Whew!

What a year and I am bloggin again, must be February!! Seed catalogues, nursery catalogues and other remnants of trade shows and mail box findings are at my feet. Honestly though, I have had time only for the nursery catalogues. I need to go through my seed orders and see what I want to plant for next year. . . I have saved some gourd seeds, Cinderella pumpkin seeds and other that I liked from last fall. Also a lot of native flower seeds. This year I am continuing on my trend here to plant for the pollinators, butterflies and birds. As they are struggling still.
A couple of weeks ago I had the chance to visit The Owl Foundation in Vineland. It is not open to the public and I only got the opportunity because Audrey Wilson was taking an injured Barred Owl to Kay McKeever's centre.

Yes, it here it is, the heat wave...

Work, that it what I have doing since April, in my desire to be outside with all things flora and fauna that is exactly where I have been. The bottom one inch hairline at the back of my head has become The Black Fly Bar',  no, the Bar Fly Bar. Black Fly. I get anywhere from 3 to 30 bites a day back there. Some last week were flying up my garments to get blood. My head is lumpy mess, so is my brain in this heat.
I am supposed to be working on pieces for a show next week, well, it is not happening today. So I guess I had better get my sketch pad out and draw out my ideas for when it cools down a tad.
Hope all is cool where ever you are.

Ah, Summertime!

Finally we have arrived, it's summer! It was a struggle to get here weather wise, but we have made it and most of my trees did too. The Parrotia Persica is up to it's Hamamelis family tricks and playing dormant. It's cambium is green, I wonder if it is a fight to survive, I am hoping so and I have seen it happen before in August. All of a sudden it leafs out, then it dies again, for good. I gave it a another dose of acid soil, I have another Parrotia in another garden, I guess I will have to watch it grow.

Norway Maples

I have had a long history of not having any fondness for Norway Maples. I do not like them for their capacity to take up huge amounts of water for growth, the poor crotches they have and large limbs that break and do damage. On top of that they usually get tar spot and this is a fungal pathogen that the tree carries from year to year.
I once had a dinner party at my little Ontario Cottage in Port Hope, I lived in a charming ravine and the street was a one car lane, it was all too charming and friends would gather for great meals prepared by a friend at my house on Sunday nights. This one particular night after a great meal and a fun night one couple left. They were gone 2 minutes and then were back. A Norway Maple across the lane had dropped a huge limb and it landed right down the middle of their little Toyota crushing it from front to back!
I knew these trees were on the invasive species list in Vermont and wrote the Ministry of Environment here in Ontario about them. They are finally on our invasive species list here in Ontario. However, our local municipal government here is still planting them as street trees.
They drop these huge water filled limbs all the time and this could happen to you! Here is an article in the Toronto Star this morning, click here.
If your local government is still planting these trees as street trees get the facts, this tree is invasive and does not make a good street tree, it carries tar spot which is an under studied fungal pathogen that does unknown understudied damage to our native flora.

Birds & Oil Do Not Mix

What is happening in the Gulf Coast now, is a tragedy of major proportions to say the least. First I feel for the people of New Orleans, Louisiana because of what happened after Katrina. Which is to say the Bush administration did nothing for those who lived there. It seemed as if they want Louisiana to be a 3rd world country on its own.

Weekend Stars

It's a rare meeting of space ships and planets according to Nasa. Check it out and look up this weekend.

A Love that will Grow!

I have a new hotty and it's feet are firmly planted in my front lawn. It's name is Fothergilla and her name is Mount Airy, hmmmmmm.
This was one of my purchases last spring, my first spring here in Grafton. When I saw Mount Airy, I knew I had to plant it immediately. So in the front lawn next to  the Bridal Wreath Spirea and it's back drop is the soon to be removed Blue Spruce from Colorado. Good bye to Colorado and hello to I have not made up my mind yet!
Back to Mount Airy and it's stunning beauty........

Springing back......

What a spring, about  a month ago it was hotter than Hades here and the past two weeks we have had the temperature drop back down to where it should be and a few times cooler than it should be. Working in the horticulture and landscape trade I seem to spend a lot of time listening to the radio for frost warnings. Many plants that bolted a month ago have had frost damage. One day last week it snowed, sleeted and rained all in the same day.

Time flies when it is SPRING!

Oh my gosh! Where is the time going? I have had a busy time, working at the nursery, new jobs sites and planning and planting my own little patch of earth.
I have planted here in Grafton 3weeks ago my strawberries which are doing quite nicely.

Crows

Crows are one of my favourite birds. I think they are smart and organized. Today is Earth Day and crows are my way of celebrating it. I have a nest in my backyard of crows, well, actually they are at the top of spruce tree in my neighbours yard. This makes it all so convenient though, as I can watch them with my binoculars coming and going from the nest.
Here is some news from the CBC today about crows.

CBC News - Technology & Science - Clever crows can use 3 tools

Mother Nature's in Charge Here

Twisted Sister

I am so bad and should not be working at a nursery. Everything special that I wanted is coming in, plus a few other things including Juniperus chinensis torulosa! This is my twisted sister or as it's known by it's other name Hollywood Juniper. I am sure this is the Juniper I saw in San Francisco and San Diego that changed my whole demeanor about junipers. I love the form of this small tree. It's vase shaped, with fat twirling upright branches, it's origins are from Mongolia, China and Japan, suits me just fine. I don't have it home yet and I have told myself I can not bring it home until I plant my Robin Hill Serviceberry. It's freezing out there now and dark. Tomorrow I have to go look at a job site, yes, it's Sunday but to a pantheist that means nothing, I work Sundays folks and happy to do so.
Looks like Monday I will plant the Robin Hill, I have already put in a Crimson Frost Birch and a Reliance Peach this year. So I can bring home the Torulosa on Tuesday and get in the ground!! Then I set aside an Akebia vine, Calycanthus shrub, a Callicarpa and I am not going into perennials yet as my head might explode!! Tomorrow I will get a pic of my Twisted Sister and post the photo. I will sleep tonight knowing that I am expanding my collection of trees and shrubs. Yipeeee!

Baby it's Cool outside

I am wondering what if any after effects will happen because of the volcanic eruption in Iceland. They say it's the ice is melting into the volcano and this is the cause of the large eruptions, just like when an ice cube is put on a hot frying pan, it pops! I have a friend who is England and was to come home yesterday. He had invited a group of friends over to his house for dinner tomorrow night and he had to cancel. He is not leaving England anytime too soon.
I wonder if our summer will be cool because of this eruption, if you look at the map of the path of this dust, it has covered most of Europe and it does not appear to be dissipating any time soon. What is needed a good strong wind and that will scatter it's dust evenly everywhere. Hmm, what is going to happen to our temperatures this summer and amount of sun we receive. Last summer our sun was cut by 40% and it showed in our plants and plans for the garden!! We had too much rain, too little sun so it was a weird year. We may be in for another year of a not so sunny summer and cooler temperatures. I hope not!

Whew!

Busy, very busy these days. I am working a Baltimore Valley Garden Centre and everything is being brought to the store now, you can check out their blog by clicking here. I wrote about what is in the store last night after I got home, ate and bathed.
Working in the veggie garden the other day, weeding and heeling in some trees I was surprised by the soils movement beside me and out popped this girl! How do I know she is a girl, she is huge! Female toads are larger than male toads and she just sat  there soaking up the sun and watching me work.

This week I purchased three bare root trees and I am so happy! I got a Betula pendula 'Crimson Frost' birch, which now resides at the front of the house, I am sure it will be quite happy there and really help with my curb appeal.
I also have a Robin Hill Amelanchier and a tall one at that, it's has to be almost 12' tall! It is the one that is heeled in the veggie garden and I hope to get it in today before I go into the Centre. The last tree I purchased was a Reliance Peach, I really wanted one of these for many reasons. First you get amazing peaches and yes this tree is more than hardy here. The leaves are lanceolate probably 5" long, with a glossy green finish on top. The blooms are pink, heck the roots are pink and the leaves turn a peach colour in the fall. Bonus is that you get lovely peaches to give to your friends so they can make pies for you!!
I have to go out and plant the Robin Hill Serviceberry now and then it is back to work. signing off for now.

Ready Set Grow!

Seeds to sow and grow for your veggie garden can be started now. I know it seems impossible when you think of the weather we have had the past few days. On Friday, Bo and I on our walk encountered sleet, snow of small flakes, pelleting sleet again and then once we got home snow of the large flakey kind! I knew it would do something this week. How did I know? I have a brother who's birthday is on the 6th of April and it always snows the week of his birthday! Here is Bo on the walk and he was not bothered about being blown and pelleted!

It's hard to believe that you can direct sow seeds in this weather but you can. Flower seeds to be sown now are Larkspur, Poppy, Sweet Peas, nicotiana. For

This mornings walk

Here are some photo's I took on our walk this morning. Most are in my backyard, but not all.
First one up is the black willow which I can see from my backyard but this was taken from the block behind my house.

 I love the drape of the branches and this photo of course does not do justice to the drape or colour of this branch.
I had a better colours on previous photo's but Bo was tuggn' on the leash so they are out of focus.

Busy, Busy, Busy

It's the all or nothing season, I am in the greenhouse planting like mad, everyone at the nursery is busy one way or another. Setting up, pricing, planting, digging trees and shrubs, what is there not to do?
I have some photo's that I have managed to take of spring around me. I noticed my first Blue Heron flying north yesterday, the Turkey Vultures are soaring in groups now, no alone.  This past winter was so dry here, with little or no snow that dry conditions are a real concern. Yesterday it rained for awhile, it was not enough. This morning it is raining again which is good. The weather is so warm though, that spring could be over in a nano second. They are saying we could get frost before the weekend. I love spring, cool mornings and this is what the lilacs and other springs bloomers need in order for their blooms to last. We will see what happens, in the mean time here are a few pic's.

This sulphur butterfly was on my front porch yesterday. I really like getting a close up of insect

Sedum and salix.

Venus Occults Jupiter and Saturn

On April 1 at midnight go outside in your pj's and look south. Venus occults Jupiter and Saturn at this point, gee that is a few minutes from now. I think I will check it out. What is really amazing is that this is the first time this has happened since 0401BC! How these people figure this all out is beyond me, I am glad they do! But I really think it has something to do with April FOOLS like me!! See sky and telescope week at glance in sidebar. Ha, ha, ha, oh those goofy sky guys!.........  :o

Spring abounds

It's great out there and I spent the day outside, we are getting ready to open the nursery and a lot has to happen yet, but we will be open this weekend.
When I got home, Bo and Boots had to be fed and then walked. Boots did not partake. What is going on out on our walks is a plethora of bird songs. Meadowlarks, oh I love Meadowlarks, there used to be so many, but there are still some around and there are several on our walk singing their hearts out.

This was taken with my zoom lens, the camera was on a fire hydrant so it's not perfect, but the song was!
It's a clear elongated song, that makes you stop and look for it's source.

Fresh AiR

The tasks today were filled with the essence and lift of spring. First I had to go photograph a Witch Hazel in bloom at a friends garden. We had put it in I would guess, 4 years ago now and it is starting to really take hold. It's gorgeous and now I want one!

This plant is much prettier in real life, I have to work on that! The red petals transform to orange red tip and are really wonderful! We placed this shrub outside a bathroom window which helps shield the lower window from outside viewing  and yet it makes a nice view while inside looking out. You actually get to see your witch hazel blooming!
This is Hamamelis x intermedia 'Diane' a truly gorgeous Witch Hazel.