Garden Wisdom Blog

This is a list of the twenty-one component species of our Great Lakes Wildflower Blend, and it includes annuals, biennials, and perennials. While this blend will grow in nearly any garden, its components are all selected natives to the Great Lakes region. By that we mean from the Canadian Shield in southeast Manitoba to New York State, and from Illinois and Indiana to southern Quebec. This blend contains no invasive species. Black-Eyed Susan (Rudbeckia hirta) Butterfly Milkweed (Asclepias tuberosa) Clasping Coneflower (Dracopis amplexicaulis) Dwarf Evening Primrose (Oenothera macrocarpa) Grey-Headed Coneflower (Ratibida pinnata) Indian Blanket (Gaillardia pulchella) Lance-Leaved Coreopsis (Coreopsis lanceolata)...

Please review the list below for the seeds that are included in our Southern Prairies wildflower blend. These flowers will thrive in most garden settings, but they have been selected due to their performance in the North American Plains. By that we mean from the foothills of the Rocky Mountains east to the Great Lakes. They will also grow perfectly well in coastal gardens. This is a beautiful and diverse mix of flowers both short and tall. Dotted Gayfeather (Liatris punctata) Greenthread (Thelesperma filifolium) Golden Crownbeard (Verbesina encelioides) Hoary Vervain (Verbena stricta) Indian Blanket (Gaillardia pulchella) Narrow-Leaf Purple Coneflower (Echinacea...

All gardeners need to understand how to work with first and last average frost dates. Keeping these dates in mind provides a very good idea of how early to plant different kinds of seeds, and how long to expect a growing season to last. All vegetables take a certain amount of time to mature before they are ready to harvest, so it’s crucial to provide that time. You don’t want to sow tomato seeds in July, because they take several days (or weeks) to germinate, and the plants will not be mature enough to begin flowering for at least a...

The first average frost date for Lower Mainland BC is November 2. This date is reflected pretty closely from the Sunshine Coast and Gulf Islands, coastal Vancouver Island, Puget Sound, and down to the Willamette Valley in Oregon. That means we have approximately eleven weeks of growing time before we can reasonably expect the cold to impact unprotected crops. With even minimal crop protection, we can extend the season even further, but this time of year is critical for planting fall and winter harvest vegetables, and for getting some cover crops started to improve the soil over winter. Here’s my...

This recipe for Sweet Basil Scones uses the same simple base dough recipe as our Savoury Basil Scones recipe. Once the wet and dry ingredients have been mixed, just add the flavouring component. In this case we opted for rough chopped dried cranberries. For a substitute, use any other dried fruit, or try it with some lemon extract and a little extra citrus zest. Ingredients: 480mL (2 cups) all purpose flour 60mL (¼ cup) sugar 15mL (3 tsp) baking powder 5mL (1 tsp) salt 120mL (½ cup) butter, cut into 2cm (1″) cubes and chilled 120mL (½ cup) whole milk...