inch high seedlings everywhere on the property the lawnmower doesn't get. Its roots quickly reach down and take firm hold of the soil making it difficult to pull out. It chokes out other plants and, to top it off, even birds don't seem to have much use for the berries.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;">So I cut it down, treat the stump with a weed killer and last Monday burned the suckers into a tiny pile of ash. The top photo is Smokey and our friend Mags and her dog Skeeter enjoying it as much as I!</span></span></div>
County Gardeninghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12503690956429899319noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4719199594054268697.post-61203893331685757572014-08-12T16:06:00.000-07:002014-08-12T16:06:53.796-07:00It's Official!!<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjH-Kiuiii5-G4jFetKepwhEPlbPYwRyb5BjrtY3lRywRdEraNmF71OLlhQnU3LHTpXn7sfXW52B9MKYbD0YDdFBj-NYf9B43QG7LgKm8d3CkVQQLmConGjwD2AKHJi2PYreDDj5_v-LbqP/s1600/eventual+view+from+the+back.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjH-Kiuiii5-G4jFetKepwhEPlbPYwRyb5BjrtY3lRywRdEraNmF71OLlhQnU3LHTpXn7sfXW52B9MKYbD0YDdFBj-NYf9B43QG7LgKm8d3CkVQQLmConGjwD2AKHJi2PYreDDj5_v-LbqP/s1600/eventual+view+from+the+back.JPG" height="266" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">view from the back</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjIaI3NUKl0M2zYhQpXA0hv8fJwXbCzPviyFuzLfcjaoe6YrDxwIPA3ky8FojIijbtRYpgXgrEgocIs8DxH-zM-0gpOxrAq40mAjqeJkYEaupyoSZSFUHisClDcC-n455IsVwwLxNhqbVg3/s1600/The+hole+is+dug!.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjIaI3NUKl0M2zYhQpXA0hv8fJwXbCzPviyFuzLfcjaoe6YrDxwIPA3ky8FojIijbtRYpgXgrEgocIs8DxH-zM-0gpOxrAq40mAjqeJkYEaupyoSZSFUHisClDcC-n455IsVwwLxNhqbVg3/s1600/The+hole+is+dug!.JPG" height="266" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">view from the road</td></tr>
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If there's a hole in the ground that must mean things will really happen, right? Well, the hole got dug last week - here's the proof. An added bonus - the Big Machine pulled out a few years (five or six years, really) worth of buckthorn <span style="font-size: small;">(<i>Rhamnus cathartica)</i>.</span> I've been cutting it back and stockpiling it. Not really knowing what to do with it. Just happens my stockpile was in the way of the new driveway, so out it came and we celebrated with neighbours by having a bonfire yesterday. Pictures of that to follow! In the mean time everyone is very happy! More good news - there was six to 12 inches of nice topsoil over most of the area - this will come in handy when it's time to spread some good soil over whatever gets built up.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjaMm818JpTVuvsMh1XiOcthV-umaKI0BXuVUSbLQlNxVj7Kk5f2urE0wwKrP4b0PFGLe5KTUPMa0dVpU3yGbhIpMnW2gHfbzriIZ1FeWZrLalSV1oXVDlHZbCBFkV5el3eeKJXr2x0Wz6E/s1600/Rattlesnake+Master.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Eryngium yuccifolium" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjaMm818JpTVuvsMh1XiOcthV-umaKI0BXuVUSbLQlNxVj7Kk5f2urE0wwKrP4b0PFGLe5KTUPMa0dVpU3yGbhIpMnW2gHfbzriIZ1FeWZrLalSV1oXVDlHZbCBFkV5el3eeKJXr2x0Wz6E/s1600/Rattlesnake+Master.JPG" height="266" title="" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Rattlesnake Master</td></tr>
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I've changed my cover photo from the Rattlesnake Master(<i>Eryngium yuccifolium<b>)</b></i> growing quite happily in the Lavender bed - here's an encore presentation, with a new picture of the Corner Garden. It's now fully mature; in fact, so mature it's ready to start pulling out Echinacea and Rudbeckia and planting elsewhere. Good news for the new gardens to go in around the house eh?<br />
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With thanks to our neighbours Pauline and Gilbert from <a href="http://www.redtailvineyard.com/" target="_blank">Red Tail Vineyard</a> who provided the toast after ground breaking, and to our neighbours John and Tara who provided the bubbly (from Red Tail) for the bonfire morning!County Gardeninghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12503690956429899319noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4719199594054268697.post-44098560156134088392014-07-28T03:50:00.000-07:002014-07-28T03:50:05.462-07:00No construction update; a new Dayliy<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgaPX5QEkLeMry0LSwHLSk-sZfBl8166UzFFRsXuSwpRPuFZUI2vFuSDXZvA5Il_RRI8-ZZCBNx16MBX6ZM71nHxurOpqanvOWwwDAeM-sInA4aJ1A3SyvGSInhlpUQvaWxCZeopVgBSMwQ/s1600/Mar+22+2009_0185.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgaPX5QEkLeMry0LSwHLSk-sZfBl8166UzFFRsXuSwpRPuFZUI2vFuSDXZvA5Il_RRI8-ZZCBNx16MBX6ZM71nHxurOpqanvOWwwDAeM-sInA4aJ1A3SyvGSInhlpUQvaWxCZeopVgBSMwQ/s1600/Mar+22+2009_0185.JPG" height="265" title="" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The fiundation was starting to collapse - front door off its hinges... a few years ago</td></tr>
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There's nothing new to report about the construction. Things are proceeding 'behind the scenes' though. We obtained a demolition permit to take down the old cottage that was on the property when we purchased it. The real estate listing said "Two bedroom cottage in need of repair" and they weren't kidding! It was quite pretty 10 years ago but time and collapsing floor joists have made it unusable. Also, our architect will be bringing plans for the new house to city hall this week - with luck we should have our first permits within a week. Excavation and demolition is penciled in to start the Tuesday after Simcoe Day.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOiub-awzrwNQrA0VaNVU24oJ5oqrDRULy9_2Zutbq_XT2WNBXE-lR2SKVPRxhBFykIpFCm4jEtBQpuJBTT1WmOzdsGScglZYY3XvBUxuUSvSjnRXgljUJqvs1a69T459QjBHO0uF0OsW_/s1600/IMAG0095+-+Copy.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOiub-awzrwNQrA0VaNVU24oJ5oqrDRULy9_2Zutbq_XT2WNBXE-lR2SKVPRxhBFykIpFCm4jEtBQpuJBTT1WmOzdsGScglZYY3XvBUxuUSvSjnRXgljUJqvs1a69T459QjBHO0uF0OsW_/s1600/IMAG0095+-+Copy.jpg" height="400" width="223" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhouJ6THpdCIQoopqb9VTd6FeFQH8teXPKE8_NkhyNTqI8m0XRHJBuxu2CEMzE9ajaQosf0W80nareZxP3g8zmkQDliFa_INg-U4OfYhrWWjqh6E2qzQoh685u43mvSdrieDsLzOypGdqHC/s1600/IMAG0096.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhouJ6THpdCIQoopqb9VTd6FeFQH8teXPKE8_NkhyNTqI8m0XRHJBuxu2CEMzE9ajaQosf0W80nareZxP3g8zmkQDliFa_INg-U4OfYhrWWjqh6E2qzQoh685u43mvSdrieDsLzOypGdqHC/s1600/IMAG0096.jpg" height="400" width="223" /></a><br />
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Here's another favourite Daylily just starting to bloom - a two toned one. Plus another shot of that beautiful peach Daylily. <br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGlHm9-RvFVuWmeSCuZTOtwu-MGR2opNdQHeFl6qdzdo-8qZkSuFk5YNBd_G4ef5IuaeE5KJz8Ubn86P5J6WZAhSXs0HqE622u1_v77qQ3xLpuaEGxEjPhuqkboOCuE14PpoUuYo89bg3N/s1600/Hemerocallis+Catherine+Woodbury.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGlHm9-RvFVuWmeSCuZTOtwu-MGR2opNdQHeFl6qdzdo-8qZkSuFk5YNBd_G4ef5IuaeE5KJz8Ubn86P5J6WZAhSXs0HqE622u1_v77qQ3xLpuaEGxEjPhuqkboOCuE14PpoUuYo89bg3N/s1600/Hemerocallis+Catherine+Woodbury.jpg" height="373" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Catherine Woodbury</td></tr>
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I think, all in all, of the dozen or so varieties I have, my ultimate fave, the one I'd save if I had to move and could only take one with me, would be the elegant pink Catherine Woodbury. It has a slight fragrance and is just so different from all the others. I just read that it was registered in 1967 by someone named Childs. Dave's Journal (http://davesgarden.com/community/journals/vbc/Joy/76561/) shows this Mr or Ms Childs producing registered cultivars from the 1950's through to the early 1980's. How much fun he or she must have had!<br />
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County Gardeninghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12503690956429899319noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4719199594054268697.post-42210318794419449822014-07-22T17:21:00.003-07:002014-07-22T17:22:21.431-07:00LilacsOK I know - I'm going backwards here. The Lilacs finished blooming two months ago, right? Right. And wrong. It's true the shrub most people call Lilac - Syrnga <i>vulgaris sp.</i> blooms in May, usually in the County around the long weekend (although this year a week or so later -my records show them starting to bloom on Partridge Hollow on May 26). Another variety, <i>Syrnga </i><i>prestoniae, </i>started a few weeks later and bloomed until July 1.<i> </i><br />
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The flowers of all Lilacs are in one shade or another of pink or purple, as well as white and sometimes two toned. The difference between the two lie in the shape of the leaves and flower clusters. You can tell the difference in these two photos - the regular common Lilac has dark green, sometimes glossy leaves and bold, vibrant, in your face (and nose!) colour and fragrance, while the Preston lilac (this one likely a James McFarlane variety) has a much more delicate perfume and and very subtle colour palette. The leaves are paler green, almost fuzzy sometimes, and not quite as round as the S. <i>vulgaris</i>.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKxCLfYCrL27SOHkdv1PoE5mFpxMO0POKZJDB27IAWtKdzd-RFSh5R-DrXCuyflUqnZl1TrunRU3OPJqCo2-v4GT-tllZtCZ4_OrLoWrWmce_ECNjxOx6gFFZV8C1LAYy3u3-2-X_o3XoL/s1600/Lilac+May+21,+2013+b.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKxCLfYCrL27SOHkdv1PoE5mFpxMO0POKZJDB27IAWtKdzd-RFSh5R-DrXCuyflUqnZl1TrunRU3OPJqCo2-v4GT-tllZtCZ4_OrLoWrWmce_ECNjxOx6gFFZV8C1LAYy3u3-2-X_o3XoL/s1600/Lilac+May+21,+2013+b.JPG" height="265" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Syringa <i>vulgaris</i></td></tr>
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As far as origins go, Lilacs are native to the Balkans but quite easily naturalized throughout Europe and much of North America. Preston Lilacs were hybridized right here in Canada, at the Central Experimental Farm in Ottawa in the 1920's. They're more cold resistant and mildew resistant than other varieties, I find, and mine have never had a 'bad' flowering year compared to some years where I get very few blooms on the S. <i>vulgaris</i>.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhsmthl3RJVV4svY5IbkV1ylsdpL0nCv-tP7D2TFEJuSOWIhB99DzXizTV4j6qXLkKlfAlACTXHesM3SwS6DmdPKDF6gOZaP6ILL8qDvn9FmQSOAsdD4QgI60RknliDpfHn4-HFGIWVUZ50/s1600/Preston+Lilac+2+-+June+15+2014.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhsmthl3RJVV4svY5IbkV1ylsdpL0nCv-tP7D2TFEJuSOWIhB99DzXizTV4j6qXLkKlfAlACTXHesM3SwS6DmdPKDF6gOZaP6ILL8qDvn9FmQSOAsdD4QgI60RknliDpfHn4-HFGIWVUZ50/s1600/Preston+Lilac+2+-+June+15+2014.jpg" height="266" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Syringa <i>prestoniae</i></td></tr>
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The won't grow just anywhere - full sun is best (otherwise they'll get leggy and won't bloom as much) and they do like moist soil but not wet. I made the mistake early on of planting a bunch of them all around the back end - where the limestone was particularly close to the surface, creating drainage problems in the spring and letting the thin layer of soil get powder dry in July and August. Only three of an original eight bushes survive, and none of them are terrible happy. The Preston Lilacs, on the other hand, one of them in particular, seemed to have been able to adapt, sending down roots far enough to survive the summer, and I also happened to plant them a little higher instead of level with the normal soil surface.<br />
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I don't think I could ever get enough Lilac and plan to plant many more in the years to come. Properly situated, of course.County Gardeninghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12503690956429899319noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4719199594054268697.post-87147486496859025472014-07-20T16:30:00.002-07:002014-07-22T17:23:13.812-07:00DayliliesI arrived in The County this weekend to discover The Mound awash in colour, as if a hand from the clouds had reached down and, with one swoosh of a giant brush, painted it with red, yellow, orange and pink.<br />
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It's time for the Daylilies.<br />
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On the Mound, when I see the Daylilies (Hemerocallis, various species and cultivars) next to the whites of Ox Eye Daisy and in combination with the purple Echinacea and the scarlet Monarda, I find the colours to be, from close up, sometimes cacophonous and sometimes harmonious. It varies according to the time of day and the harshness of the light. What I've been drinking. Elsewhere in the garden there are smallish clumps of red and yellow flowers, burgundy tetraploids, quickly expanding piles of the double orange daylily a former neighbour in Toronto gave me. I also have two sections of the more common organge 'ditch' daylily. I know some people don't really like them, and relegate them truly to the ditch, but I appreciate the vibrancy they give the garden at the beginning of July, both in the back garden as well as along the curve of the driveway coming in from the road.<br />
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In any event, here are a few of the beauties.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiumu2Z0j8BTB0CgR8qwx6T7BmIDXGVQgvKYoIzPV6V-6mCAOFMCmzLsCtlHQpNsAHmNJ741OoF9Xq0hOeLB2h6y0BYIG-flZvoS2PO4pN3vZ5YXRqBCKQ6qe6S0x88I3ZCrcOHgFfFUBr-/s1600/IMG_0204.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiumu2Z0j8BTB0CgR8qwx6T7BmIDXGVQgvKYoIzPV6V-6mCAOFMCmzLsCtlHQpNsAHmNJ741OoF9Xq0hOeLB2h6y0BYIG-flZvoS2PO4pN3vZ5YXRqBCKQ6qe6S0x88I3ZCrcOHgFfFUBr-/s1600/IMG_0204.JPG" height="266" width="400" /></a></div>
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I have a lot of yellow-ish Daylilies, and several that are variations of yellow and red. I started many from seed, pollinating a red flower anther with pollen from the stamen of this canary yellow one. <br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjeVKE2fAZ8txgBJV8n01PtxIkzLP03Ho6mZdISy9J1dWsUIKTuKx7VDgbUW_dcDz19Jfr3hhgA8pmOw7EwVQ-qUM237IJ7hf0VKeQEdDcP5zX6kvy3ExBVuDunMB1km37MMHOdadNA5kgR/s1600/IMG_0206.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjeVKE2fAZ8txgBJV8n01PtxIkzLP03Ho6mZdISy9J1dWsUIKTuKx7VDgbUW_dcDz19Jfr3hhgA8pmOw7EwVQ-qUM237IJ7hf0VKeQEdDcP5zX6kvy3ExBVuDunMB1km37MMHOdadNA5kgR/s1600/IMG_0206.JPG" height="266" width="400" /></a></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">One of the hybrids</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhqfqegpbBSpVUS5wDtlUw8DWTQivqa696AXWEDx4A-U3PJjaKoXJhdclstKAAhOp2VDfgngm4Zs5oe8eYpmv1zTA55YOA436cd1AShr9BX0zZ2fuvWr5Jy6BRnL0i2RE31eOjxt_1yjFF8/s1600/IMG_0207.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhqfqegpbBSpVUS5wDtlUw8DWTQivqa696AXWEDx4A-U3PJjaKoXJhdclstKAAhOp2VDfgngm4Zs5oe8eYpmv1zTA55YOA436cd1AShr9BX0zZ2fuvWr5Jy6BRnL0i2RE31eOjxt_1yjFF8/s1600/IMG_0207.JPG" height="266" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Catherine Woodbury the only named Daylily I have.</td></tr>
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One of my favourites - this peach colour.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-AgvNe3-onWz84BDKYFkrJR1ufIKyEpultPNIGzk0pRJ2VCFap43uZip-hH-Ve6x3ZMd0f0TQORHh1CVX1Yrvn_T0iobeWSs3rWAtVmL8kPLT20S_yhhzcoDvRlLJodOwzAKGG4vWTVZK/s1600/IMG_0221.JPG" height="266" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="400" /></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">And of course the common orange 'ditch' daylily.</td></tr>
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<br />County Gardeninghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12503690956429899319noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4719199594054268697.post-85205588358146056322014-07-18T04:17:00.002-07:002014-07-18T04:18:29.481-07:00Construction begins - and something new on The MoundIt's hard for me to believe, and I really won't believe it until I walk through a front door, but The Prince Edward Group (my husband's company) has started construction on the new homestead in The County. Architectural technician Pegi Amos and excavator Paul Greer came over to stake out the foundation. After much discussion about drainage, direction and septic fields, the four stakes were pounded into the ground (through the very few inches they could go before hitting stone) and voila! Step One done!<br />
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If you look closely you <i>may</i> see the four stakes in the ground. Looking from the road towards the back of the field.<br />
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Looking down towards the road. That's the well right up front. <br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjqC30xfjWcMBhi_5bmmjHmpf03A6Y6WHfpGdTo22MTp8qCw0-e4jwM8ViVsfjmlamAdW5Xpk8D4aWEUNV611h_jgcedXctu3DssYDAiq1siLBpdKvKLxQIhyphenhyphenVR1mk1kSkp7YbHxbZjOfP_/s1600/Blanket+Flower+on+Mound+June+29,+2014.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjqC30xfjWcMBhi_5bmmjHmpf03A6Y6WHfpGdTo22MTp8qCw0-e4jwM8ViVsfjmlamAdW5Xpk8D4aWEUNV611h_jgcedXctu3DssYDAiq1siLBpdKvKLxQIhyphenhyphenVR1mk1kSkp7YbHxbZjOfP_/s1600/Blanket+Flower+on+Mound+June+29,+2014.jpg" height="266" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">(Gaillardia x grandiflora)</td></tr>
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A happy surprise this summer was the emergence and quite spectacular blooming of these Blanket Flowers (Gaillardia x grandiflora). I harvested seeds from the Leslie Street spit (Tommy Thompson Park) a few years ago and threw them all over the Mound. Hopefully they'll self seed a bit. On the spit, where the 'soil' started life as concrete landfill, these flowers only grow to about six inches or so. On the Mound they're reaching 18 inches -- I guess I can't complain anymore about how horrible the soil is here eh?County Gardeninghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12503690956429899319noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4719199594054268697.post-21463217036356656452014-07-07T17:12:00.000-07:002014-07-07T17:12:38.965-07:00Finally...A new apartment in Toronto, building a new home in The County, and, finally, a new computer. I haven't been able to post anything for a while as my late lamented laptop, after 11 glorious years, finally bit the dust. So here I am on my new HP, ready to share thoughts and images from the past few months and eagerly looking forward to chronicling the building of our new house in Prince Edward County, and the planning and planting of the gardens to surround it. <br />
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A reminder - here's the acreage (this past April) onto which the new home will arise:<br />
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<br />County Gardeninghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12503690956429899319noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4719199594054268697.post-73460615430175415792014-04-13T09:05:00.000-07:002014-04-13T09:05:20.666-07:00Shileau's PondIt was a long, cold winter with lots of snow. This means flooding in the Quinte region, including on our property. We generally have a smallish pond of melt water that stays a week or two, but this year the size of the pond is exceptionally large. It laps at the border of the Mound on the east and stretches all the way across the width of the front field, stopping finally three or four metres west of the lemon Magnolia. This means that the entire entrance garden is underwater -- Magnolia, Lilacs, Spirea, Spruce, Iris, Peonies, Tulips, Daylilies... everything. I'm worried about all of them, perhaps most of all the bulbs, like the Fritillaria and Colchicum.Only time will tell if they survive...<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8tyacdGO_eXIkYJL5Bt7PCN7xWdPxVAGE1Rqa6mHSvckF7rXwZbpHT39o27wxo15nYsTZGO5j0MdUPs735Iqi8ll4w5nMTq8cVddXkTBPaiYLYo5rgxJWpUZ5l1_HV7dIOlj5hvqBagAj/s1600/1st+Crocus+April+6,+2014.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8tyacdGO_eXIkYJL5Bt7PCN7xWdPxVAGE1Rqa6mHSvckF7rXwZbpHT39o27wxo15nYsTZGO5j0MdUPs735Iqi8ll4w5nMTq8cVddXkTBPaiYLYo5rgxJWpUZ5l1_HV7dIOlj5hvqBagAj/s1600/1st+Crocus+April+6,+2014.jpg" height="217" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The first Crocus of the year, about a month later blooming than last year</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiuqGgk_5K5vRZbWJK2lNrdzKxt2HuFYbWvZGTlEGzjMVbr02xaDOCBYaAjcNrERYfnvHLECTw4VFVEB5yP1vl_YemIRcbx_ZsNGHxRCFLYqIl1XX7wniIpNoMT_8ORVHVCTRJfrrZtj-Em/s1600/IMG_0098.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiuqGgk_5K5vRZbWJK2lNrdzKxt2HuFYbWvZGTlEGzjMVbr02xaDOCBYaAjcNrERYfnvHLECTw4VFVEB5yP1vl_YemIRcbx_ZsNGHxRCFLYqIl1XX7wniIpNoMT_8ORVHVCTRJfrrZtj-Em/s1600/IMG_0098.jpg" height="213" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Narcissus making an appearance</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgR3BF7SXLdZe8Oorj51EY_crkuKsw0oYmycc-hs3RoxIN7t_Ap4kP-fUBZZgt5m_sJU8FMxnG6RK15fUxi04Xdq5T_dA8Qk2K65BjPDxZorNtrv2O6vZNAoQkrauebNkL5bH5R5_2GOhsT/s1600/Lake+Shileau,+April+6,+2014.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgR3BF7SXLdZe8Oorj51EY_crkuKsw0oYmycc-hs3RoxIN7t_Ap4kP-fUBZZgt5m_sJU8FMxnG6RK15fUxi04Xdq5T_dA8Qk2K65BjPDxZorNtrv2O6vZNAoQkrauebNkL5bH5R5_2GOhsT/s1600/Lake+Shileau,+April+6,+2014.jpg" height="266" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Shileau's Pond - HUGE this year!</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhOuBVnhSlb1DYRE_P_OvR4uTXPxesdTOX9oHxvQJl7anIizYiYNHPAbjOPbaL5wFK6R8B5hxcFrfyT5NiHrDwPmPw6rpdKKwc2J3XiMjOGAZlWMYzpnY8oAae-2wgLM58mfyjjrR4PCYPG/s1600/IMG_0089.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhOuBVnhSlb1DYRE_P_OvR4uTXPxesdTOX9oHxvQJl7anIizYiYNHPAbjOPbaL5wFK6R8B5hxcFrfyT5NiHrDwPmPw6rpdKKwc2J3XiMjOGAZlWMYzpnY8oAae-2wgLM58mfyjjrR4PCYPG/s1600/IMG_0089.jpg" height="266" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Shileau's Pond - reaching all the way to the Mound</td></tr>
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<br />County Gardeninghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12503690956429899319noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4719199594054268697.post-65257759432096071142014-03-16T08:54:00.000-07:002014-03-16T08:54:07.305-07:00Seedy SaturdayI won't be doing much seed starting this year. Gave up the Toronto allotment garden (not enough time and too buggy to be enjoyable for the past few years) so I don't have any room, really, to plant things. Which is ironic since I have more than four acres of land in the County. Most of that land is, however, wooded or grass/meadow. The gardens that I do contain, by necessity it seems, almost exclusively ornamental shrubs and perennials.<br />
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I say by necessity because so many of the perennials I started there self seed like crazy and I've found it necessary to create new beds just to house the offspring. (Yanking and composting? Never!) Think Echinacea (Coneflower) and Rudbeckia (Black Eyed Susan) primarily. Of course I have also in years past started from seed Hemerocallis (Daylily), Allium and Iris. But for several reasons I've never seriously considered putting in a vegetable garden. <br />
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The first is watering. Rainfall can be a hit or miss thing in the County; some years there's rain every week through the summer and others nary a drop from June through September. This means watering, on a very regular basis. Currently, watering for me is a big deal, getting the pump into the well and carrying buckets of water to wherever it's most needed. In the driest years I'd do this maybe every two weeks. Not enough for veggies.<br />
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The second is grass and soil. Too much grass and not enough soil. I would need to create a raised bed and bring in good soil - the surface soil that covers most of the property "contains an abundance of angular limestone fragments," to quote a local brochure extolling the virtues of the region as perfect for grape vines. Not so good for double digging in compost etc or for growing root vegetables. And to properly build such raised beds I'd need to ensure grass couldn't get it. Much of my weeding now is controlling the grass that quite naturally spreads into flower beds from the yard and field. Weeds I can handle, grass is much more difficult.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi04KmE3pQ6rrTnQhP_0AqlUTRyfEM33AURMMaHuSnW2PX7sHbcRGk7OZi9AEagKnEs6LS1WNYRVPCuuSpql-PDDEXq671_6TnLaaFqZfsCZhb467EDblxT1GVOHXKydf1y7NLCFwbDIIPb/s1600/Crocosmia+July+2010.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi04KmE3pQ6rrTnQhP_0AqlUTRyfEM33AURMMaHuSnW2PX7sHbcRGk7OZi9AEagKnEs6LS1WNYRVPCuuSpql-PDDEXq671_6TnLaaFqZfsCZhb467EDblxT1GVOHXKydf1y7NLCFwbDIIPb/s1600/Crocosmia+July+2010.JPG" height="265" width="400" /></a>So where does that leave me? I've planted the occasional tomato and pumpkin but that's about it. I transplanted asparagus last fall from the allotment garden to a small bed - we'll see how that goes. Generally though, no veggies. Perhaps that will change soon. Who knows.<br />
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The seeds I started yesterday are Crocosmia, Lucifer I assume. I harvested them late last summer. The flower spikes were sent up from the corms provided me by a friend in White Rock, B.C., where she has huge bushes of them growing all over. I potted up some mature corms as well. Looking forward to these fiery red flowers this summer - and the hummingbirds and butterflies they attract.<br />
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<br />County Gardeninghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12503690956429899319noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4719199594054268697.post-83296960018020282302014-02-16T13:04:00.003-08:002014-02-16T13:04:59.128-08:00In less than three months...... we should be seeing this:<br />
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and this!<br />
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County Gardeninghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12503690956429899319noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4719199594054268697.post-55264994403204624902014-02-09T14:45:00.000-08:002014-02-11T14:47:16.421-08:00The Mound, 2014<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJJy3XJM2PjAe3s9vyfsAS9QSsGHMrCZyEeLGg6I69S1zmTfozI67AnIW6gY7sAbFCIE5masB2AzRvWL359cG81UK-pmL1IFuouZkcP4RThDgjPCFaOtQL5DrHprbUh_9iPkXoJBbd3hsM/s1600/Jan+18+2014_0437.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJJy3XJM2PjAe3s9vyfsAS9QSsGHMrCZyEeLGg6I69S1zmTfozI67AnIW6gY7sAbFCIE5masB2AzRvWL359cG81UK-pmL1IFuouZkcP4RThDgjPCFaOtQL5DrHprbUh_9iPkXoJBbd3hsM/s1600/Jan+18+2014_0437.jpg" height="266" width="400" /></a>OK - here's what it looks like in the middle of winter. Exciting eh? I think that when the snow starts to melt and you're able to see the little creeping Junipers it might be a bit more interesting. I should perhaps throw some large boulders here and there as well, to stick out through all that whiteness!<br />
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It's going to be interesting seeing how many of the new plants survived this rather harsh winter, and how may Tulips and Allium come up again!<br />
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Plans for the year? Finish taming the backside of this hill - pulling out the wild raspberry canes and the thistle and buckthorn <span style="font-size: small;">(Rhamnus cathartica)</span>, while keeping some clumps of Goldenrod and Aster for colour and nectar. Add boulders (see above). Transplant more Purple Coneflower (Echinacea purpurea) and Black Eyed Susan (Rudbeckia) from the Birch Border and Corner Garden.County Gardeninghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12503690956429899319noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4719199594054268697.post-49637174652876666702014-02-02T10:56:00.000-08:002014-02-02T10:56:35.033-08:00it's that kind of winter<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgin4-tenUiS0Fk5V1uvQP71i_wwcZ3TdWy1Z42NKGp4s62BWfiiKfDUFBL5H34Qc6Js84NRo_kJtpbMHC7aXhXHFXbQZnUGRh3CkDb8LCAXzu8-sMvr9q5xSJ7_NbW1eW15vYVPBjqrFjC/s1600/Jan+18+2014_0429.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgin4-tenUiS0Fk5V1uvQP71i_wwcZ3TdWy1Z42NKGp4s62BWfiiKfDUFBL5H34Qc6Js84NRo_kJtpbMHC7aXhXHFXbQZnUGRh3CkDb8LCAXzu8-sMvr9q5xSJ7_NbW1eW15vYVPBjqrFjC/s1600/Jan+18+2014_0429.jpg" height="266" width="400" /></a>Seems to be turning into a real winter, one we're not used to after four or five winters of above average temperatures and below average snowfall. This year, in fact, we're running below the seasonal norms. So far, at least. And there's no relief in sight. What makes this winter even more unusual has been the number of freezing rain incidents, and the number of days with winds high enough to produce white-out conditions. Come April I'll have a lot more dead and fallen branches to pick up from the driveway and I may try getting a burn permit for the first time, to burn them instead of just piling them up. Anyway, nothing new to report, really, so I think I'll just post a couple shots from earlier this year. One is the twisted branches of a corkscrew Hazel (Corylus avellana 'Contorta')<i> </i>that I kinda like. I'm going to try and get a few more artsy pic of this little bush later in the year. It was a rescue from an old landscaping job about 12 years ago; I had to cut it back by about two thirds to move it and it has taken until this past year, really, to show any vigour.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhgnfLJHMfcjVeJ9CMIjb8HEMwD8M03OXYVJxp7JVnxiFtbftU8_WMYyHXUO9UiuqoEWiMY6zugDDfOVabxEe99ia6VWbjPXAcAF8P8cgLf9hJP1ynS66klpUWRwQMvebWv1QrVNj9PM92J/s1600/Jan+18+2014_0440.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhgnfLJHMfcjVeJ9CMIjb8HEMwD8M03OXYVJxp7JVnxiFtbftU8_WMYyHXUO9UiuqoEWiMY6zugDDfOVabxEe99ia6VWbjPXAcAF8P8cgLf9hJP1ynS66klpUWRwQMvebWv1QrVNj9PM92J/s1600/Jan+18+2014_0440.jpg" height="266" width="400" /></a>This picture is Shileau inspecting mother nature's version of professional tree trimming. This Black Maple (Acer nigrum) had sprung up by itself right under the hydro wires. This past summer I had been contemplating the necessity of either chopping it down or pruning it back severely so that it wouldn't interfere with the wires. The Christmas ice storm beat me to it.<br />
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<br />County Gardeninghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12503690956429899319noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4719199594054268697.post-25456189465994620552014-01-29T04:31:00.003-08:002014-01-29T04:31:53.290-08:00WindchillThe winter of 2013 - 2014 will likely be remembered as the winter of windchill. Many people in the County are saying they haven't experienced a winter like this since 1977. By "this", they mean extreme blowing snow, extreme windchill. There have been white out conditions from Consecon south to Picton and beyond many days starting at the end of December and continuing - to today. Here's what Lake Ontario off Wellington looked like earlier this month - not an unusual picture this year.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi2Z5C3AWNnwiz0-LTx_Cx_1jXwgFVGgb65yGSkncVlYMHczL0WRx1XFtt2tckeC3dx2PFR1hz133dCI2HzTKRbfgBC4TtrkGVGX4nopH1IH7lGAipCo1615oFWAhGRHoYyqZdc4A4dqFJO/s1600/Jan+07+2014_.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi2Z5C3AWNnwiz0-LTx_Cx_1jXwgFVGgb65yGSkncVlYMHczL0WRx1XFtt2tckeC3dx2PFR1hz133dCI2HzTKRbfgBC4TtrkGVGX4nopH1IH7lGAipCo1615oFWAhGRHoYyqZdc4A4dqFJO/s1600/Jan+07+2014_.jpg" height="266" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Lake Ontario in Wellington, January 7, 2014</td></tr>
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Of course, what this means to the garden is anyone's guess. I fear most for the Magnolias - how their flower buds can survive the extreme cold I honestly don't know. My two varieties are rated by Dirr to be hardy to US zone 3 (the M. acuminata) and US zone 5 (M. tripetala). US zone 5 means hardy to -20 degrees fahrenheit - or about -29 celsius. So the tripetal <i>should </i>be all right since I don't think the actual temperature has dropped that low, but it will all depend on the windchill, which has gone below -30 on numerous occasions this year. It's planted in a somewhat protected location, with other large trees screening it from the strong north and west winds, but only time will tell.....<br />
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The other thing that causes me some concern is the flooding in the front field. I planted a few saplings near the road a few years ago - a transplanted pine and a donated white spruce - in a spot I thought would be safe. But looking at the pond that formed during last week's thaw I'm not certain. Got to get the drainage swale put in!<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh021aJ6KMjKY_VPQni01VhJ_OvVAzp9aANRSbuZN5AhCc1rkYBpoZzPJc04hpiteSlt7AvZ85j4f0mB4IwjW-mO1hHTUu5ABDbuCeqo4_NMD5WZv61BsAbjxUH4JJtNN0Xvhb0esXIB9DR/s1600/January+18,+2014+front+field+pond.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh021aJ6KMjKY_VPQni01VhJ_OvVAzp9aANRSbuZN5AhCc1rkYBpoZzPJc04hpiteSlt7AvZ85j4f0mB4IwjW-mO1hHTUu5ABDbuCeqo4_NMD5WZv61BsAbjxUH4JJtNN0Xvhb0esXIB9DR/s1600/January+18,+2014+front+field+pond.jpg" height="425" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">pond in front field surrounding two new trees. Oops!</td></tr>
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<br />County Gardeninghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12503690956429899319noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4719199594054268697.post-9732831026850380562014-01-20T17:37:00.001-08:002014-01-20T17:39:16.577-08:00Ice Storm AftermathThe resiliency of plants is indeed remarkable. From the tiniest lichen to the giant redwood - plants have adapted and continue to adapt in order to survive in the harshest conditions imaginable. In southern Ontario the weather and soil conditions are generally a lot more hospitable than, say, the far north or the equatorial deserts. Even here; however, plants need to be resilient in order to survive. No better example can be seen than how these white birch - Betula papyrifera - survived the recent ice storm. Here's the before and after:<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjPpxfx9ywK4MRwECngCA-68EHC0CbzHQpNH4LC1bhBl_VxY5arNOnnGibUxxj1InPT-zWlyUyNWTILX1X8ECSQMtHGgRgTaZbugfPzeWYugGk3SrtM7JqhyjkbW9IKoX6CMMiGbrBZp1n6/s1600/Dec+25,+2013+7.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjPpxfx9ywK4MRwECngCA-68EHC0CbzHQpNH4LC1bhBl_VxY5arNOnnGibUxxj1InPT-zWlyUyNWTILX1X8ECSQMtHGgRgTaZbugfPzeWYugGk3SrtM7JqhyjkbW9IKoX6CMMiGbrBZp1n6/s1600/Dec+25,+2013+7.jpg" height="267" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">December 25, 2013</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgt3PMWv7EACA_7PvN3j-nbKjr2nB_R2WKXGlIV3JswUGA5PwwubqVn03j9qOW6J81DiWeUWmPvF6HBMIulmzOYdt8rWtDB0SNXyFpJkBVLUH7gT0q0010JGJBZ9mYKrjxebQqO4nlJDS1W/s1600/Jan+18+2014_0427.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgt3PMWv7EACA_7PvN3j-nbKjr2nB_R2WKXGlIV3JswUGA5PwwubqVn03j9qOW6J81DiWeUWmPvF6HBMIulmzOYdt8rWtDB0SNXyFpJkBVLUH7gT0q0010JGJBZ9mYKrjxebQqO4nlJDS1W/s1600/Jan+18+2014_0427.jpg" height="266" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">January 18, 2014</td></tr>
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Another small tree, this Tamarack - Larix laricina- hasn't quite sprung back all the way...<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibL6M2aSXZAbQYrDh2x1K6MfHw37IchdgCa8Fjc5YIf6kVMYTma8n7sArvcDOu4i1XTzorXCTD1GIVKaElWEIY3qS5widZiJ50l0aIzo_V6VdJb5rjwSOsiKuS8n8VWjLMVeRCS0hLmP8T/s1600/Jan+18+2014_0424.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibL6M2aSXZAbQYrDh2x1K6MfHw37IchdgCa8Fjc5YIf6kVMYTma8n7sArvcDOu4i1XTzorXCTD1GIVKaElWEIY3qS5widZiJ50l0aIzo_V6VdJb5rjwSOsiKuS8n8VWjLMVeRCS0hLmP8T/s1600/Jan+18+2014_0424.jpg" height="640" width="426" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">January 18, 2014</td></tr>
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Perhaps that's the story with this pine tree - it has the most delightful spiral at the base of its trunk, as if it were planted sideways, or was somehow crushed when still a small tree. It's probably my favourite existing tree on the property.<br />
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<br />County Gardeninghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12503690956429899319noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4719199594054268697.post-23133740822569007972014-01-11T08:28:00.000-08:002014-02-09T14:33:33.144-08:00The Mound, 2013I don't have any more late 2013 shots of the Mound. Hard to believe, I know, considering all the time I spent working it last year! Here's a final shot from late May, showing all the Allium "Purple Sensation" - my favourite!<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">May 31, 2013; Iris and Allium</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhpUTuZLpnNjxYe7_24e_3Ji95mNeBSE2SwczG4xE6Z-AZqj289Cy0wrncDXnZYrI7v_E_Mk0rtBdbPlQYSGBCdaUuZ-Zr_XR5umrXe6N4ceEOa6v0DurIu21NsZx3g1eOTDcwsnFKFtsJa/s1600/The+MOuond+May+31,+2013+b.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhpUTuZLpnNjxYe7_24e_3Ji95mNeBSE2SwczG4xE6Z-AZqj289Cy0wrncDXnZYrI7v_E_Mk0rtBdbPlQYSGBCdaUuZ-Zr_XR5umrXe6N4ceEOa6v0DurIu21NsZx3g1eOTDcwsnFKFtsJa/s1600/The+MOuond+May+31,+2013+b.JPG" height="355" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Also May 31, looking from the south towards the road, which is just behind the trees near the left of the picture.</td></tr>
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But really, the gardening highlight of 2013 was undoubtedly the flowering of my Umbrella Magnolia - Magnolia tripetala. It was totally unexpected and quite sensational - there were five of these huge flowers on the little tree. I'm hoping this tree plus the other Magnolia I started from seed (Magnolia acuminita - Cucumbertree Magnolia, with its yellow flowers) will survive this cold, icy winter.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnvIVXhmalSXgLd0Imkrts2vZ0RZWFLI1R-zOxsnCY0DQB0eEIzpfiJnjeIs-g-ZyGPevBQUaesTTWetXc3NFfxJM6RLgsuCeKxHu2ei5i-j3ST3Tk5c1omxAs3bDdCVS6qYiR07Wq9YO6/s1600/IMGP1975.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnvIVXhmalSXgLd0Imkrts2vZ0RZWFLI1R-zOxsnCY0DQB0eEIzpfiJnjeIs-g-ZyGPevBQUaesTTWetXc3NFfxJM6RLgsuCeKxHu2ei5i-j3ST3Tk5c1omxAs3bDdCVS6qYiR07Wq9YO6/s1600/IMGP1975.JPG" height="424" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Magnolia tripetala - the flowers are about 10" long; leaves grew up to two feet long.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<br />County Gardeninghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12503690956429899319noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4719199594054268697.post-26974065814355788552014-01-05T11:06:00.000-08:002014-01-05T12:14:06.976-08:00The Mound, revisited<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjA8cAyH6lr3SYhx6CL3O58C_yt2wcCcKL-JHsz2WgAd24S8_i4Wn-Rt-FvsZT2P9p_8aoUD0xVn5d5DAHON8wkZ71ya06EYCOo0xVciW6YWb_Sjki9pN8CwZQebIMBxgICWTnpjJXEJdMQ/s1600/Lilac+May+21+2013+a.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="265" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjA8cAyH6lr3SYhx6CL3O58C_yt2wcCcKL-JHsz2WgAd24S8_i4Wn-Rt-FvsZT2P9p_8aoUD0xVn5d5DAHON8wkZ71ya06EYCOo0xVciW6YWb_Sjki9pN8CwZQebIMBxgICWTnpjJXEJdMQ/s400/Lilac+May+21+2013+a.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Nothing to do with the mound, just wanted to remember this beautiful Lilac. I purchased two of them in three gallon pots from Canadian Tire at an end-of-year sale two years ago for $10 each. They have a beautiful fragrance as well.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<br />
A friend remarked yesterday morning, while on a run with me and a few others, that sunshine in winter is like a free drug. So beneficial to the soul that it could almost be classified an illegal narcotic. I couldn't agree more!<br />
<br />
Today, another freezing rain warning for Prince Edward County. That means it's a heck of a lot warmer this weekend than it's been for the past few days. It's expected to get colder again Monday night through Wednesday, then warm up again next weekend. In other words, a fairly typical winter. <br />
<br />
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiSnBu-lyFWO9Z7MZNRc_qL-nkurxKAt3DXF-OkW1dxfpgrZ7V6SKU2kpt4S3Zz99eropC48umLsafnRKwf8BkfYsM-6CDKCH6hxRnIHN5r0CAn1joAXKqHhxe-1_HtCMsbYHwFbZ0nMnz9/s1600/The+Mound+April+27,+2013.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="265" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiSnBu-lyFWO9Z7MZNRc_qL-nkurxKAt3DXF-OkW1dxfpgrZ7V6SKU2kpt4S3Zz99eropC48umLsafnRKwf8BkfYsM-6CDKCH6hxRnIHN5r0CAn1joAXKqHhxe-1_HtCMsbYHwFbZ0nMnz9/s400/The+Mound+April+27,+2013.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">April 27, 2013 - the first of several stair cases built into it.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjwrAhCtvNkJj1IRBLnvniKb1FfV2YnwwmRujc6kU6_7u_GiEm9hMyCYg3GYvxS37pdiJQom03Gl9qY5hzx0o_awdh8STvS3YRliyBAft2V1k3KVTi7yz98R77izuvLtNAEna3jlvGGwBQ5/s1600/The+Mound+May+21,+2013+d.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="265" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjwrAhCtvNkJj1IRBLnvniKb1FfV2YnwwmRujc6kU6_7u_GiEm9hMyCYg3GYvxS37pdiJQom03Gl9qY5hzx0o_awdh8STvS3YRliyBAft2V1k3KVTi7yz98R77izuvLtNAEna3jlvGGwBQ5/s400/The+Mound+May+21,+2013+d.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A month later (May 21), the Alium had bloomed</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
It's probably time to update everyone (LOL!) about The Mound. You may recall The Mound is a pile of soil created by a contractor friend when he dumped (at my request) several loads of soil from a home he was excavating/building five or six years ago. I discovered early on some surviving reminders of that original house: beautiful Iris, Paeonia [Peony]and Hosta; most of these I transplanted elsewhere in the garden, and let the pile of soil just sit there, untended.<br />
<br />
The wild flowers had their way those first few years and I wound up with a colourful yet unappealing mix of six foot Solidago [Goldenrod], Aster, thistle and other things I don't know the name of but had tiny yellow flowers. Three years ago I started to tame the Mound, section by section, by cutting down dead stalks, using Round Up (sue me...) on new growth and a shovel to round off and distribute the soil a bit more evenly. Then I started transplanting things from my Toronto gardens, planting bulbs and scattering seeds. In 2013 I finished about 80 per cent, I'd say.<br />
<br />
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiapLFecxhlalxU6QvbuNnXqNWpHVINOHcjDQWve0UgmGXi3rvZOkgee5Iu-ER9y3vsP8LKn2oBWjJZQzuqCy_ie-Tuo5hVuTPNEvaWDv1fRfx7iEyYhYzzUvEmU6jxeHnEkJtQ1-K1gJzf/s1600/the+Mound+Spring+2013.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="265" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiapLFecxhlalxU6QvbuNnXqNWpHVINOHcjDQWve0UgmGXi3rvZOkgee5Iu-ER9y3vsP8LKn2oBWjJZQzuqCy_ie-Tuo5hVuTPNEvaWDv1fRfx7iEyYhYzzUvEmU6jxeHnEkJtQ1-K1gJzf/s400/the+Mound+Spring+2013.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Same day, wider shot. Notice all the branches on the Juglans cinerea <br />
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container"><tbody>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"></td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"></td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"></td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">(Butternut tree) on the far left.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
</td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br /></td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br /></td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br /></td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br /></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
There are five paths through the Mound, and I've planted everything from Hemerocallis (Daylily) to Rudbeckia (Black Eye Susan), Hosta, Sedum spectabile, Veronica "Whitley's Speedwell" and may others.<br />
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Here are three shots from the spring. More to come in later posts.<br />
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<br />County Gardeninghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12503690956429899319noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4719199594054268697.post-47228254002000486542014-01-01T17:37:00.000-08:002014-01-01T17:37:10.375-08:00It's a new year....<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7bp_6HqMFyNEIuig5XVXCUueneIjwwBIn72AJP7JoYMOo3Ho-wtw3h9vTM2oIsRVj-54hJcmBUokB42EEcU0MtnaI-ba9nicf6LlWrSgxgx5i6zygaRP619nCaPtxXmAzG_6i6Z4eDs3m/s1600/Dec+25,+2013.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7bp_6HqMFyNEIuig5XVXCUueneIjwwBIn72AJP7JoYMOo3Ho-wtw3h9vTM2oIsRVj-54hJcmBUokB42EEcU0MtnaI-ba9nicf6LlWrSgxgx5i6zygaRP619nCaPtxXmAzG_6i6Z4eDs3m/s400/Dec+25,+2013.jpg" width="267" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Picea pungens <i>v. glauca</i></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
I want to start the year off right...I want to make a pledge (just to myself since no one else knows this blog exists) to write something here at least once a week, even if I haven't taken any new photos in the County.<br />
<br />
So here's the first post of 2014, featuring a photo on my property taken by my friend Terry Shewchuck. It's a Colorado Blue Spruce (Picea pungens <i>var. glauca </i>-- another pledge, to try and use botanical names as much as possible) I purchased seven years ago. It was a foot high then. This past summer it reached about seven feet - so a foot a year on average. I mostly try to use Picea glauca - the native White Spruce - but couldn't resist this fellow when it was tiny and terribly blue. Since then friends have given me a few additional Blue Spruces (after using them as small living Christmas trees). One particular White Spruce on the property grows much faster , in some years as much as a metre. Pictures to follow.<br />
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<br />County Gardeninghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12503690956429899319noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4719199594054268697.post-68146969306564321222013-12-29T09:54:00.000-08:002013-12-29T09:57:01.522-08:00Goodbye 2013...Hello 2014!It's hard to believe I haven't written anything for a year and a half. Once again, my 2014 resolution will be to try and get something down at least once a week, with our without photos.<br />
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In the summer of 2012 I was worried about the drought. 2013 brought lots of rain in the spring, and enough through the summer to make everything happy. There was snow early in December and it has stayed thanks to unseasonal cold temperatures. A few days before Christmas came the ice storm. Throughout the County (and the whole of Southern Ontario) there was major damage to trees - many limbs were snapped off due to the weight of the ice.<br />
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<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiqbny_UGR_RELID7gzIj6ncM8e9Z5Tf2GihpIITVKpTiDxLKACKOmlFD-eilG91sXF6TdvYaFGv8mD_s-_cRlCme4HhmF64i3NmFvcC9YNnCTr2kll-gBl_UzxMcoBAgIwTEHtTSh_2pZO/s1600/Dec+25,+2013+7.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="267" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiqbny_UGR_RELID7gzIj6ncM8e9Z5Tf2GihpIITVKpTiDxLKACKOmlFD-eilG91sXF6TdvYaFGv8mD_s-_cRlCme4HhmF64i3NmFvcC9YNnCTr2kll-gBl_UzxMcoBAgIwTEHtTSh_2pZO/s400/Dec+25,+2013+7.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Birch trees bent over on Christmas day</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
In my garden there are a lot of branches on the ground, but nothing major and nothing that likely was not dead to begin with. The biggest potential issue as been with bent over trees. These are the small birch and maple, 10 to 20 feet high, that are bent almost to the ground. There are even a few juniper bent like this. <br />
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The ice made the County a magical place. Imagine driving through the middle of a sparkling, silver tinted photo as sunshine reflects off a million angles of ice coated twigs, branches, fields and fence posts; an almost turquoise blue sky above with a line of clouds in the distance. That's how it was.<br />
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Here's to 2014, when I hope to share some stories and projects from the past year as well as new discoveries and surprises.<br />
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<br />County Gardeninghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12503690956429899319noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4719199594054268697.post-9189998225003902662012-08-16T17:52:00.000-07:002012-08-16T17:54:26.907-07:00In Praise of Daylilies
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<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-CA"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-CA">One of the perennials to have come thru the
drought with no great damage are daylilies.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>That was to be expected, I guess.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>But what I really love is this late blooming double orange variety.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It’s a vigorous grower – I got mine from a
neighbour in Toronto
who was throwing out a bunch he had torn from his front yard.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They start late and have many many flower
buds so put on a show usually through August, even this year, with the early
start.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Most of my daylilies I start from
seed.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I purchased six plants over the
past 10 or so years and try to cross breed them to come up with interesting
colours.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I love the deep lemon
yellows.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I also really love this pink
Catherine Woodbury – it’s been in my Toronto backyard for about 12 years but I
need to move it – possibly in September – because the Kousa Dogwood has grown
so much my previously sunny garden is now either partial or total shade.</span></div>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgliRQUblX-emIuqsoh-SNJmcwh3OAHrBcyWPYx1CESxydmaezp6H7N7HZgfrPhRM95UqPpNFNqX20Gh7bPk2A8X4V4wttg8KTLEClLoJpTdI97pEeFCKEtOHRojKiDnuQ8Nk2pqCbQ_QSy/s1600/July+19+2009+b.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="265" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgliRQUblX-emIuqsoh-SNJmcwh3OAHrBcyWPYx1CESxydmaezp6H7N7HZgfrPhRM95UqPpNFNqX20Gh7bPk2A8X4V4wttg8KTLEClLoJpTdI97pEeFCKEtOHRojKiDnuQ8Nk2pqCbQ_QSy/s400/July+19+2009+b.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">common 'ditch' daylily</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhu636Wfgzt9EIKCnNhhtM2W_U68gdFe0_QMOaSSEHhChDDTDYvNuEDHa3Fn7XDfnbsxI_kIAzsFlNitU6jV1VPA4SqnAXy7mqKRqlJt602qpUAKVKmEr7n0hbm97-3QDKpqsgikMT6rYiH/s1600/double+day+lily+and+bug+July+29,+2012.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="151" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhu636Wfgzt9EIKCnNhhtM2W_U68gdFe0_QMOaSSEHhChDDTDYvNuEDHa3Fn7XDfnbsxI_kIAzsFlNitU6jV1VPA4SqnAXy7mqKRqlJt602qpUAKVKmEr7n0hbm97-3QDKpqsgikMT6rYiH/s200/double+day+lily+and+bug+July+29,+2012.JPG" width="200" /></a></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgauyTG1Sc1OIUu5YeqhIBdHX1c5xXA_FGVCSg8R5rLDiLMI2Amu4r4aw3ycpPYNMlQI5bk8zkmDhVM5PosEt9-WUwapqtDSzPycosQ6iE6Xee4MXKrbMCW-tkjWeLhVYy308mO1EU0pLrP/s1600/Hemerocallis+Catherine+Woodbury.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="186" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgauyTG1Sc1OIUu5YeqhIBdHX1c5xXA_FGVCSg8R5rLDiLMI2Amu4r4aw3ycpPYNMlQI5bk8zkmDhVM5PosEt9-WUwapqtDSzPycosQ6iE6Xee4MXKrbMCW-tkjWeLhVYy308mO1EU0pLrP/s200/Hemerocallis+Catherine+Woodbury.jpg" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Catherine Woodbury</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEijO75lBa4mIzsIFEBa85LoqHWxmdOPXqHpuwXaZRGwTHQZM9ODo820Nnd66u33zuoJVD31Mdrszl4Ly9rdt_9iUsejUtfokij0jtr-eBDBGOS3Sy4RDwAZzApIbB3HPQ2ex6L4rVvqZkMc/s1600/Day+lily1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="150" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEijO75lBa4mIzsIFEBa85LoqHWxmdOPXqHpuwXaZRGwTHQZM9ODo820Nnd66u33zuoJVD31Mdrszl4Ly9rdt_9iUsejUtfokij0jtr-eBDBGOS3Sy4RDwAZzApIbB3HPQ2ex6L4rVvqZkMc/s200/Day+lily1.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEij0xMkEOJD_g-8DEoelD1nYWsoA8zxy350Hb6aWfvh080KqihRNpIauC_Lyj3D4wijlQBkVHDiWFKGDWJ1iHaR4MUMbJbwcQvp0-jtvgsm81Cnkhu5pajxGr1qheg9vndpdXI8h0po2Wrr/s1600/IMGP0791.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="212" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEij0xMkEOJD_g-8DEoelD1nYWsoA8zxy350Hb6aWfvh080KqihRNpIauC_Lyj3D4wijlQBkVHDiWFKGDWJ1iHaR4MUMbJbwcQvp0-jtvgsm81Cnkhu5pajxGr1qheg9vndpdXI8h0po2Wrr/s320/IMGP0791.JPG" width="320" /></a><br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
County Gardeninghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12503690956429899319noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4719199594054268697.post-41777427022435258992012-08-06T12:11:00.001-07:002012-08-06T12:11:51.708-07:00from July 29...<br />
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<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnY_YBhcFQ1vQasYskK8sAhz8crwlRb7pVzoVSDszqw6l0XI6ornocaTHZazSov7mTx-Xm6FBoU9-_GqeUQmEPDOCmCaJd-AI9HpKvnIKNykowCs-d5sCl0rBGRAdBag-d3jT2pP7VjNVv/s1600/deadish+Echinacea+July+29,+2012.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnY_YBhcFQ1vQasYskK8sAhz8crwlRb7pVzoVSDszqw6l0XI6ornocaTHZazSov7mTx-Xm6FBoU9-_GqeUQmEPDOCmCaJd-AI9HpKvnIKNykowCs-d5sCl0rBGRAdBag-d3jT2pP7VjNVv/s200/deadish+Echinacea+July+29,+2012.JPG" width="158" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">dead Echinacea</td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br /></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-CA">More drought damage – these Echinaceas
should be in full bloom.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Instead, most
of the blossoms are stunted, petals a third their normal length. On others,
the entire flower head has died off – at least the plant itself is not dead and
if we continue to get a bit of rain these side flowers may bloom. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
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<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhMuQ1eKtSrIoPu78I_FD6BTM3_cYOE_N6Btpttir_QLU7itMjNe0XxG6avslzkxeVHFnZATtZyowFGhIAISAb5QucvhFB9L9J0IG8eCyIdZx4CbZX27TbykcmAlCya9fWDotfYt88U0I6H/s1600/healthy+Joe+Pye+weed+July+29,+2012.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhMuQ1eKtSrIoPu78I_FD6BTM3_cYOE_N6Btpttir_QLU7itMjNe0XxG6avslzkxeVHFnZATtZyowFGhIAISAb5QucvhFB9L9J0IG8eCyIdZx4CbZX27TbykcmAlCya9fWDotfYt88U0I6H/s200/healthy+Joe+Pye+weed+July+29,+2012.JPG" width="151" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">healthy Joe Pye Weed</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJEtut_2DmkV5MYAJ_b7pE6bpPUBdiRSG17R3ET0vQpGVr1Qg3g8OCgLOm58rIijMhy01Fn-KdJQtUNIMOzUq6Jq-1D_O8wMewlhcRN8ShZjRtZP_UcJR3Oo1bslu9-Z22d6ek0H1RwCZi/s1600/deadish+Joe+Pye+Weed+July+29,+2012.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJEtut_2DmkV5MYAJ_b7pE6bpPUBdiRSG17R3ET0vQpGVr1Qg3g8OCgLOm58rIijMhy01Fn-KdJQtUNIMOzUq6Jq-1D_O8wMewlhcRN8ShZjRtZP_UcJR3Oo1bslu9-Z22d6ek0H1RwCZi/s200/deadish+Joe+Pye+Weed+July+29,+2012.JPG" width="125" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">deadish Joe Pye Weed</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-CA">One of the saddest sites (along with the
rudbeckia) is the Joe Pye Weed.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It
should be in full bloom right now.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Instead, I have this: <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Again, the stalks at least are green so I’m
hoping all is not lost for future years.</span></div>County Gardeninghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12503690956429899319noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4719199594054268697.post-74287493642585597022012-08-05T13:42:00.000-07:002012-08-05T13:42:25.107-07:00more on the drought...<div class="MsoNormal">
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On vacation, with no internet <span lang="EN-CA">- this was written on July 28 s</span>
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<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEij9DrxG8hihe8buRZ08RZt6sd6UOqfnQd2CtPP3nUc91A2k6AFkPzEE5ZFCcAcfsigDKlgN9bac-TTzwiphab1Bo69uSgu7hLP-0nrLVYkKdZOBGFXHvgYP9fc5xUSi6j7qRCiZrNDOC8S/s1600/healthy+Compass+Plant+July+29%252C+2012.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEij9DrxG8hihe8buRZ08RZt6sd6UOqfnQd2CtPP3nUc91A2k6AFkPzEE5ZFCcAcfsigDKlgN9bac-TTzwiphab1Bo69uSgu7hLP-0nrLVYkKdZOBGFXHvgYP9fc5xUSi6j7qRCiZrNDOC8S/s200/healthy+Compass+Plant+July+29%252C+2012.JPG" width="101" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">healthy Compass Plant</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbiTor3_NaCH4vGrJGO_Ni7x5wAl5voJlmGGLdEyEzFT7FdVmbCxHjO0b3WT3pLq63q9uSg_J9HIEptyj2EJjCqL-kydF2kLaYFsN-n20yPtefPdv7RZtQy06Jm8zrMq-IH-OP-Kj7pTEr/s1600/deadish+Compass+Plant+July+29%252C+2012.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbiTor3_NaCH4vGrJGO_Ni7x5wAl5voJlmGGLdEyEzFT7FdVmbCxHjO0b3WT3pLq63q9uSg_J9HIEptyj2EJjCqL-kydF2kLaYFsN-n20yPtefPdv7RZtQy06Jm8zrMq-IH-OP-Kj7pTEr/s200/deadish+Compass+Plant+July+29%252C+2012.JPG" width="85" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">deadish Compass Plant</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-CA">Well the rain barrels are full again – they
had a lot of rain here in the County the same time as it was raining in Toronto.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>On a quick walkabout I can see most things
survived that bit of drought, but a few not so much.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>One compass plant looks like it was November
– Compass Plants are native to the prairies; supposedly they can
send a tap root down 20 feet or more.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Other compass plants on the property aren’t nearly as bad –
so my guess is there’s a stone shelf not too far beneath the soil surface here
and the roots haven’t been able to penetrate or find any cracks to get down
into, despite this being its 7<sup>th</sup> year in this location.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This theory would also explain why there’s
standing water in this area of the field every spring after the snow melts – no
where for the water to go.</span></div>
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<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjpoZGJqMJyHu_liXZ7TxwNeVWjOcfQ20xs9Op4k5_B_1EFpa_kTjW464O9_M-a1eNjmdrdLVldc6qQ6J1eZZIRA6w3sQCBPvM9na3NXEZ4solpJ1Z7IzMOyTwWB05av6ryXMga_QaWA4pk/s1600/deadish+Rudbeckia+July+29%252C+2012.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="132" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjpoZGJqMJyHu_liXZ7TxwNeVWjOcfQ20xs9Op4k5_B_1EFpa_kTjW464O9_M-a1eNjmdrdLVldc6qQ6J1eZZIRA6w3sQCBPvM9na3NXEZ4solpJ1Z7IzMOyTwWB05av6ryXMga_QaWA4pk/s200/deadish+Rudbeckia+July+29%252C+2012.JPG" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">deadish Black Eyed Susan</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5pBh_pqdwHDVkyUZNnQ9Z4ZevFpzX1CbVGisPb_2qT_MHTViK0Nm5mdX3yCccHTtxU03VCzjU-pojMKBwPbAQzsBc7KgoXSPplZ1addltLjHII4uRicmeAu8ehvjXaVFWOgOknKHU53F5/s1600/health+Rudbeckia+July+29%252C+2012.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="151" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5pBh_pqdwHDVkyUZNnQ9Z4ZevFpzX1CbVGisPb_2qT_MHTViK0Nm5mdX3yCccHTtxU03VCzjU-pojMKBwPbAQzsBc7KgoXSPplZ1addltLjHII4uRicmeAu8ehvjXaVFWOgOknKHU53F5/s200/health+Rudbeckia+July+29%252C+2012.JPG" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">healthy Black Eyed Susan</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-CA">The other major casualty are my Black Eyed
Susans – almost everywhere on the property one particular variety is dead, dead, dead,
although I can see new leaves coming up from the ground so I don’t think all is
lost.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Just no flowers this year.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>A different variety seems to have
come through almost unscathed although that may have something to do
with the location.</span></div>County Gardeninghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12503690956429899319noreply@blogger.com0