Toronto gardening all year round

What's blooming in High Park, late August

2011-08-30T06:21:00.000-07:00

Summer is at its climax, and there's lots to see in High Park! The current stars in the flowering native plant world are

Desmodium canadense (showy tick trefoil, desmodie du Canada)
Helianthus divaricatus (woodland sunflower, hélianthe à feuilles étalées, shown above)
Silphium perfoliatum (cup plant, plante bain d'oiseaux)
Other natives in bloom include
- Ambrosia artemisiifolia (ragweed, petite herbe à poux) (yippee)
- Ratibida pinnata (grey-headed coneflower, ratibida à feuilles pennées)
- Rudbeckia hirta (black eyed Susan, rudbeckie dressée)
- Verbena stricta (hoary vervain, verveine veloutée)
The various Solidago spp. (goldenrods, verges d'or) are just getting started, but no sign of the Symphyotrichum spp. (asters) yet.
Of course there are also various non-native wildflowers kicking around, such as
- Cichoricum intybus (chicory, chicorée sauvage)
- Daucus carota (Queen Anne's Lace, carotte sauvage)
- Melilotus albus (sweet clover, mélilot blanc)
- Trifolium repens (white clover, trèfle blanc)
I spent part of Sunday morning weeding the Boulevard Beds, which are a showcase for native plants near High Park's Grenadier Restaurant. Most of my efforts were focused on Lunaria annua (aka money plant, annual honesty, silver dollars, lunaire annuelle, or monnaie-du-pape). I used to think this plant was pretty. Those papery seedpods are a lot less pretty when you're trying to pick a million of them out from leaf litter. If you are thinking of growing this non-native in your garden, be warned! Harvest the ornamental seed pods promptly, before they fall on the ground and make life miserable.

Can this Phalaenopsis be saved?

2011-08-20T15:42:00.000-07:00

Phalaenopsis is a genus of orchids native to southeast Asia and northern Australia, with gorgeous flowers that supposedly resemble moths in the obsolete genus Phalaena (I don't see it myself), hence the English common name "moth orchid" (in French, orchidée papillon). I've been tempted to get one of these for years because they are gorgeous, there are many easy-care hybrids available, and they are considered safe for cats. However, my old apartment, being in a basement, had almost no natural light so I didn't think it was worth the investment.

Now that I've moved, I have loads of natural light, but can't really justify buying an expensive plant this month on top of the expenses of moving. However, look what I found in the "as is" section at IKEA!

Take a look at the price tag!

At 90% off, I couldn't resist the temptation to resuscitate this poor plant.

Since the plant is in poor shape (the growing medium was completely dry and the leaves were shriveling), I decided to completely remove the flowering scape and let it have a good long recovery period before blooming again. I'm not sure what that grey thing sticking out is—a root? Since it didn't want to come off, I'm leaving it on for now. Perhaps a reader who actually knows something about Phals could advise?

Plants that survive neglect

2011-08-20T14:27:00.000-07:00

It has been a very busy summer, and not in the ways I had planned.

In early June, my wonderful landlords of the last 12 years told me they were moving to Scarborough or Markham for work-related reasons. They had to sell the house my apartment was in, and of course it turned out that the new owners did not want a tenant. Yikes!

Of course the Toronto housing market is difficult for anyone, let alone a single mom with a very low income. So my summer so far has been spent looking for a place to live, packing, and now unpacking.

Unfortunately the plants at the garden at my old place suffered a lot of neglect, and the crazy heat wave of July took its toll on many plants. Here are a few of the survivors (photos taken July 19):

Cuphea hyssopifolia 'Lavender Lace' (Mexican heather, étoile du Mexique)

Some kind of annual Dianthus.

Echinacea purpurea (purple coneflower, echinacée pourpre) Glandularia hybrid (verbena, verveine)

Rudbeckia hirta (black-eyed Susan, rudbeckie dressée) and some kind of Mentha (mint, menthe)

Zinnia 'Thumbelina'

Unsurprisingly, I was not lucky enough to find another home with access to a garden. At least, not an outdoor garden. But my new apartment has huge windows facing southeast, so I now have the opportunity to try my hand at indoor gardening. In particular, I want to see what kind of food plants are willing to tolerate growing indoors.

And of course, I will continue to get my native plant fix through my volunteer work at High Park.

Trilliums are blooming in High Park right now!

2011-05-12T11:38:00.000-07:00

Torontonians, now's the time to see our provincial flower, Trillium grandiflorum (white trillium, trille blanc) blooming in the wilds of High Park! You'll find them in the woods in the south west corner of the park. There are also lots of Podophyllum peltatum (mayapple, podophylle pelté) in bud, and some Tiarella cordifolia (foam flower, tiarelle cordifoliée), also in bud.

Garden Bloggers' Bloom Day, April 2011

2011-04-15T09:10:00.000-07:00

Once again it's Garden Bloggers' Bloom Day. Looking back at my April Bloom Day post from last year, I can see that spring really is coming along more slowly this year, it's not just my imagination. Last year I had a couple of native blooms for April 15: Waldsteinia fragaroides (barren strawberry waldsteinie faux-fraisier) and Mertensia virginica (Virginia bluebells, mertensie de Virginie), but there's no sign of them today, not even foliage (which worries me). I do have some flowers blooming today at least:

Chionodoxa forbesii (glory of the snow, gloire des neiges).

The Primula hybrida (primrose, primevère) which my landlords got as a disposable houseplant a couple of years ago is a bit of a mess, but at this time of the year I am grateful to see any flowers at all!

Behind and to the right you can see a bit of foliage from our native Tiarella cordifolia (foamflower, tiarelle cordifoliée). I think it kept its foliage all winter (hard to know for sure what's going on under the snow). It's sending out runners like a strawberry! I will be very happy if it spreads.

The Puschkinia libanotica (snowdrift, scille de Liban) is not "drifting" at all. I wonder how long it took the neighbours to establish this beautiful mass of snowdrift? Since this isn't native, I guess I should be glad it's not prolific since that means it's less of a risk to wild areas. Scilla siberica (Siberian squill, scille de Sibérie) is continuing to spread. I didn't realize at the time we rescued it from a neighbour's garden that it is an invasive species here in Southern Ontario and my landlords' kids would be upset now if I tried to remove it—not to mention that it is very difficult to remove. I will be deadheading. If you don't have this in your garden, don't plant it!

Behind and to the right of the scilla you can see some Aquilegia sp. (columbine, ancolie) foliage. The columbines in the front yard haven't bloomed yet and I can't remember if they are our native Aquilegia canadensis (wild columbine, ancolie du Canada) (my favourite flower) or the non-native Aquilegia vulgaris (also nice, and the bees like it). Maybe this year I'll find out!

Barbara Pintozzi at Beautiful Wildlife Garden wrote about using non-native minor bulbs to attract pollinators. I was hoping that the local bees and friends would visit these early flowers, but I haven't seen one! Fellow Torontonians, have you seen pollinators visit early non-native flowers (like crocus, squill, winter aconite, etc.) in your garden? Or are they just too early?

Thanks to Carol from May Dreams Gardens for hosting Garden Bloggers' Bloom Day. Be sure to visit her and check out what's blooming today in gardens all over the world!

NANPS spring plant sale pre-ordering now open!

2011-04-13T15:22:00.000-07:00

The North American Native Plant Society's annual spring plant sale is coming up! This is the biggest native plant sale in all of Canada, and the best source for locally ethically grown native plants for Toronto gardeners. You can preorder online now, or just do what I do and shop on the day itself. The prices are very reasonable ($5 for most forbs, $12 for most trees) and the selection is amazing! (The photo above is the Penstemon hirsutus (hairy beardtongue, penstémon hirsute) which I bought at last year's sale. It started blooming within weeks of planting it in my garden!

Native alternatives to butterfly bush

2011-04-07T08:51:00.000-07:00

Recently at the Birds & Blooms blogs, Carole Sevilla Brown wrote about the problems butterfly bush is causing in many areas of the United States. Although commonly recommended for butterfly gardeners, the most commonly available butterfly bush in the horticultural trade, Buddleja davidii, is native to east Asia and is an invasive species in many areas of the United States.

So far, Canada's cold climate has apparently prevented B. davidii from becoming naturalized here, except in parts of British Columbia (Tallent-Halsell and Watt, 2009). However, each mature butterfly bush can produce millions of seeds, and these seeds can be spread by cars and trains (Tallent-Halsell and Watt, 2009). So a butterfly bush in Toronto could contribute to the problems our neighbours to the south are facing. In addition, climate change is likely to make Ontario's climate milder and therefore put our wild spaces at greater risk from butterfly bush invasion.

Luckily, there are many alternatives for butterfly gardeners. Growing native species avoids the problems of habitat destruction caused by invasives, and can provide better attraction for butterflies by providing food for caterpillars as well as adult butterflies (Tallamy 2009).

With that in mind, here are a few flowering shrubs native to Ontario, which I found through Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center's Plants Database. This is a great resource for wildlife gardeners throughout the United States and Canada; you can search by state/province, habit, lifespan, light needs, moisture needs, bloom season, bloom colour, and height! Each species description at the Wildflower Center's database includes a wealth of information, including which butterflies' and moths' larvae feed on each plant, and links to their descriptions at Butterflies and Moths of North America (BAMONA).

Native Ontario shrubs to attact butterflies

Amelanchier alnifolia (Saskatoon serviceberry): fragrant white flowers in spring. Berries are red to black in colour, attract birds, also edible for humans. Autumn foliage is yellow, orange, or red.
Amorpha canescens (leadplant): small shrub with spikes of striking dark purple flowers in early summer; attractive silvery foliage.
Ceanothus herbaceus (Jersey tea): umbels of white flowers in spring to early summer. Larval host for mottled duskywing (Erynnis martialis).
Cephalanthus occidentalis (buttonbush): nifty spherical clusters of white flowers in the summer. Nutlets attract birds.
Lindera benzoin (northern spicebush): pale yellow flowers before leaves emerge (male plants have showier flowers). Yellow autumn foliage; red berries on female plants. Larval host for spicebush swallowtail (Papilio troilus), eastern tiger swallowtail (Papilio glaucus), and promethea silkmoth (Callosamia promethea).
Spiraea alba (white meadowsweet): spikes of white flowers in the summer, yellow autumn foliage. Larval host for spring azure (Celastrina ladon).
Spiraea tomentosa (steeplebush): steeple-shaped clusters of pink flowers in summer. Larval host for Columbia silkmoth (Hyalophora columbia).
Viburnum acerifolium (maple-leaf viburnum): clusters of white flowers in spring and summer followed by red to black berries which attract birds. Pinkish-purple autumn foliage! Larval host for spring azure (Celastrina ladon).

I'm so glad that Carole wrote her original post, as I didn't realize that butterfly bush was such a problem, nor did I know much about these lovely native shrubs that we can grow instead. I've got seeds for buttonbush stratifying right now, and I plan to look into some of these other shrubs as well. Please click the links for each plant to see gorgeous photos; I hope you'll be as excited about these plants as I am and try some in your garden!

Works cited

Nita Tallent-Halsell and Michael S. Watt (2009). The Invasive Buddleja davidii. The Botanical Review, September.
Douglas W. Tallamy (2009). Bringing nature home: How native plants sustain wildlife in our gardens (updated and expanded edition) Portland, OR: Timber Press.

Can you recognize these seeds?

2011-03-01T20:41:00.000-08:00

I try to get photos of my plants at different stages of life, which means I end up with a lot of dull photos like these. So to add a bit of intrigue, can you guess what species these seeds are? Right now they are indistinguishable to the naked eye, but once they get going they will be quite distinctive!

Mystery plant A

This familiar member of the mint family is grown for its decorative foliage. In its native land (southeast Asia) it's a perennial, but here in Canada it is treated as an annual.

Mystery plant B

This member of the borage family has attractive dark green foliage, but is grown for its fragrant dark purple flowers. Here in Canada it's treated as an annual, but in its homeland, Peru, it is a perennial shrub (or sub-shrub depending on who you ask).

Gazania sprouts!

2011-03-01T20:23:00.000-08:00

Tonight I decided to peek at the gazania seeds I started last week (the packet said to keep them in the dark for 7 to 14 days so I was deliberately not looking at them). It's a good thing I did because as you can see they have all sprouted, and it looks like they've been up for a while. They're awfully etiolated but hopefully they'll be able to recover now that they're under the lights.

First annual seeds of 2011: Gazania rigens 'Daybreak Pink Shades'

2011-02-21T16:50:00.000-08:00

While native plants are my passion, I can't resist growing some annuals from seeds as well, especially since most natives need a few years to grow from seed to flowering size.

This is my first attempt at growing Gazania rigens (gazania or treasure-flower, gazanie) from seed (or any other way). Gazanias are low growing brightly coloured daisies (these ones are pink), and I'm hoping that like other daisies they will be attractive to pollinators as well as humans. G. rigens is native to South Africa and Mozambique, and grows as a weed in Australia, but has not naturalized in North America.

I was surprised by the pale yellow colour of these seeds; they don't look ripe somehow. According to the package they need a week or two of darkness to germinate, which is just as well as I haven't figured out where I'm going to set my lights up yet. They're currently sown in flats hidden in one of my kitchen cupboards!

PS: The natives I've started so far are Agastache foeniculum, Allium cernuum, Anemone virginiana, Aquilegia canadensis, Asclepias sp. (syriaca?), Asclepias tuberosa, Baptisia australis, Cephalanthus occidentalis, Desmodium canadense, and Helenium autumnale. They're stratifying in flats outdoors, hopefully they will get enough cold weather before spring starts in earnest.

Snowy owl in the garden!

2011-02-02T11:24:00.000-08:00

Although theoretically we live in its winter range, I'm not sure if snowy owls (Bubo scandiacus, harfang des neiges) live in Toronto any more. (Apparently there are some owls here though, check out these sweet photos of owls in Toronto by Jean Iron.)

Nicky and I took advantage of the recent "extreme" snowstorm here in Toronto (which would have been considered perfectly ordinary February weather where I grew up in the Ottawa Valley) to create this snow scupture (obviously we weren't looking at an image of a real snowy owl when we did it!). The coloured parts were done with Wilton Icing Colors in Lemon Yellow, Black, and mixture of Lemon Yellow and Christmas Red, available at Bulk Barn. I don't know if I'll try adding colour to a snow sculpture again; the colour kept bleeding, and I kept having to scoop out areas and replace them with fresh snow.

Here's a nostalgia-inducing video about the snowy owl from the Canadian Wildlife Federation's classic Hinterland Who's Who series of PSAs. (Regular readers, I'm sorry I've been away from the blog so long. My fibromyalgia flared up in early autumn and for a while I forgot that I even had a garden, never mind a garden blog! And of course although this blog is supposed to be about gardening all year round, winter is not really prime gardening time in Toronto. But I'm feeling better now and have a whole backlog of photos to post, and there are exciting things coming up in terms of garlic mustard eradication in High Park later this year!)

Garden Bloggers' Bloom Day, August 2010

2010-08-15T12:51:00.001-07:00

August is prime blooming time here in Toronto!

Natives

Agastache foeniculum (anise hyssop, hysope anisée). I'm very excited about this one because it's the first time I've managed to grow it successfully from seed; in fact this plant is in it's first year and already blooming!
Asclepias tuberosa (butterfly weed, asclépiade tubéreuse)
Conyza candensis (horseweed, vergerette du Canada)
Eupatorium 'Phantom' (Joe Pye weed, eupatoire naine)
Monarda didyma 'Jacob Klein' (beebalm, monarde)
Myosotis laxa (bay forget-me-not, myosotis laxiflore)
Oxalis stricta (wood sorrel, oxalide)
Rudbeckia fulgida (black-eyed susan, rudbeckie voyante). This one was a surprise because I was sure this plant was one of my Echinacea purpurea seedlings, but obviously not.
Rudbeckia hirta (black-eyed susan, rudbeckie dressée)
Solanum ptycanthum (eastern black nightshade, morelle noire de l'est)
Solidago sp. (goldenrod, verge d'or)

Others

Antirrhinum majus 'Montego Pink' and NOID (snapdragon, muflier)
Calibrachoa NOID
Cerinthe major 'Purple Bells' (honeywort, grand cérinthe)
Cuphea hyssopifolia 'Lavender Lace' (false heather, étoile de Mexique)
Glandularia NOID (verbena, verveine)
Helianthus annuus (sunflower, tournesol)
Iberis umbellata 'Fairy Mixed' (candytuft, ibéris en ombelle).
Impatiens walleriana 'Xtreme Pink'™
Lobelia erinus 'Cascade Sapphire'
Lobularia maritima 'Snowstorm' (alyssum, alysse odorante)
Monarda 'Bergamo'. This annual was supposed to "attract butterflies by the dozen" according to Park Seed but the butterflies who visit my garden ignore it.
Pelargonium NOID (geranium, pélargonium)
Pentas lanceolata 'New Look Pink'. Another supposed butterfly attractor that local butterflies have ignored.
Petunia 'Carmine Madness', 'Ultra White', and NOID
Scaevola aemula (fairy fanflower, scaevola émule)
Tagetes patula 'Janie Primrose' and 'Janie Tangerine' (French marigold, œillet d'Inde)
Tagetes tenuifolia 'Lulu' (signet marigold, tagète tachée)
Thunbergia alata 'Blushing Susie' (black-eyed susan vine, suzanne aux yeux noirs)
Tropaeolum majus 'Whirlybird Cherry Rose' (nasturtium, capucine)
Viola 'Penny Purple Picotee'
Zinnia elegans 'Persian Carpet Mix' and 'Thumbelina Mix'

Thanks to Carol at May Dreams Gardens for hosting Garden Bloggers' Bloom Day. Be sure to check out what's blooming around the world this August!

What pollinators like

2010-08-01T10:22:00.000-07:00

I did a quick tour around the backyard to see which of the flowers are attracting the interest of local pollinators. Eupatorium 'Phantom' (dwarf Joe Pye weed, eupatoire naine) is evidently close enough to our native Eupatoriadelphus maculatus (formerly Eupatorium maculatum) to attract our native bees. (I got this recently at Valumart at 50% off!) Helianthus annuus (sunflower, tournesol) is a reliable bee attractor (unless you get one of the newfangled pollenless varieties, which may be lovely cutflowers but are useless for pollinators and seed-eaters). Echinacea purpurea (purple coneflower, echinacée pourpre), although not quite native here (we're a bit too far north and east), is a favourite of humans as well as pollinators. (Another 50% off deal!) Rudbeckia hirta (black-eyed Susan, rudbeckie dressée) is always abuzz. Finally, mint (Mentha sp., menthe), which grows as a weed in the backyard, is a hive of activity when in bloom.

What flowers are attracting pollinators in your garden?

What's blooming in High Park, late July

2010-07-26T11:08:00.001-07:00

I had a great time with the High Park Volunteer Stewardship Program pulling weeds in the Sculpture Garden restoration site yesterday. There are tons of flowers in bloom now:

Natives

Achillea millefolium (yarrow, achillée millefeuille)
Asclepias syriaca (milkweed, bébé lala de lait) (only a few are still blooming, most are setting seed)
Campanula rotundifolia (harebell, campanule à feuilles rondes)
Conyza canadensis (horseweed, vergerette du Canada)
Desmodium canadense (showy tick trefoil, desmodie du Canada) (shown above)
Erigeron annuus (daisy fleabane, vergerette annuelle)
Helianthus divaricatus (woodland sunflower, hélianthe à feuilles étalées)
Lobelia cardinalis (cardinal flower, lobélie cardinale)
Monarda fistulosa (wild bergamot, monarde fistuleuse)
some kind of Potentilla, maybe Potentilla fruticosa (shrubby cinquefoil, potentille arbustive)
Rudbeckia hirta (black-eyed Susan, rudbeckie dressée)
Silphium perfoliatum (cup plant, plante bain d'oiseaux)
Verbena stricta (hoary vervain, verveine veloutée)

Others

Cichorium intybus (chicory, chicorée sauvage)
Daucus carota (Queen Anne's lace, nid d'oiseau)
Melilotus alba (white sweet clover, mélilot blanc)
Pastinaca sativa (wild parsnip, panais sauvage)
Polygonum sp. (smartweed, renouée)
Trifolium pratense (red clover, trèfle violet)

We also saw a big wasp dragging a caterpillar to a hole she had previously dug, presumably to lay eggs on it. Although I felt sorry for the caterpillar, it was fascinating to watch. In Growing Green (White River Junction, VT: Chelsea Green Publishing, 2006), an intriguing book about veganic food production, Jenny Hall and Iain Tolhurst recommend growing native plants near fields of crops to attract beneficial insects such as parasitic wasps.

Where are the bees?

2010-07-24T09:47:00.001-07:00

It seems to me that there are far fewer bees than usual this year. Has anyone else in Toronto noticed this?

Beautiful Eumorpha pandorus: another reason to grow native plants!

2010-07-23T09:30:00.000-07:00

On the wall of the Danforth/Coxwell Library, my son and I were thrilled to spot this big (8-9 cm) beautiful moth, who was kind enough to stay put while we ran home to get a camera and bug book.

This beauty is intriguingly named Pandora sphinx moth (sphinx Pandore). Its larval hosts include Virginia creeper (Parthenocissus quinquefolia, vigne vierge de Virginie), and sure enough there is a Virginia creeper climbing on the wall of the library, which I photographed last year. (The larvae also feed on Vitis spp. (grapes, raisins).

I have been meaning to get some Virginia creeper growing in the backyard, and seeing this beautiful moth makes me all the more determined.

Big beautiful beetle, Pelidnota punctata

2010-07-17T14:45:00.000-07:00

When cutting back the neighbour's encroaching grapevines, I discovered this beautiful insect, a whopping 2 cm long, and was actually able to get a decent photo! (The bug was so still when I caught it that I thought it was dead, but after a few minutes it rubbed its face and started nibbling the leaf.)

This beauty is a grapevine beetle (scarabée ponctué de la vigne), an eastern North American relative of the sacred scarab beetle of ancient Egypt. The adults eat grape leaves and fruit, and other plants as well such as Virginia creeper (Parthenocissus quinquefolia, vigne vierge de Virginie), but are not considered a major pest of vineyards. The eggs are laid in rotting wood or soil, and the larvae (grubs) feed on roots. Both larvae and adults are nocturnal, which I guess is why this little(ish) one was inactive when I found it—it was drowsy!

Garden Bloggers' Bloom Day, July 2010

2010-07-15T17:16:00.001-07:00

Lots of blooms for July, mostly annuals. I started a lot of plants from seeds this year, and it is gratifying to see some of them flowering already!

Natives

Adiantum pedatum (maidenhair fern, adiante pédalé). I bought this beauty at the North American Native Plant Society Plant Sale this spring. It will never bloom, of course, but it's too pretty to leave out.
Asclepias tuberosa (butterfly weed, asclépiade tubéreuse). I saw a monarch butterfly in the garden yesterday; maybe it will lay some eggs? Fingers crossed!
Myosotis laxa (bay forget-me-not, myosotis laxiflore). Another treasure from NANPS, it has already quadrupled in size! I'm going to relocate the encroaching sedum soon to give the forget-me-not room to really go crazy.
Oxalis stricta (wood sorrel, oxalide)
Rudbeckia hirta (black-eyed Susan, rudbeckie dressée); as always, the star of the summer garden.
Solanum ptycanthum (eastern black nightshade, morelle noire de l'est)

Alas, the Monarda didyma 'Jacob Klein' (beebalm, monarde) which put on such a show last year is very unhappy this year; it had a few small sad blooms which are already past. I tried moving the Liatris spicata (dense blazing star, liatride à épis) to what should be a better location for it in terms of sun, and it seems stressed out too, though it is working on a flower spike.

Happily, some of my native seedlings are doing well, in particular, Tradescantia ohiensis, Agastache foeniculum, and Asclepias tuberosa; maybe they'll make an appearance for a Bloom Day next summer!

Others

Antirrhinum majus NOID (snapdragons, mufliers)

Calibrachoa NOID

Campanula rapunculoides (creepy bellflower, campanule fausse raiponce). This pretty plant is horribly invasive here in southern Ontario; I've started trying to get rid of it though it seems futile.

Cerinthe major 'Purple Bells' (honeywort, grand cérinthe). Compare these cream and pink flowers to their depiction at the McKenzie Seeds website. This isn't the first time that McKenzie seeds have come out very unlike the depiction on the package. They're okay, but not especially striking, especially from a distance.

Chlorophytum comosum (spider plant, plante araignée)

Cuphea hyssopifolia 'Lavender Lace' (false heather, étoile de Mexique)

Glandularia NOID (verbena, verveine; apparently they've moved these common annuals which everyone calls verbena into a new genus)

Heliotropium arborescens 'Marine' (heliotrope, héliotrope)

Hibiscus syriacus (rose of Sharon, althéa)

Hosta 'Orange Marmalade' and NOIDs

Iberis umbellata 'Fairy Mixed' (candytuft, ibéris en ombelle). Grown from seed for the first time this year, started outdoors, very easy. I think I'll be growing these again!

Impatiens walleriana 'Xtreme Pink'™

Lobelia erinus 'Cascade Sapphire' (I think)

Lysimachia

Matricaria recutita (German chamomile, camomille vraie)

Pelargonium NOID (geranium, pélargonium)

Petunia 'Carmine Madness', 'Ultra White', and NOID

Rosa NOID (rose, rosier)

Sanvitalia

Scaevola aemula (fairy fan flower, scaevola émule)

Sedum spurium (rock cress, orpin bâtard)

Tagetes patula 'Janie Primrose', 'Janie Tangerine'

Viola 'Penny Purple Picotee'

Zinnia elegans 'Magellan Persian Carpet Mixed'. I'm pretty pleased with these, though I do feel that Park Seed misrepresented the colour, what do you think?

Thanks to Carol at May Dreams Gardens for hosting Garden Bloggers' Bloom Day. Be sure to check out what's blooming around the world this July!

Garden Bloggers' Bloom Day, June 2010

2010-06-14T07:02:00.001-07:00

This month lots of things are starting to bloom:

Natives

Anemone canadensis (Canada anemone, anémone du Canada). I was thrilled when this pretty native volunteered last year. Unfortunately I've never managed to get a good picture of it.

Myosotis laxa (bay forget-me-not, myosotis laxiflore)

Oxalis stricta (wood sorrel, oxalide)

Phlox divaricata 'Sweet Lilac' (woodland phlox, phlox bleu) is on its last legs; here's a picture of it in its prime.

Non-natives

Antirrhinum majus (snapdragon, muflier). These volunteered last year and managed to survive the winter! (Usually they're treated as annuals in Toronto.)

Digitalis × mertonensis (strawberry foxglove, digitale hybride)

Heliotropium arborescens (heliotrope, héliotrope du Pérou)

Heuchera 'Bressingham Hybrid' (coral bells, heuchère)

Impatiens walleriana 'Xtreme™ Pink'. These are very vigorous and floriferous plants; too bad it turns out they clash violently with the strawberry foxglove.

Lilium (lily, lys). Veseys sent some free mixed Carpet Border Lilies with my order last fall. They are lovely, until the lily beetles start nibbling them. (I don't feel comfortable killing animals, even insects, for what are merely cosmetic concerns. I would have squished the eggs but my son thought even that was "mean".)

Matricaria recutita (German chammomile, camomille vraie). I sowed this annual once a few years ago and it's been volunteering ever since. It has a lovely pineapple smell, like its less showy relative, Matricaria discoidea (pineapple weed, matricaire odorante)

Petunia 'Carmine Madness®'. My landlords get hot pink petunias every year.

Petunia 'Ultra White'. These are actually fragrant!

Rosa. This is a fragrant variety, and the bees love it. I'm not sure what the green bug in this photo is.

Scaevola aemula (fairy fanflower, scaevola émule), an Australian native (like my late father).

Tagetes patula 'Janie Primrose' (French marigold, œillet d'Inde)

Tagetes patula 'Janie Tangerine'

Viola cornuta 'Penny Purple Picotee' (viola, viola). This is my first year raising violas from seed—it was easy and fun. I got my seeds from Stokes, which has a great selection of viola seeds.

Callibrachoa

Chlorophytum comosum

plante araignée

Sanvitalia

Scaevola aemula

Thanks to Carol at May Dreams Gardens for hosting Garden Bloggers' Bloom Day. Be sure to check out what's blooming around the world for the June 2010 Bloom Day !

Penstemon hirsutus in bloom!

2010-05-29T15:25:00.000-07:00

The hairy penstemon (aka "hairy beardtongue", "eastern penstemon", penstémon hirsute) that I purchased a few weeks ago at the North American Native Plant Society plant sale a few weeks ago is already blooming, despite the stress of moving to a new home and this crazy heat wave we've been having. I knew very little about this plant when I got it, except that it was a purple penstemon. I'm quite happy with it.

In this close-up, you can see that the dainty flowers are actually bicoloured, mauve and white. Walter Muma's Ontario Wildflowers site has much better close-ups; in the fourth photo down you can see why one of the common names is "beardtongue".

Hairy penstemon is a larval host plant for the beautiful Baltimore checkerspot butterfly. According to Michigan State University, hairy penstemon attracts beneficial insects, including parasitic wasps and pirate bugs, which prey on nuisance insects. This lovely plant also provides nectar for hummingbirds, according to the Ontario Hummingbird Project.

Campanula rapunculoides: my new most hated plant?

2010-05-28T13:06:00.001-07:00

I have posted before about the evils of garlic mustard (Alliaria petiolata, herbe à l'ail), which is devastating forests in the Toronto area, but in our own garden the biggest invader is Campanula rapunculoides (creeping bellflower, or as I call it, creepy bellflower, campanule fausse raiponce).

Although I knew creepy bellflower is invasive in southern Ontario, I hadn't been trying to remove it from our garden because the landlords' son is very fond of it, and it is very pretty (see photo at bottom of post). I thought I would just stop it from spreading by deadheading it. Ha.

Creepy bellflower spreads mainly by roots. It forms a thick mat of roots which make it impossible for anything else to grow. Realizing that creepy bellflower was part of the reason good plants I put in weren't making it, I decided I would try to at least thin it out.

The pile of roots above represents about an hour of hard work. Unlike garlic mustard, which pulls up quickly and easily, creepy bellflower roots break off and stay in the ground when you try to pull them up. Sites recommend digging up at least the top 15 cm of soil and removing all roots. Any bits of root remaining in the ground will regrow.

And here is the depressingly small area I removed those roots from. You can see the heart-shaped leaves of more creepy bellflower poking through the fence. I could just pull off the leaves, but that seems pretty pointless when the massive root system under and beyond the fence is inaccessible to me. I think that my landlords' son doesn't need to worry about not having his creepy bellflowers any time soon.

And here's a picture of creepy bellflower from last July. Yes, it is pretty, but it isn't prettier than the other campanulas. The USDA PLANTS Database lists three campanulas and kin native to Ontario:

Campanula aparinoides: marsh bellflower (campanule faux-gaillet)
Campanula rotundifolia: harebell (campanule à feuilles rondes)
Campanulastrum americanum (formerly Campanula americana) tall bellflower (campanule d'Amérique)

Phlox divaricata 'Sweet Lilac': a better photo

2010-05-23T11:48:00.000-07:00

I'm starting to get used to the weird colour, but I still wish it was the natural lavender colour instead.

What's blooming in High Park, late May

2010-05-23T11:18:00.000-07:00

I've just got back from pulling garlic mustard (Alliaria petiolata, herbe à ail), an extremely invasive plant here in Toronto which I've ranted about before, with the High Park Volunteer Stewardship Program. The wild lupines (Lupinus perennis, lupin sauvage, shown above) are starting to bloom, so this is the week to go see and admire them.

In all, I saw the following in bloom:

Natives

Lupinus perennis (wild lupine, lupin sauvage)
Maianthemum stellatum (starry false Solomon's seal, maïanthème étoilé)
Viola sp. (violet, violette)

Non-Natives

Alliaria petiolata (garlic mustard, herb à ail) (invasive)
Chelidonium majus (greater celandine, grande chélidoine) (invasive)
Hieracium caespitosum (yellow hawkweed, épervière des prés)
Silene latifolia (white campion, silène blanc)
Stellaria sp. (chickweed, stellaire)
Taraxacum officinale (dandelion, pissenlit commun)

Phlox divaricata 'Sweet Lilac' in bloom

2010-05-19T14:18:00.000-07:00

Last year, we bought this woodland phlox (phlox bleu) at Valumart. It wasn't blooming, but based on the tag I thought it would look like the wild type. Unfortunately, now I find that it is this weird shade of magenta instead of the pretty lavender blue of the natural form. I guess that's what I get for trying to buy a native plant at a supermarket instead of a more reputable source.

It does smell nice, at least.

Native plant sales in Toronto this weekend!

2010-05-06T09:12:00.000-07:00

The Toronto Botanical Garden's annual plant sale starts today!
When: Thursday, 10-8; Friday, 10-8; Saturday, 10-5; Sunday, 10-5 Where: Lawrence and Leslie (directions)
What: I can't find a plant list on the site, but there will be some natives available

On Saturday, the North American Native Plant Society has their annual plant sale.
When: Saturday, 10-3 Where: Markham Civic Centre, 101 Town Centre Blvd., Markham (map)
What: see the plant list for the amazing selection! Prices are very reasonable, $5 for most herbaceous plants and $12 for most shrubs and trees.

On Sunday, the High Park Volunteer Stewardship Program has their annual native plant sale.
When: Sunday, 11-2
Where: the greenhouse in High Park (map (PDF)
What: 20 species native to High Park, see the plant list (PDF). Great prices, $5 for wildflowers and grasses, $10 for trees.

Garden Bloggers' Bloom Day, April 2010

2010-04-15T10:29:00.000-07:00

This bloom day we're enjoying lots of different blooms in our garden!

Native plants

Waldsteinia fragaroides (barren strawberry, waldsteinie faux-fraisier). I have fond memories of this plant from my childhood surrounded by the forest in eastern Ontario. Barren strawberries formed big patches a few metres across, even in heavy shade as I recall. Mertensia virginica (Virginia bluebells, mertensie de Virginie). This is the first year we've had Virginia bluebells in our garden. I'd read about the buds turning from pink to blue as they open, but this is the first time I've seen it. I love the colours!

Other plants

Chionodoxa forbesii (glory of the snow, gloire des neiges) Hyacinthus orientalis (hyacinth, jacinthe) Lamprocapnos spectabilis (bleeding heart, coeur-saignant) (apparently the scientific name has been changed). Tulipa tarda (tarda tulip, tulipe tarda) Tulipa (tulip, tulipe). I don't know where this tulip and the one below came from—gifts from the squirrels, perhaps?

Check out what's blooming in gardens around the world, and link to your own blog, for Garden Bloggers' Bloom Day. Thanks to Carol from May Dreams Gardens for hosting!

Mertensia virginica in bud!

2010-04-03T14:59:00.001-07:00

I planted this Virginia bluebells plant(mertensie de Virginie) last year, past the blooming season, so this is a first for me. You can see two clusters of small pale pink buds, which will grow into beautiful blue bells. Yay!

Waldsteinia fragarioides in bud!

2010-04-03T14:51:00.000-07:00

Somehow while I was distracted by all the early-flowering bulbs, this nice clump of barren strawberry (waldsteinie faux-fraisier) popped up! If you click the photo to enlarge it, you will see a number of nice plump flower buds, which surpised me because I thought this plant didn't bloom so early. You can also see fading Iris reticulata and a small Aquilegia seedling (don't know if it's native A. canadensis or non-native A. vulgaris) in front of the Waldsteinia, and some kind of lovely fern that stayed green all winter behind the Waldsteinia (haven't identified it yet).

Beautiful warm weather

2010-04-03T14:44:00.000-07:00

There have been lots of birds singing, courting, and building nests in our neighbourhood, but it's not often one sees a blue and yellow macaw (Ara araraunca, ara bleu et jaune).

Thunbergia alata 'Blushing Susie' seedlings are thriving!

2010-03-21T09:24:00.000-07:00

Seven of the ten black-eyed Susan vine (suzanne aux yeux noirs) seeds I planted sprouted. Weirdly, on many of the seedlings the cotyledons emerged practically underground so the first I saw of the plants was the true leaves. It's gratifying to see them doing so well.

Natives in our garden

2010-03-19T08:13:00.000-07:00

Andrew Keys at Garden Smackdown is calling on bloggers to list the native plants in our gardens. Here's what's currently growing in our garden:

Volunteered or planted before we moved in and thriving

Acalypha rhomboidea (three-seed mercury, ricinelle rhomboïde)
Acer rubrum (red maple, érable rouge)
Amaranthus tuberculatus (roughfruit amaranth)
Anemone canadensis (Canada anemone, anémone du Canada)
Erigeron annuus (daisy fleabane, vergerette annuelle)
Fraxinus pennsylvanica (green ash, frêne rouge)
Gleditsia triacanthos (honeylocust, févier d'Amérique)
Juglans nigra (black walnut)
Solanum ptycanthum (eastern black nightshade, morelle noire de l'est)
Solidago canadensis (Canada goldenrod, verge d'or du Canada)
Veronica serpyllifolia (thyme-leaf speedwell, véronique à feuilles de serpolet)

Planted by me and thriving for a couple of years

Asclepias tuberosa (butterflyweed, asclépiade tubéreuse)
Geum triflorum (prairie smoke, benoite à trois fleurs)
Helianthus tuberosus (Jerusalem artichoke)
Liatris spicata (blazing star, liatride à épis)
Monarda didyma (beebalm, monarde)
Rudbeckia hirta (black-eyed susan, rudbeckie dressée)

Planted by me last year, don't know if they survived the winter

Actaea rubra (red baneberry, actée rouge)
Coreopsis lanceolata (lanceleaf coreopsis, coréopsis lancéolé)
Gaillardia aristata (blanket flower, gaillarde)
Helenium autumnale (sneezeweed, hélénie d'automne)
Maianthemum canadense (wild lily-of-the-valley, maïanthème du Canada)
Phlox divaricata (woodland phlox, phlox bleu)
Tiarella cordifolia (foamflower, tiarelle cordifoliée)
Verbena stricta (hoary vervain, verveine veloutée)
Waldsteinia fragaroides (barren strawberry, waldsteinie faux-fraisier)

Planted by me and died

Coreopsis lanceolata (lanceleaf coreopsis, coréopsis lancéolé)
Gaultheria procumbens (wintergreen, gaulthérie couchée)
Physostegia virginiana (obedient plant, physostégie) (mistaken for a weed by landlords after it was done flowering)

Attempting to grow from seed this year

Agastache foeniculum (lavender hyssop, anis hysope)
Allium cernuum (nodding wild onion, ail penché)
Anemone virginiana (thimbleweed, anémone de Virginie)
Aquilegia canadensis (wild columbine, ancolie du Canada)
Asclepias tuberosa (butterflyweed, asclépiade tubéreuse)
Campanula rotundifolia (harebell, campanule à feuilles rondes)
Desmodie canadense (showy tick trefoil, desmodie du Canada)
Eupatorium perfoliatium (boneset, eupatoire perfoliée)
Eupatorium purpureum (Joe Pye weed, eupatoire pourpre)
Gaillardia aristata (blanket flower, gaillarde)
Helenium autumnale (sneezeweed, hélénie d'automne)
Lobelia siphilitica (great blue lobelia, lobélie syphilitique)
Monarda fistulosa (wild bergamot, monarde fistuleuse)
Potentilla argentea (silver cinquefoil, potentille argentée)
Solidago bicolor (silverrod, verge d'or bicolore)
Solidago caesia (blue-stemmed goldenrod, verge d'or bleuâtre)
Symphyotrichum ericoides (heath aster, aster éricoïde)
Tradescantia ohiensis (Ohio spiderwort, tradescantia de l’Ohio)
Verbena stricta (hoary vervain, verveine veloutée)
Vernonia sp. (ironweed, vernonia)
Veronicastrum virginicum (Culver's root, veronicastrum)
Zizia aurea (golden Alexanders, zizia d'oré)

What natives are you growing in your garden?

Sansevieria trifasciata

2010-03-17T06:56:00.000-07:00

Sansevieria trifasciata, aka "snake plant" or "mother-in-law's tongue" in English, plante serpent or langue de belle-mère in French, is a west African perennial commonly grown as a houseplant. It's unusual to see a specimen as large and healthy as this in a mall—this one is in Brookfield Place. (I believe the underplantings are Rhododendron simsii (Indian azalea, azalé de l'Inde) and Hedera helix (English ivy, lierre grimpante). The latter is an invasive plant here in Toronto, which should be confined to indoor plantings like this rather than planted in the garden).

I briefly had a sansevieria, which I picked up half-dead at Canadian Tire because I felt sorry for it. I thought that the leaves would be too tough and unappetizing for my cats to nibble, but I was wrong. There is some debate over how toxic sansevieria is, but according to Plants are the Strangest People's Houseplant Toxicity Series, Sansevieria trifasciata can kill a cat. I've composted mine.

I should mention that I dislike the common names "mother-in-law's tongue" and langue de belle-mère for this plant, since they are a dig at mothers-in-law (the sharp leaves of the plant are supposed to be like the sharp tongues of mothers-in-law). I have had two mothers-in-law and they both are lovely people whom I am grateful to have known.

Lobelia erinus 'Sapphire Pendula' seedlings

2010-03-16T09:48:00.000-07:00

I didn't see seeds for that gorgeous sky blue lobelia for sale, but hopefully these will provide a good approximation! (And I'm still hoping I can get my native Lobelia siphilitica seeds to sprout; I recently had a dream about it!)

Antirrhinum majus 'Montego Pink' seedlings!

2010-03-16T09:07:00.000-07:00

As you would expect from a plant that is capable of volunteering out of nowhere, the snapdragons (mufliers) germinated quickly and easily.

Hypoestes phyllostachya 'Splash Select White' seedlings!

2010-03-16T07:44:00.000-07:00

Polka dot plant (plante aux éphélides) is sometimes recommended as a good plant for children to grow from seed because it is easy. I can confirm that is the case! Here are my lovely healthy seedlings, about a week after sowing. No markings yet, but I expect they will come with the first true leaves.

Garden Bloggers' Bloom Day, March 2010

2010-03-15T06:12:00.000-07:00

Spring is just getting started here in Toronto. There are a whopping two species in bloom in our garden (which is two more than most of the other gardens around here...) The snow crocus (crocus du printemps, Crocus chrysanthus 'Blue Pearl') were the first to bloom. They're staying closed today because it's cloudy and cool, but they were wide open on a sunny day last week. This is my first year growing snow crocuses and I am very pleased with them.

My first snowdrop (perce neige, Galanthus nivalis) bloomed today. I planted a good sized clump of them, but so far only this one lonely plant is blooming. But I can see tips of a few neighbours so hopefully the full clump will appear. I'm disappointed that the snowdrops have been so slow in our garden; I guess they don't like this location? Other snowdrops in neighbourhood gardens were out in full force a week ago.

Check out what's blooming in gardens around the world for Garden Bloggers' Bloom Day March 2010. Thanks to Carol of May Dreams Gardens for organizing this event!

Hypoestes phyllostachya 'Splash Select White' seeds

2010-03-12T09:42:00.001-08:00

Hypoestes phyllostachya, known in English as "polka dot plant" or "freckle face" and in French as plante aux éphélides, is a tender perennial native to Madagascar grown for its attractive foliage, which is dark green densely covered with spots of pink, white, or red.

Usually in polka dot plant is sold as a houseplant in Toronto, however, a neighbour had a very pretty planting under a tree which impressed me last summer.

Plants are the Strangest People reports that polka dot plant is invasive in various warm parts of the world (Australia, Costa Rica, Hawaii, Puerto Rico, Zimbabwe, and India), so if you live there, please don't plant this in your garden. However it doesn't seem likely to go wild in Toronto. (PATSP also reports that polka dot plants are potentially dangerous to dogs and cats.)

I bought these seeds at Parks, who also sell a pink variety.

Antirrhinum majus 'Montego Pink' seeds

2010-03-12T09:39:00.001-08:00

Since snapdragons (mufliers) liked the front garden so much that they volunteered there last year and were still blooming in November, I've decided to plant some deliberately.

This is a dwarf cultivar with pink flowers, you can see it at Stokes, where I purchased my seeds.

Thunbergia alata 'Blushing Susie' seeds

2010-03-11T09:35:00.000-08:00

Thunbergia alata (black-eyed Susan vine, suzanne aux yeux noirs, oeil de suzanne) is a perennial vine native to eastern Africa, grown as an annual here in Toronto.

Despite the similarity of the common names, thunbergia should not be confused with our native black-eyed Susan, Rudbeckia hirta (rudbeckie dressée). Unlike rudbeckia, thunbergia is not a composite flower; rather it has trumpet-shaped flowers with five petals and an almost black throat. The species has light yellow-orange petals, however cultivars are available in yellow, white, and in the case of 'Blushing Susie', peachy-pink.

I got these seeds from Park Seed.

Veseys claims this plant attracts hummingbirds, however I haven't been able to find any photos of hummingbirds visiting T. alata so I'm a bit sceptical.

Desmodium canadense seeds: sticky little guys!

2010-03-11T06:29:00.001-08:00

I bought these seeds for showy tick trefoil (desmodie du Canada) at Seedy Saturday in Scarborough, but another option is to go for a walk through the savannah of High Park in August—you will get a lot of these seeds stuck to your clothing, like ticks (hence the English common name).

Crocus chrysanthus 'Blue Pearl'

2010-03-11T05:54:00.000-08:00

This year, the first flowers in our garden are these snow crocuses (crocus du printemps), strategically planted up against the foundation on the south side of the house. Their cousins, Crocus chrysanthus 'Romance', aren't even in bud yet, probably because they are about 50 cm away from the foundation. Kathy Purdy at Cold Climate Gardening has a smart suggestion: keep records of where the snow melts first in your garden, so next fall you know where to plant these early-blooming bulbs.

Monarda fistulosa seeds

2010-03-11T05:46:00.000-08:00

I was enchanted to see wild bergamot (monarde fistuleuse) blooming in High Park last summer, so when I saw this packet of seeds from the High Park Volunteer Stewardship Program at Seedy Saturday in Scarborough, I snatched them up!

Gardening influences

2010-03-07T07:32:00.000-08:00

Today, Teza asks, "Who Has Made The Greatest Influence On Your Garden Career? As I wrote my reply, I realized that it was getting far too long for his comments page, so I'm posting it here.

I first started gardening a few years ago when, in early spring, I was feeling homesick for the hepaticas which were the first flowers of spring in the forest surrounding my childhood home. Looking at the library for wildflower books, I discovered Lorraine Johnson's 100 Easy-to-Grow Native Plants. It had never even occured to me that people in the city could grow my beloved wildflowers; I somehow had got the idea that in the city people had to grow "city plants" like the ubiquitous petunias that filled all the city planters (or so it seemed) when I was a kid. Johnson's passionate writing got me excited about gardening with native plants.

More recently, Sara Stein's Noah's Garden inspires me with her moving account of how she and her husband inadvertently drove away the wildlife from their property in the course of creating their conventional garden, and then using the magic of native plants lured them back! Having grown up in the country I really miss the huge variety of songbirds, butterflies, frogs, snakes, dragonflies, and many more that made our landscape gloriously beautiful and full of life all year round. Stein gives me hope that I can recreate a bit of that in my present life.

Regular readers of this blog will know how fond I am of Douglas Tallamy's Bringing Nature Home. An entomologist, Tallamy makes a compelling case for the importance of native plants as habitat for insects and the animals who depend on them.

On March 1, my mother passed away, and I have been reflecting on the influence both my late parents have had on my life.

My father, a city boy from Australia, had no attachment to the native plants of his adopted Canadian home. But he did have a passionate love of gardens, spending hours poring over his collection of gardening books (some of which I am lucky to have inherited) and ordering dozens of varieties from the Stokes and Park's seed catalogues every year. Dad designed and with my mother built our house, which had scads of large windows filling the rooms with abundant sunlight all year round. Our living room hosted a collection of dozens of plants (pruned by our two pet budgies!); the highlight was a gorgeous bougainvillea. Although my choices of garden plants are often different from what Dad would have chosen, I share with him a love for reading, learning, and imagining the potential beauty of the garden.

My mother, on the other hand, was a true nature lover who would have been content to leave the property completely wild. It was she who took my sister and me for walks in the woods and taught us the names of the flowers, the butterflies, and the birds. She established an annual tradition of hand-rearing a monarch caterpillar to butterflyhood (a tradition I long to reanact with my son, but I haven't been able to find any monarch caterpillars here in Toronto); she would rescue the birds who crashed into our masses of windows (and donate those who didn't survive to the museum in Ottawa). As a child I didn't understand why, although the gardens weren't really her idea, she would spend hours each night weeding, but now I do the same thing. I think for her, like me, this time in the garden was a time to slow down and be immersed in the beauty of nature.

First snowdrops of the year!

2010-03-07T06:07:00.000-08:00

Once again, the snowdrops (Galanthus nivalis, perce-neiges) are the first flowers in bloom in my neighbourhood, and once again, there are none in my garden (these are in a neighbour's yard). But I planted some last fall! I don't know where I put them, but I don't see any sign of them. Where did I go wrong?

Matthiola incana 'Vintage White' seedlings: growing like weeds!

2010-03-06T09:45:00.000-08:00

I had to leave town suddenly for two weeks, but these babies did fine without me! (Covered with cling film to prevent drying out). It was great to come home to brand new healthy seedlings (although now that they're not covered I see the cats are pruning them). I'm not sure if I should prick them out now or wait until they have true leaves. Thoughts, anyone?

Maybe one of these is a Zizia aurea seedling?

2010-03-06T09:43:00.000-08:00

Well, the gardeners at the Dave's Garden Plant Identification Forum confirmed my suspicion that the first crop of seedlings that came up in the pot I planted my golden Alexanders (zizias d'oré) in were actually Oxalis. Looks like I didn't clean the pot out properly before planting in it.

So I weeded out the oxalis, and ended up with these three plants. There seem to be two species—the plant on the left has smoother narrower leaves than the other two.

Could either of these be Zizia?

Primula hybrida, colourful harbingers of spring

2010-03-06T06:40:00.000-08:00

As we head in to spring, stores all over Toronto are carrying brightly coloured Primula hybrida (primroses, primevère)—these were photographed at Natural Florist, 1852 Danforth Ave.. I am a bit ambivalent about these hybrids; in a way they're pretty, but most of them look so unnatural, which I find a bit disturbing somehow.

Primula is a large genus of 400-500 species native to the northern hemisphere, mostly Eurasia. PLANTS lists four species native to Ontario (P. egaliksensis, P. laurentiana, P. mistassinika, and P. stricta), though I don't know if their natural range extends this far south. I do find the wild types prettier than the technicolour hybrids that one usually sees (click links for pretty pictures from the photo gallery at Primula World by Canadian photographer Pam Eveleigh).

Of course, those primulas at the top of the post must be greenhouse grown, because the primroses that overwintered in Toronto gardens are nowhere near blooming, though last year's leaves stayed green and there's already fresh growth.

By the way, the English name "primrose" has nothing to do with the English word "prim". It comes from the Old French primerose, which in turn came from the Latin prima rosa, i.e. "first rose", because it blooms early in spring, according to the Online Etymology Dictionary.

Matthiola incana 'Vintage White' seeds: a promise of a fragrant summer!

2010-02-13T19:09:00.000-08:00

I've grown Matthiola incana (stocks, giroflée) in the past from bedding plants (here's a pretty picture of 'Midget Lavender' from 2007), but this is my first time growing these tender biennials (treated as annuals in Toronto) from seed.

Stocks are not native to North America, and I don't know if they have much wildlife value apart from being a larval host for the cabbage butterfly (Pieris rapae, petit blanc du chou, also not native). But I am a sucker for fragrance, and this flower smells heavenly.

I was pleased to find that the seeds are easy to handle, about the same size and a similar colour to fenugreek (Trigonella foenum-graecum, fenugrec), so much so that I thought they must be closely related (they aren't).

I've picked up a window box cheap at Value Village and I'm planning to fill it up with home-grown sweetly scented stocks outside my bedroom window (along with some Nemophilia menziesii 'Penny Black' (baby black eyes, némophile) for contrast).

Probably not Zizia aurea seedlings

2010-02-08T12:08:00.000-08:00

After putting my stratified native seeds under the grow lights, I was thrilled to see a lush crop of seedings of Zizia aurea (golden Alexanders, zizia d'oré) springing up in only a couple of days. Now that they are getting true leaves, however, they look suspiciously to me like Oxalis (wood sorrel, oxalide). I discovered a nifty resource, Central Region Seedling ID Guide for Native Prairie Plants (PDF), published by USDA, which seems to confirm that these are not Zizia aurea.

I'm going to keep them around a bit longer; maybe they'll look different with age, or maybe more seedlings will come up later? I'm not expecting much though. What a disappointment.

Tradescantia ohiensis seedling!

2010-02-08T12:00:00.000-08:00

It's only one seedling, but that's one more Tradescantia seedling than I got last year, when I managed to screw up most of my native plant seeds by putting them in peat pellets outside (which were impossible to keep from drying out).

My son Nicky doesn't usually appreciate native plants, but I piqued his interest in this one by telling him one of its common names in English is "snotweed", because the flowers disintegrate into slimy goo. He was also impressed by the gorgeous photos at Missouri Plants—scroll down for an amazing close-up of the stamens.

"Wildflower" seed mixes: approach with caution!

2010-01-31T12:11:00.000-08:00

Gardeners who are interested in growing native plants should be aware that those packages of "wildflower" seeds you see everywhere usually include many flowers not native to our area. Here are some "wildflower" seed mixes I have found on sale in Toronto: Liberty Garden seeds (Page Seed Company) produces a so-called North American Wildflower Mixture. It's hard to be sure what species are included, since they're listed only by their common names, but they include many plants which are not native to North America. Here's the list:

Plant	Native to NA?	Native to TO?
white yarrow (Achillea millefolium, achillée millefeuille)	yes	yes
alyssum (could be a few different species, but most likely Lobularia maritima (alysson maritime)	no	no
Calendula (species not identified)	no	no
cornflower: Centaurea cyanus (bluet des champs)	no	no
wallflower (Erisymum spp.)	no	no
Coreopsis, species not identified	yes	maybe
Cosmos, species not identified	probably	no
sweet Wiliam: Dianthus barbatus (œillet de poète)	no	no
Gypsophila, species not identified	no	no
blue flax: could be Linum lewisii (lin de Lewis) or Linum perenne (lin vivace)	yes or no	no
flax: probably Linum usitatissimum (lin cultivé)	no	no
evening primrose: Oenothera, species not identified	yes	maybe
black-eyed Susan: probably some kind of Rudbeckia	probably	maybe
catchfly: could be some kind of Lychnis or Silene	maybe	maybe
Mexican hat: some kind of Ratibida	yes	maybe

Thompson and Morgan sell a California Mix (obviously not native here) and a North American Mix. The California Mix includes:

Plant	Native to California?
Oenothera missourensis (bigfruit evening primrose, onagre de Missouri; now goes by the scientific name Oenothera macrocarpa)	no
Layia platyglossa (coastal tidytips, je ne peux pas trouver le nom commun en français)	yes
Gilia capitata (bluehead gilia, je ne peux pas trouver le nom commun en français)	yes
Nemophila insignis (baby blue eyes, némophile)	yes
Eschscholzia (California poppy, pavot de Californie), species not identified	yes
Clarkia elegans (elegant Clarkia, Clarkia élégant)	yes
Phacelia campanularia (desertbells, phacelia cloche bleu)	yes

These actually are all California species, except for the very first species listed, bigfruit evening primrose, which is native to south-central US, not California. I'm wondering if, as with food ingredients, the first listed is present in the greatest quantity?

The so-called North American Mix contains:

Plant	Native to NA?	Native to TO?
Gilia capitata (bluehead gilia, je ne peux pas trouver le nom commun en français)	yes	no
Nemophila insignis (baby blue eyes, némophile)	yes	no
Nemophila maculata (fivespot, némophile)	yes	no
godetia (probably Clarkia amoena, fleur de satin)	yes	no
alyssum white (probably Lobularia maritima (alysson maritime)	no	no
Delphinium consolida (larkspur, dauphinelle)	no	no
Rudbeckia, species not identified	yes	maybe
Linum rubrum (scarlet flax, lin rouge annuelle)	no	no
Eschscholzia (California poppy, pavot de Californie), species not identified	yes	no
Clarkia, species not identified	yes	no
Iberis umbellata (globe candytuft, ibéris à ombelles)	no	no
Papaver rhoeas (corn poppy, coquelicot)	no	no

The Ontario Seed Company (OSC) has a few different wildflower mixes. Their Semi-Shade Mixture includes:

Plant	Native to Ontario?	Native to TO?
Aquilegia 'McKana Giant' (columbine ,ancolie)	no	no
coneflower: could refer to some kind of Echinacea, Rudbeckia, or Ratibida	maybe	maybe
candytuft: some kind of Iberis (ibéride)	no	no
catchfly: could be some kind of Lychnis or Silene	maybe	maybe
dwarf coreopsis: might be Coreopsis auriculata 'Nana' (coréopsis auriculé)	no	no
forget-me-not: could be some kind of Myosotis or Cynoglossum amabile	no	no
Ozark sundrop: Oenothera macrocarpa (onagre de Missouri)	no	no
Shasta daisy: Leucanthemum × superbum	no	no
Shirley poppy: Papaver rhoeas (corn poppy, coquelicot)	no	no
sweet Wiliam: Dianthus barbatus (œillet de poète)	no	no
Viola, species not identified	maybe	maybe

Their Low-Growing mixture includes:

Plant	Native to Ontario?	Native to TO?
Alyssum saxatile (golden alyssum, corbeille d'or)	no	no
African daisy: could be Arctotis sp., Dimorphotheca sp., Gazania sp., etc. etc.	no	no
baby's breath: Gypsophila (gypsophile), species not identified	no	no
California poppy: Eschscholzia, species not identifiedpavot de Californie	no	no
perennial candytuft: Iberis sempervirens (ibéris toujours vert)	no	no
dwarf coreopsis: might be Coreopsis auriculata 'Nana' (coréopsis auriculé)	no	no
dwarf coneflower: might be a cultivar of Echinacea purpurea	no	no
five spot: Nemophila maculata (némophile)	no	no
forget-me-not: could be some kind of Myosotis or Cynoglossum amabile	no	no
mountain phlox: might be Phlox austromontana or Linanthus grandiflorus	no	no
showy evening primrose: Oenothera speciosa (oenothère rose)	no	no
Oriental poppy: Papaver orientale (pavot orientale)	no	no
Ozark sundrop: Oenothera macrocarpa (onagre de Missouri)	no	no
pinks: Dianthus, species not identified	no	no
prairie coneflower: probably Ratibida	maybe	maybe
wallflower: Erisymum	no	no

Their OSC mixture includes:

Plant	Native to Ontario?	Native to TO?
baby's breath: Gypsophila (gypsophile), species not identified	no	no
bachelor buttons: Centaurea cyanus (bluet des champs)	no	no
black-eyed Susan: probably some kind of Rudbeckia	maybe	maybe
Cosmos, species not identified	no	no
Calendula, species not identified	no	no
catchfly: could be some kind of Lychnis or Silene	maybe	maybe
Chrysanthemum, species not identified	no	no
lance leaf coreopsis: Coreopsis lanceolata (coréopsis lancéolé)	yes	yes
plains coreopsis: Coreopsis tinctoria (coreopsis élégant)	yes	yes
scarlet flax: Linum grandiflorum (lin)	no	no
Rocky Mountain penstemon: Penstemon strictus (penstemon)	no	no
evening scented primrose: Oenothera odorata (onagre odorant)	no	no
prairie coneflower: probably Ratibida	maybe	maybe
purple coneflower: Echinacea purpurea	no	no
Russell lupines: Lupinus polyphyllus	no	no
soapwort: Saponaria (saponaire), unidentified species	no	no
Shasta daisy: Leucanthemum × superbum	no	no
Shirley poppy: Papaver rhoeas (corn poppy, coquelicot)	no	no
wallflower: Erisymum	no	no

Finally, McKenzie Seeds sells Low-Growing and All Purpose wildflower seed mixes, which don't even list the species included. The package states, and I quote, "Annuals, Biennials, Perennials". Well, that really narrows it down, doesn't it? I wonder if they even know what is in these mixtures or if it's just mystery seeds that fell out of the other packets?

Now, just because these plants aren't native doesn't mean that you should never grow them (I have grown a number of them myself), but if you want to get all the benefits of native plants, in terms of providing habitat for native insects and the wildlife that depend on them (read Bringing Nature Home if you haven't already), then you will not be getting those benefits from these wildflower seed mixes. It's not clear to me what "wildflower" even means to these seed sellers, since not only are most of these plants not native, most of them don't grow wild here either. I wish they would label these mixes as "easy-care flowers" or something, and not give them names like "North American Wildflower" mix when there is nothing particularly North American or wild about most of the flowers included.

Native plant seeds out of the fridge and under the grow lights!

2010-01-26T17:51:00.001-08:00

I've finished stratifying my native plant seeds and am starting them extra early under the grow lights, to hopefully get them big and healthy before they have to contend with the garden, and the kids and dogs who frequent the garden.

The natives I'm doing this year are all ones I attempted last year, with varying degrees of success (some of them I attempted wintersowing in peat pellets with no cover and they all dried out.)

Agastache foeniculum (licorice mint, anis hysope)
Aquilegia canadensis (wild red columbine, ancolie du Canada): my favourite!
Campanula rotundiifolia (harebell, campanule à feuilles rondes)
Eupatorium perfoliatum (common boneset, eupatoire perfoliée)
Eupatorium purpureum (sweet Joe Pye weed, eupatoire pourpre)
Gaillardia aristata (blanket flower, gaillarde)
Helenium autumnale (Helen's flower, hélénie d'automne)
Penstemon digitalis (foxglove penstemon, penstémon digitalis)
Tradescantia ohiensis (spiderwort, tradescantia de l'Ohio)
Verbena stricta (hoary vervain, verveine veloutée)
Zizia aurea (golden Alexanders, zizia d'oré)

Nature photos by Nicky

2010-01-25T16:17:00.000-08:00

All taken at High Park.

Nicky is starting his own photography blog, Nicky's Mystery Photos. Check it out!

Does growing invasive plants help birds?

2009-11-29T14:42:00.000-08:00

This past week I was very excited to pick up a beautiful book, Bird by Bird Gardening by Sally Roth (Rodale, 2006), about designing gardens to attract various families of birds to the garden. And in many ways it is an excellent book, with a wealth of information about the needs of different birds in terms of food, shelter, water, etc., with lists of plants and garden plans for all sorts of lovely birds (she's an American writing for American gardeners but of course a lot of it will apply here in Canada too). It's a beautiful book, lavishly illustrated with full colour photographs, and a wealth of information.

As I read the book more closely, however, I became troubled, as she recommended plants which may be invasive in parts of the US (and Canada too, though I can't fault her for that if she wasn't intending to cover Canada in the book). For example, she suggests

Berberis spp. (barberries, berbéris) without distinguishing between the native and invasive varieties (B. thunbergii is invasive in the northeastern US, B. vulgaris invasive in many states from coast to coast; they both are listed in the Invasive Exotic Species Ranking for Southern Ontario (PDF))
Eucalyptus spp. (Australian natives which are invasive in California, especially, but also in the Pacific north west including part of BC)
Euonymus alatus (winged euonymus, fusain ailé) which is invasive in the northeastern US (and southern Ontario)
Pyrus calleryana (Callery pear, poirier de Chine) which is invasive in the eastern US

(These are just the most notorious invasives I noticed flipping through the book; I didn't do an exhaustive investigation.)

Now, there are a lot of older wildlife gardening books that recommend various invasives, especially berry plants, but I was very unhappy to see them still being recommended in such a recent book.

I was horrified when I got to a three page essay, "Invasive Implications", on pp. 74-76.

First, she implies that the term "invasive" was created by the USDA and is based on agricultural concerns, and that all non-native plants are invasive. Now, even if invasive plants were only a problem for agriculture, that is still an extremely serious problem since virtually all people in North America are completely dependent on agriculture for our food. To me that would be reason enough to avoid gardening with invasives.

Of course, in reality, there are many ecologists concerned about the impact of invasive species on ecosystems. Invasives are definitely not only a concern for farmers.

Then, she says that invasives mostly affect disturbed areas, and so are not a problem for native plants. Even if invasives only affected disturbed areas, to me that is still a problem, for they are displacing the native plants which would normally colonize disturbed areas. Invasive plants can prevent native plants from returning to disturbed areas, so this habitat is permanently rather than temporarily lost.

(And unfortunately, there are invasive species which invade undisturbed habitat; witness the heartbreaking blanket of garlic mustard (Alliaria petiolata, herbe à l'ail) carpeting the forests in High Park and around the Ontario Science Centre, for example.)

She suggests that invasives are mainly a concern in warm areas (southeast US, California, and Hawaii) or near wetlands. In reality, while invasives may be worse in those areas, that doesn't mean they aren't a serious problem here.

Then she points out that sometimes authorities use environmentally questionable practices (herbicides). There is real debate on if/when pesticides should be used to control invasives, but surely if we don't want the authorities to feel driven to use pesticides we should avoid growing plants that are invasive in the first place! She also describes an instance she witnessed of a birds' nest being destroyed when the plant they were living in was removed. Again, all the more reason to prevent these situations by not growing invasives in our gardens.

Most upsettingly, she writes that since birds use some invasives for shelter or food:

I stick up for many invasives [because] we've destroyed so much bird habitat, so many native plants, and such multitudes of insects, that I believe birds deserve some extra help.

Aargh!

The sad truth is, these invasives she's defending are a leading cause of habitat loss. In particular, the multitudes of insects she mourns depend on a multitude of native plants for food. Most herbivorous insects can only eat certain species; even a closely related non-native plant often supports many fewer insects (in both number of species and number of individuals) compared to its native counterpart. Birds can seek cover and build nests in many locations, and fruit and nectar of many plants are palatable, but without a healthy insect population most birds won't be able to get the nourishment they need.

Invasive plants don't help birds, they harm birds.

If you want to grow plants to help birds, there are many native plants (many listed in Bird by Bird Gardening, and Bringing Nature Home by Doug Tallamy) which provide shelter, berries, and the insects which are such a crucial part of many birds' diets.

For more information about the impact of native vs. non-native plants on wildlife, please read Bringing Nature Home.

Great podcasts by Doug Tallamy on gardening and wildlife

2009-11-28T10:02:00.000-08:00

I've already mentioned Doug Tallamy's wonderful book, Bringing Nature Home (Timber Press). I just discovered these fascinating and inspiring podcasts online. Enjoy!

Part 1: the crisis faced by wildlife, making friends with insects. (8:02)

Part 2: how many native vs. non-native plants do you need, which native plants have the most benefit for wildlife. (11:11)

Part 3: how to distinguish native vs. non-native plants, how invasive plants affect the environment, using herbicides to control invasive plants, organic gardening. (9:24)

Part 4: can one garden really make a difference in helping wildlife? How to get started. (9:15)

Part 5: do lawn alternatives help wildlife, what is the most destructive landscaping practice? Current research on the impact of plants on wildlife, especially birds. Effects of native vs. invasive insects. (11:29)

Garden Bloggers' Bloom Day, November 2009

2009-11-14T21:33:00.000-08:00

Here in Toronto, there isn't much blooming; in fact, I was surprised to find as many blooms as I did. Interestingly, they're all volunteers except for the chrysanthemums.

Antirrhinum majus (snapdragon, muflier). I'm not sure where these snapdragons blew in from, since we didn't plant them last year either. I'm planning to let them self-sow.

Chrysanthemum sp. (chrysanthème). The mums aren't as pretty as they were last month, but they still have lasted a very long time.

Erigeron annuus (daisy fleabane, vergerette annuelle). I was surprised to see daisy fleabane blooming at this time of year; it mostly blooms in early summer.

Lobularia maritima (alyssum, alysse odorante). I love the way this alyssum volunteers in a crack in the driveway. I may deliberately sow some in cracks next year.

Lobularia maritima (alyssum, alysse odorante). More alyssum. I must plant more of this next year, it has such a long blooming season, smells lovely, and pollinators love it! Stokes has some interesting colours you don't usually see in alyssums.

Petunia. I can't believe this petunia is still blooming, it lost its leaves ages ago and looked so nearly dead my landlords dumped it out of its hanging basket. Here it is sitting in a clump of dried up soil in November, and it's still blooming.

Sutera cordata (bacopa, sutera cordée). This was a pleasant surprise volunteer. I may plant some deliberately next year. It really needs to be started early indoors; this plant didn't bloom until autumn.

Check out what's blooming in gardens around the world this Garden Bloggers' Bloom Day. Thanks to Carol of May Dreams Gardens for hosting!

Hamamelis virginiana in bloom

2009-10-31T13:43:00.000-07:00

Although he photographed these flowers in High Park last Monday, Nicky wanted me to post this plant today in honour of Hallowe'en. Hamamelis virginiana, known in English as "American witchhazel" and in French as hamamélis de Virginie, is a deciduous tree native to eastern and central North America. Unlike most of our native trees, witchhazel blooms in autumn, possibly to take advantage of the lack of other flowers vying for pollinators attention. I was thrilled to see this interesting tree for the first time in real life!

Phlox paniculata 'Katherine': bare root plant

2009-10-21T15:00:00.000-07:00

Phlox paniculata, known in English as "garden phlox", "fall phlox", or "summer phlox", and in French as phlox paniculée, is a perennial native to eastern and central United States. It bears clusters of showy five-petalled flowers in shades of pink, purple, or white. This cultivar will have lavender flowers with white eyes.

Garden phlox looks similar to dame's rocket (Hesperis matronalis, julienne des dames). You can distinguish the two by counting petals: phlox has five petals, dame's rocket has four. It's important to be able to distinguish them because dame's rocket is seriously invasive here in southern Ontario according to the Invasive Exotic Species Ranking for Southern Ontario (PDF). Since dame's rocket is considered "a threat to natural areas wherever they occur because they can reproduce by means that allow them to move long distances," I hope that other Toronto gardeners will join me in growing the equally pretty but non-invasive garden phlox instead.

Iris × hollandica 'Blue Pearl' bulbs

2009-10-16T14:57:00.000-07:00

Iris × hollandica, known in English as "Dutch iris" and in French as iris de Hollande, is a bulbous perennial available in a variety of colours including blue violet (e.g. 'Blue Magic'), white (e.g. 'Casa Blanca'), yellow (e.g. 'Crown Jewel'), bronze (e.g. 'Bronze Beauty'), and more. These ones should be a rich blue violet.

Tulipa tarda bulbs

2009-10-16T14:35:00.000-07:00

Tulipa tarda, known in English as "tarda tulip" or "species tulip" and in French as tulipe tarda or tulipe botanique, are bulbous perennials native to Turkey and the surrounding area. Unlike the usual hybrid tulips, species tulips will self-sow and are more perennial in nature (hybrids may come back in future years but often decline). Tarda tulips are petite plants with showy 6-petalled star-shaped flowers in yellow with white tips.

Galanthus nivalis bulbs

2009-10-16T14:21:00.000-07:00

Last year snowdrops (perce-neige) were the very first flowers up in our neighbourhood, and very welcome after the long winter. (Last year, Helen's first snowdrop came up in late February!

Cyclamen hederifolium tubers

2009-10-16T10:33:00.000-07:00

The plants I ordered from Veseys have arrived (except the phlox, which is back-ordered), so I have a busy weekend ahead!

You can see that one of these tubers seems to have sprouted already. I do hope it will be okay.

Cyclamens are sometimes wild-collected for the horticultural trade, and some species have become endangered because of this. So when you buy cyclamens, make sure that they are nursery propagated!

Crocus chrysanthus corms

2009-10-16T10:15:00.000-07:00

Crocus chrysanthus, known in English as "snow crocus" and in French as crocus de printemps, are bulbous perennials native to Eurasia. A variety of cultivars are available, in colours ranging from white (e.g. 'Snow Bunting', pale lavender blue (e.g. 'Blue Pearl', and pale yellow (e.g. 'Romance') to dark purple (e.g. 'Lady Killer') and bronze ('Zwanenburg Bronze').

Of course at this stage they all look pretty much the same. The top photo shows 'Romance' (light yellow blooms) and the bottom photo shows 'Blue Pearl' (very pale blue).

Chionodoxa forbesii bulbs

2009-10-16T10:01:00.000-07:00

More treasures from Veseys: Chionodoxa forbesii (glory-of-the-snow, gloire des neiges). These little beauties, native to Turkey, bear six-petalled light blue flowers in early spring—here are some photos at Dave's Garden. I've seen these in real life so I know they really are as pretty as the pictures!

Garden Bloggers' Bloom Day, October 2009

2009-10-15T09:56:00.000-07:00

It's definitely autumn now, and most of the flowering plants are either finished or on their last legs. Here are the brave hangers-on: Antirrhinum majus (snapdragon, muflier) volunteers in the front garden.

Chrysanthemum sp. (chrysanthème), courtesy of my landlord.

Helianthus annuus (sunflower, tournesol) volunteer.

Impatiens walleriana 'Accent Lavender Blue' (impatience).

Lobularia maritima (alyssum, alysse odorante), volunteer offspring of 'Rosie O'Day'.

Cynoglossum sp. (forget-me-not, souvenez-vous-de-moi).

Rudbeckia hirta (black-eyed Susan, rudbeckie dressée).

Sutera cordata (bacopa, bacopa) volunteer in the Sedum spurium (rock cress, orpin bâtard).

And here are some plants that are not blooming now but are looking pretty:

Heuchera 'Bressingham Hybrid' (coral bells, heuchère).

Solidago canadensis (Canada goldenrod, verge d'or du Canada).

Tiarella cordifolia (foamflower, tiarelle cordifoliée).

Waldsteinia fragaroides (barren strawberry, waldsteinie faux-fraisier).

Visit May Dreams Gardens to see what's blooming in gardens around the world!

Grower admits photos are falsified to sell plants!

2009-10-11T16:08:00.000-07:00

I guess Casa Flora assumed only other industry people would be reading their website, not ordinary gardeners. Check out this page for Heuchera 'Cathedral Windows'. They actually admit

Cathedral Windows was published on the front cover of a popular plant catalog and was an instant success. Even though the photo may have been computer colored enhanced, it caught the public eye and is still asked for by its intriguing name. It’s a nice selection with a network of silver veins and purple patches between veins, but it is not nearly as nice as the cover. Merchandising works!

May have been colour-enhanced? The photos used to market 'Cathedral Windows' show rich deep purple leaves. The photos taken by regular gardeners at Dave's Garden show much less striking dull dark green foliage with a slight purplish cast, with purple undersides and stems.

Casa Flora may think that this type of merchandising works. In the short run, sure, but in the long run, you're disappointing customers and teaching us to never ever buy a plant based on a photo, since unethical companies can easily photoshop a plant into something it's not.

Glorious autumn colour in eastern Ontario

2009-10-10T13:07:00.001-07:00

When I was growing up, autumn was my favourite season. The weather was good, not too hot and not too cold, and the forests surrounding our house erupted in glorious oranges, yellows, and reds. The photo to the left shows the land where I grew up, although the house I lived in has been replaced by the new owner.

Since moving to Toronto over 20 years ago, I've found autumn disappointing. Our fall colours just don't seems as rich and varied as those in eastern Ontario. Obviously living in a city is not going to provide the same number of trees as living surrounded by forest, but in eastern Ontario even in the more built up areas the trees seem more vivid. (This tree was photographed on Church Street in Almonte.)

My very favourites are these maples, don't know which species, which turn a gorgeous red-orange (these photos do not do the colours justice).

My son discovered these gorgeous leaves on a sprouting maple stump, also on Church Street in Almonte. It seems to me that the best fall colours are by water.

I think this was the first time I was home at the right time to see autumn leaves in 20 years! I'll have to make this a regular autumn pilgrimage.

Helianthus divaricatus in bloom

2009-09-27T12:41:00.000-07:00

Helianthus divaricatus, known in English as "woodland sunflower" and in French as hélianthe à feuilles étalées, is a perennial native to eastern North America. I love the contrast between the clear yellow flowers and the dark green foliage.

My son photographed these plants at High Park.

What's blooming in High Park, late September

2009-09-25T14:23:00.000-07:00

Sunday was a perfect day for planting with the High Park Volunteer Stewardship Programme. Summer is coming to an end, but there are many plants still in bloom. The asters are the current stars; I was especially impressed with the white heath aster (Symphyotrichum ericoides, aster ericoïde), which has gorgeous plumes densely packed with small white flowers. So-called sky blue aster (Symphyotrichum oolentiangense, aster azuré) creates clouds of soft pale lavender, while New England aster (Symphyotrichum novae-angliae, aster de Nouvelle-Angleterre) has big bright purple flowers. There are still some goldenrods (Solidago spp., verges d'or) and woodland sunflowers (Helianthus divaricatus, hélianthe à feuilles étalées), complementing the mauve asters with their bright yellow blooms. I also saw Campanula rotundifolia (harebells, campanule à feuilles rondes) in bloom for the first time in real life!

We planted seedlings of native plants at a new site (the former Sculpture Garden), including

Andropogon gerardii (big bluestem, barbon de Gérard)
Apocynum androsaemifolium (spreading dogbane, apocyn à feuilles d'androsème)
Asclepias tuberosa (butterflyweed, asclépiade tubéreuse)
Campanula rotundifolia (harebell, campanule à feuilles rondes)
Monarda fistulosa (wild bergamot, monarde fistuleuse)
Schizachyrium scoparium (little bluestem, schizachyrium à balais)
Solidago juncea (early goldenrod, verge d'or jonciforme)
Symphyotrichum ericoides (white heath aster, aster ericoïde)
Symphyotrichum oolentangiense (sky blue aster, aster azuré)

and others that I don't remember. (My son said they look like they're just weeds, but next year I'm sure they'll be lovely.) Nearby, another patch of ground was covered with heavy black plastic to kill the weeds through solarization. We'll be planting there next year.

Celosia argentea var. plumosa

2009-09-20T13:10:00.000-07:00

Celosia argentea, known in English as "plumed cockscomb", "feathered cockscomb", "silver cockscomb", or by the genus name, and in French as célosie crête de coq, is an annual native to the tropics, perhaps Africa or India. The leaves and flowers are grown as a food crop in Africa. The flowers of the plumosa group are reminiscent of those of amaranth, and in fact celosia is a member of the Amaranthaceae.

I've never grown celosia myself, but I have a sentimental attachment to the cristata types, because they remind me of my first husband. (Geoffrey liked them because the flowers look like brains). I thought this combination of red celosia with deliciously fragrant deep purple Heliotropium arborscens (heliotrope, héliotrope), which I photographed at the main entrance of High Park opposite High Park subway station, was really striking.

Which natives are easy to grow from seed?

2009-09-19T10:37:00.001-07:00

Although I really botched this last season's attempt to grow native plants from seed, I'm not giving up. I was pleased to see that William Cullina's Growing and propagating wildflowers of the United States and Canada (Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 2000) lists which genera are easy to grow from seed. Here's a summary of the genera relevant to Toronto gardeners:

Genus	Species native to Toronto
Agastache	Agastache foeniculum (anise hyssop, anis hysope) Agastache nepetoides (yellow giant hyssop, faux-népéta)
Ageratina	Ageratina altissima (white snakeroot, eupatoire rugueuse)¹
Antennaria	Antennaria howellii (Howell's pussytoes, immortelle)^* Antennaria neglecta (field pussytoes, antennaire négligée)^* Antennaria parlinii (Parlin's pussytoes, antennaire de Parlin)

Asclepias	Asclepias exaltata (poke milkweed, asclépiade très grande) Asclepias hirtella (tall green milkweed, je ne peux pas trouver le nom commun français)^* Asclepias incarnata (swamp milkweed, asclépiade incarnate) Asclepias purpurascens (purple milkweed, asclépiade pourpre) Asclepias quadrifolia (four-leaf milkweed, je ne peux pas trouver le nom commun français)^* Asclepias sullivantii (Sullivant's milkweed, asclépiade de Sullivant)^* Asclepias syriaca (common milkweed, asclépiade commune) Asclepias tuberosa (butterflyweed, asclépiade tubéreuse) Asclepias variegata (white milkweed, asclépiade blanche) Asclepias verticillata (whorled milkweed, asclépiade verticillée) Asclepias viridiflora (green milkweed, asclépiade à fleurs vertes)^*
Baptisia	Baptisia tinctoria (yellow wild indigo, indigo sauvage)
Campanula	Campanula aparinoides (bedstraw bellflower, campanule faux-gaillet)^* Campanula rotundifolia (harebell, campanule à feuilles rondes)
Chamerion	Chamerion angustifolium (fireweed, épilobe)²
Chelone	Chelone glabra (white turtlehead, galane glabre)
Conoclinium	Conoclinium coelistinum (mist flower, je ne peux pas trouver le nom commun français)³

Coreopsis	Coreopsis lanceolata (lanceleaf coreopsis, coreopsis à feuilles lancéolées) Coreopsis tinctoria (calliopsis, coréopsis des teinturiers)^* Coreopsis tripteris (tall coreopsis, coréopsis trifoliolé)
Dalea	Dalea purpurea (prairie clover, petalostemon pourpre)
Echinacea	Echinacea pallida (pale purple coneflower, échinacée pâle)^*
Eupatoriadelphus	Eupatoriadelphus maculatus (spotted Joe Pye weed, eupatoire maculée)⁴
Eupatorium	Eupatorium altissimum (tall boneset, eupatoire élevée)^* Eupatorium perfoliatum (common boneset, eupatoire perfoliée) Eupatorium purpureum (sweet Joe Pye weed, eupatoire pourpre)^*

Geranium	Geranium bicknellii (Bicknell's cranesbill, géranium de Bicknell)^* Geranium carolinianum (Carolina geranium, géranium de Caroline)^* Geranium maculatum (wild geranium, géranium maculé) Geranium robertianum (herb Robert, géranium de Robert)^*

Geum	Geum aleppicum (yellow avens, benoîte d'Alep)^* Geum canadense (white avens, benoîte du Canada)^* Geum lacinatum (rough avens, benoîte laciniée)^* Geum macrophyllum (large-leaf avens, benoîte à grandes feuilles)^* Geum rivale (water avens, benoîte des ruisseaux) Geum triflorum (prairie smoke, benoîte à trois fleurs) Geum vernum (spring avens, je ne peux pas trouver le nom commun français)^* Geum virginianum (pale avens, benoîte de Virginie)^*
Gillenia	Gillenia trifoliata (Bowman's root, gillenia à trois feuilles)⁵
Helianthus	Helianthus decapetalus (thin-leaf sunflower, hélianthe à dix rayons)^* Helianthus divaricatus (woodland sunflower, hélianthe à feuilles étalées) Helianthus maximilliani (Maximillian sunflower, hélianthe de Maximilien) Helianthus nuttallii (Nuttall's sunflower, hélianthe de Nuttall)^* Helianthus pauciflorus (stiff sunflower, hélianthe raide)^* Helianthus strumosus (pale-leaf wood sunflower, hélianthe scrofuleux)^* Helianthus tuberosus (Jerusalem artichoke, topinambour)
Heuchera	Heuchera americana (American alumroot, heuchère d'Amérique)
Hibiscus	Hibiscus laevis (halberd-leaf rose mallow, je ne peux pas trouver le nom commun français) Hibiscus moscheutos (swamp rose mallow, ketmie des marais)
Hydrophyllum	Hydrophyllum appendiculatum (appendaged waterleaf, je ne peux pas trouver le nom commun français)^* Hydrophyllum canadense (broad-leaf waterleaf, hydrophylle du Canada) Hydrophyllum virginianum (Virginia waterleaf, hydrophylle de Virginie)
Liatris	Liatris aspera (rough blazing-star, liatride rugueuse) Liatris cylindracea (Ontario blazing-star, liatris cylindrique)^*
Lobelia	Lobelia cardinalis (cardinal flower, lobélie cardinale) Lobelia dortmanna (water lobelia, lobélie de Dortmann)^* Lobelia inflata (Indian tobacco, lobélie gonflée)^* Lobelia kalmii (brook lobelia, lobélie de Kalm)^* Lobelia siphilitica (great blue lobelia, lobélie syphilitique)
Lupinus	Lupinus perennis (wild lupine, lupin sauvage) Lupinus polyphyllus (big-leaf lupine, lupin polyphylle)
Mimulus	Mimulus alatus (sharp-winged monkey-flower, mimule ailé)^* Mimulus glabratus (round-leaf monkey-flower, mimule glabre)^* Mimulus moschatus (muskflower, mimule musqué)^* Mimulus ringens (square-stemmed monkey-flower, mimule à fleurs entrouvertes)

Monarda	Monarda didyma (beebalm, monarde écarlate) Monarda fistulosa (wild bergamot, monarde fistuleuse) Monarda media (purple bergamot, je ne peux pas trouver le nom commun français)^* Monarda punctata (spotted beebalm, monarde ponctuée)
Oenothera	Oenothera biennis (common evening primrose, onagre bisannuelle)^* Oenothera clelandii (Cleland's evening primrose, je ne peux pas trouver le nom commun français)^* Oenothera fruticosa (sundrops, onagre frutescente) Oenothera nutans (nodding evening primrose, je ne peux pas trouver le nom commun en français)^* Oenothera oakesiana (Oakes' evening primrose, onagre d'Oakes)^* Oenothera parviflora (small-flowered evening primrose, onagre parviflore)^* Oenothera perennis (little evening primrose, onagre vivace)^* Oenothera pilosella (meadow evening primrose, onagre piloselle)^* Oenothera villosa (hairy evening primrose, onagre velue)^*
Penstemon	Penstemon digitalis (foxglove beardtongue, penstémon digitale) Penstemon grandiflorus (large-flowered beardtongue, penstémon à grandes fleurs) Penstemon hirsutus (hairy beardtongue, penstémon hirsute)
Phlox	Phlox divaricata (wild blue phlox, phlox divariqué) Phlox pilosa (downy phlox, phlox nain) Phlox subulata (moss phlox, phlox mousse)
Physostegia	Physostegia virginiana (obedient plant, physostégie de Virginie)
Potentilla	Potentilla arguta (tall cinquefoil, potentille âcre)^* Potentilla canadensis (dwarf cinquefoil, potentille du Canada)^* Potentilla norvegica (rough cinquefoil, potentille de Norvège)^* Potentilla paradoxa (bushy cinquefoil, potentille paradoxale)^* Potentilla rivalis (brook cinquefoil, je ne peux pas trouver le nom commun en français)^* Potentilla simplex (common cinquefoil, potentille simple)^*
Pycnanthemum	Pycnanthemum incanum (hoary mountain-mint, pycnanthème gris) Pycnanthemum tenuifolium (slender mountain-mint, pycnanthème à feuilles étroites) Pycnanthemum virginianum (Virginia mountain-mint, pycnanthème de Virginie)^*
Ratibida	Ratibida columnifera (upright prairie coneflower, chapeau mexicain)

Rudbeckia	Rudbeckia hirta (black-eyed Susan, rudbeckie dress&eaucte;e) Rudbeckia lacinata (green-headed coneflower, rudbeckie laciniée)
Scutellaria	Scutellaria galericulata (marsh skullcap, scutellaire à casque)^* Scutellaria lateriflora (mad-dog skullcap, scutellaire latériflore) Scutellaria nervosa (veined skullcap, scutellaire)^* Scutellaria parvula (smaller skullcap, scutellaire minime)^*
Sibbaldiopsis	Sibbaldiopsis tridentata (three-toothed cinquefoil, potentille tridentée)⁶
Silene	Silene antirrhina (sleepy catchfly, silène muflier)^* Silene virginica (fire pink, silène de Virginie)
Sisyrinchium	Sisyrinchium albidum (white blue-eyed grass, bermudienne blanche)^* Sisyrinchium angustifolium (narrow-leaf blue-eyed grass, bermudienne à feuilles étroites) Sisyrinchium montanum (strict blue-eyed grass, bermudienne montagnarde)^*

Solidago	Solidago arguta (sharp-leaf goldenrod, verge d'or à fines dentelures)^* Solidago bicolor (silverrod, verge d'or bicolore) Solidago caesia (blue-stem goldenrod, verge d'or bleuâtre) Solidago canadensis (Canada goldenrod, verge d'or du Canada)^* Solidago flexicaulis (zigzag goldenrod, verge d'or à tige zigzaguante) Solidago gigantica (giant goldenrod, verge d'or géante)^* Solidago hispida (hairy goldenrod, verge d'or hispide)^* Solidago juncea (early goldenrod, verge d'or jonciforme)^* Solidago macrophylla (large-leaf goldenrod, verge d'or à grandes feuilles)^* Solidago nemoralis (grey goldenrod, verge d'or des bois) Solidago patula (rough-leaf goldenrod, verge d'or étalée)^* Solidago puberela (downy goldenrod, verge d'or pubérulente)^* Solidago rugosa (rough-stem goldenrod, verge d'or rugueuse) Solidago sempervirens (seaside goldenrod, verge d'or toujours verte) Solidago simplex (Mt. Albert goldenrod, verge d'or simple)^* Solidago speciosa (showy goldenrod, verge d'or splendide) Solidago squarrosa (stout goldenrod, verge d'or squarreuse)^* Solidago uliginosa (bog goldenrod, verge d'or des marais)^* Solidago ulmifolia (elm-leaf goldenrod, verge d'or à feuilles d'orme)^*
Stylophorum	Stylophorum diphyllum (wood poppy, célandine)
Thalictrum	Thalictrum dioicum (early meadowrue, pigamon dioïque) Thalictrum pubescens (king of the meadow, pigamon pubescent) Thalictrum revolutum (waxy meadowrue, pigamon à feuilles révolutées)^* Thalictrum thalictroides (rue anemone, isopyre faux pigamon)^* Thalictrum venulosum (veiny meadowrue, pigamon veiné)
Tiarella	Tiarella cordifolia (foamflower, tiarelle cordifoliée)

Tradescantia	Tradescantia ohiensis (Ohio spiderwort, tradescantia de l'Ohio)^*
Verbena	Verbena bracteata (big-bract verbena, verveine prostrée)^* Verbena × deamii (Deam's verbena, verveine de Deam)^* Verbena × engelmannii (Engelmann's verbena, verveine d'Engelmann)^* Verbena hastata (blue vervain, verveine hastée) Verbena × perriana (vervain, verveine)^* Verbena simplex (narrow-leaf vervain, verveine simple)^* Verbena stricta (hoary vervain, verveine veloutée) Verbena urticifolia (white vervain, verveine à feuilles d'ortie)^*
Vernonia	Vernonia gigantea (giant ironweed, vernonie géante)^*
Veronicastrum	Veronicastrum virginicum (Culver's root, veronicastre de Virginie)
Viola	Viola adunca (hooked-spur violet, violette à éperon crochu) Viola affinis (pale early violet, violette affine)^* Viola bicolor (field pansy, pensée des champs)^* Viola blanda (sweet white violet, violette agréable)^* Viola × brauniae (Braun's violet, violette)^* Viola canadensis (Canada violet, violette du Canada) Viola cucullata (marsh blue violet, violette cucullée)^* Viola labradorica (alpine violet, violette du Labrador) Viola lanceolata (lance-leaf violet, violette lancéolée)^* Viola macloskeyi (small white violet, violette pâle)^* Viola × malteana (violet, violette de Malte)^* Viola nephrophylla (northern bog violet, violette néphrophylle)^* Viola novae-angliae (New England blue violet, violette de la Nouvelle-Angleterre)^* Viola × palmata (palmate-leaf violet, violette palmée)^* Viola palustris (alpine marsh violet, violette des marais)^* Viola pedata (bird's-foot violet, violette pédalée) Viola pedatifida (prairie violet, violette pédalée)^* Viola populifolia (Peck's violet, je ne peux pas trouver le nom commun français)^* Viola × porteriana (Stone's violet, violette de Porter)^* Viola pubescens (downy yellow violet, violette pubescente) Viola renifolia (kidney-leaf violet, violette réniforme)^* Viola rostrata (long-spurred violet, violette rostrée)^* Viola rotundifolia (round-leaf yellow violet, violette à feuilles rondes)^* Viola sagittata (arrow-leaf violet, violette sagittée)^* Viola selkirkii (great-spurred violet, violette de Selkirk)^* Viola septentrionalis (northern blue violet, violette septentrionale)^* Viola sororia (wooly blue violet, violette parente) Viola striata (pale violet, je ne peux pas trouver le nom commun français) Viola sublanceolata (lanceleaf violet, violette sublanceolée)^* Viola triloba (cleft violet, je ne peux pas trouver le nom commun en français)^*
Zizia	Zizia aptera (heart-leaf Alexanders, zizia des marais) Zizia aurea (golden Alexanders, zizia doré)

For references for which plants are native to Toronto, see my native plant list. (Here I'll insert my usual caveat that I'm not an expert, the native plant list is still under development, etc. Corrections are always welcome.)

*: although Cullina says plants in this genus are easy to grow, he does not discuss this particular species.

Listed in Cullina as Eupatorium rugosum.
Listed in Cullina as Epilobium angustifolium.
Listed in Cullina as Eupatorium coelestinum.
A synonym for Eupatorium maculatum. This species is not listed in Cullina, but he does say the eupatoriums are easy in general.
Listed in Cullina as Porteranthus trifoliatus.
Listed in Cullina as Potentilla tridentata.

Garden Bloggers' Bloom Day, September 2009

2009-09-15T14:09:00.000-07:00

Here's what's blooming in our garden today:

Natives

Amaranthus tuberculatus (rough-fruit amaranth, amarante tuberculée)
Conyza canadensis (horseweed, vergerette du Canada)
Oxalis stricta (wood sorrel, oxalide)
Rudbeckia hirta (black-eyed Susan, rudbeckie dressée)
Solidago canadensis (goldenrod, verge d'or)

Others

Callibrachoa
Campanula rapunculoides (creepy bellflower, campanule fausse raiponce)
Echinacea purpurea (purple coneflower, echinacée pourpre)
Helianthus annuus (sunflower, tournesol)
Heliotropium arborescens 'Fragrant Delight' (heliotrope, héliotrope)
Impatiens walleriana 'Accent Lavender Blue' (impatiens, impatience)
Ipomoea tricolor 'Heavenly Blue'
Lobularia maritima (alyssum, alysson)
Mentha sp. (mint, menthe)
Petunia 'Sanguna Lavender Vein' (shown) and others
Sutera cordata (bacopa, sutera cordée)
Tagetes tenuifolia 'Lulu' (signet marigold, tagète tachée) (shown in photo above with black-eyed Susan)
Tropeolum majus (nasturtium capucine)
Verbena
Viola × wittrockiana 'Delta Pure Rose' (pansy, pensée)
Zinnia elegans 'Polar Bear'

Not bloooms, but still nice

Taxus sp. (yew, if)
Vitis sp. (grape, raisin)

Visit May Dreams Gardens to see what's blooming elsewhere for Garden Bloggers' Bloom Day!

Dahlia 'Pooh'

2009-09-15T10:01:00.000-07:00

The Dahlias are a genus of perennials native to Mexico, central America, and Colombia. Unfortunately they are not hardy here in Toronto, which is why I haven't tried growing them (I avoid plants that require coddling). But this beauty, 'Pooh', is sorely tempting me.

Photographed at Toronto Botanical Garden.

Veronica longifolia 'Eveline' : a lush carpet of purple spires

2009-09-12T12:00:00.000-07:00

Veronica longifolia (speedwell, véronique à longues feuilles) is a Eurasian perennial bearing spikes of small purple (or blue, or white) flowers.

There are a few veronicas which are native to Ontario. They are not as flamboyant as the Eurasian veronicas sold to gardeners, but I think Veronica americana (American brooklime or American speedwell, véronique d'Amérique) and Veronica anagallis-aquatica (water speedwell, water pimpernel, mouron aquatique) have potential as water garden plants. Both have dainty blue flowers which some find reminiscent of forget-me-nots. In our garden, I'm encouraging the native volunteer Veronica serpyllifolia (thyme-leaf speedwell, véronique à feuilles de serpolet) as a groundcover.

There are also some unrelated natives with spires of purple flowers. I like Verbena stricta (hoary vervain, verveine veloutée), and Agastache foeniculum (lavender hyssop, hysope anisée), a mint-relative with a strong licorice scent.

Lobelia erinus [Laguna Sky Blue] 'Loboudtis': a bit of heaven on earth

2009-09-12T09:37:00.000-07:00

Lobelia erinus (aka "edging lobelia", "garden lobelia", or "trailing lobelia", in French lobélie érine) is a tender perennial from southern Africa grown as an annual here in Toronto.

Lobelia is available in different shades of blue, purple, white, or pink; this gorgeous sky blue cultivar caught my eye at Toronto Botanical Garden.

Lobelia siphilitica: glorious azure spires

2009-09-12T09:27:00.000-07:00

After admiring photos of great blue lobelia (lobélie syphilitique), and botching my attempt to grow it from seed, I was excited to find it at the Toronto Botanical Garden. Even at the end of the season and a bit past its prime, it's gorgeous! Definitely worth further attempts to grow it in our own garden.

Planning ahead for spring...

2009-09-11T18:00:00.001-07:00

It's still summery these days, but it's also time to order bulbs to bloom next spring! Since last year I really wanted more early blooms, I've ordered

Galanthus nivalis (snow drops, perce neige)
Crocus chrysanthus 'Blue Pearl' (snow crocus, crocus de printemps):
Crocus crysanthus 'Romance'
Chionodoxa forbesii (glory of the snow, gloire des neiges)
Tulipa tarda (species tulip, tulipe botanique)

I've also ordered

Phlox paniculata 'Katherine' because I've really been taken with all the phlox I've seen in others' gardens.
Iris x hollandica 'Blue Pearl', because I have a sentimental attachment to irises. My parents had a massive collection of bearded irises when I was growing up, and I was originally planning to order 'Victoria Falls' which is described as "cobalt blue". Luckily before I ordered it I checked the photos of 'Victoria Falls' at Dave's Garden, and found out that while it is pretty, it certainly is nowhere near the deep blue shown in the catalogue! So I went with the less nostalgia-inducing but much cheaper and bluer Dutch irises.¹
Cyclamen hederifolium (hardy cyclamen, cyclamen à feuille de lierre) because I really wish I had some new flowers to look forward to in the fall, instead of just watching everything slowly go dormant or die.

What are you planning for spring?

The worst example of a plant being radically different than the sellers' photos that I know of is the 'Replete' daffodil which is advertised as "rosy pink", with matching photo (presumably photoshopped) when it is actually peach (click the link to see a comparison of the catalogue photo with the actual flower). The moral of the story is if a plant is advertised as having a very unusual colour, be sure to check out photos taken by ordinary gardeners who are not trying to sell you something. I don't know why people lie about what colours plants are; all it will do is alienate their customers when they inevitably discover the truth. 'Replete' is a very pretty peach daffodil; why not advertise it honestly as such?

Verbena stricta in bloom

2009-08-17T14:43:00.000-07:00

This Verbena stricta (hoary vervain, verveine veloutée) is putting on a show in the boulevard beds near the Grenadier Café in High Park. The boulevard beds were planted with native plants by the High Park Volunteer Stewardship Program in 2000. Here's a closer look at a flower spike. Only a few blooms at a time are open, giving a longer blooming period. Since I started some Verbena stricta seeds this spring, perhaps I'll see these lovely lavender flowers in our own garden next summer!

Ambrosia artemisiifolia: delcious-sounding name for a very annoying plant

2009-08-17T14:42:00.001-07:00

Warning: this plant is considered a noxious weed under the Ontario Weed Control Act.

Such a lovely-sounding name for this plant with such pretty, fern-like leaves! (click the photo to get a better look) If only it weren't for the flowers...

In case you haven't recognized this common but easily overlooked plant yet, it's better known as common ragweed (petite herbe à poux). Those boring little green flowers have no interest for animal pollinators, so ragweed instead releases massive amounts of lightweight pollen into the wind, relying on the sheer quanitity of pollen to ensure that some of it will reach a female flower and fertilize it. (Separate male and female flowers are produced on each plant.)

Ragweed grows in the same habitats and blooms around the same time as its showier cousins, the goldenrods (verge d'or, Solidago spp.). Because ragweed is so inconspicuous, goldenrod is often unfairly blamed for ragweed pollen allergies. In fact goldenrod pollen is too heavy to be wind-borned; that's why it has those gorgeous flowers, to attract the insects needed for pollination.

According to Wikipedia, the genus name Ambrosia comes from the same root, άμβροτος, as the ambrosia which is the food of the gods, but this root word actually means "immortal", referring to the difficulty of eradicating this plant. (This species is actually an annual, so not immortal by any means.)

Ragweed is one of the top 10 herbacious plants to feed wild birds, because it produces numerous, oil-rich seeds. However, given how many people are allergic to it, I think it should be kept to wilderness areas far from humanity, certainly not in Toronto gardens.

What's blooming in High Park, mid-August

2009-08-16T21:33:00.001-07:00

Pictures to follow when I find time!

Ambrosia artemisiifolia (ragweed, petite herbe à poux) (native)
Campanula rapunculoides (creepy bellflower, campanule fausse raiponce) (invasive)
Conyza canadensis (horseweed, vergerette du Canada) (native)
Dauca carota (Queen Anne's lace, carotte sauvage)
Desmodium canadense (showy tick trefoil, desmodie du Canada) (native)
Erigeron annuus (daisy fleabane, érigéron annuelle) (native)
Helianthus divaricatus (woodland sunflower, hélianthe divariqué) (native)
Impatiens capensis (jewelweed, impatiente du Cap) (native)
Impatiens glandulifera (Himalayan balsam, balsamine de l'Himalaya) (invasive)
Lobelia cardinalis (cardinal flower, lobélie cardinale) (native)
Monarda fistulosa (wild bergamot, monarde fistulose) (native)
Oenothera sp. (evening primrose, oenothère) (native)
Penstemon digitalis (foxglove beardtongue, penstémon digitalis) (native)
Rudbeckia hirta (black-eyed Susan, rudbeckie dressée) (native)
Silphium perfoliatum (cup plant, plante bain d'oiseaux) (native)
Solidago spp. (goldenrods, verges d'or) (native)
Verbena stricta (hoary vervain, verveine rugueuse) (native)

Garden Bloggers' Bloom Day, August 2009

2009-08-15T20:29:00.000-07:00

In August, the garden is overflowing with flowers! This Bloom Day most of my photos came out too badly to post; I find the current bright bright sunlight difficult to photograph in. I've linked to previous posts of these flowers where possible. In any case this month's Bloom Day is a lot like last month's, but the daylilies, Venus flytrap, butterfly weed, and liatris have gone, and the rose of Sharon has just started doing her thing.

Acalypha rhomboidea (three-seed mercury, ricinelle rhomboïde)
Amaranthus tuberculatus (rough-fruit amaranth, je ne peux pas trouver le nom commun en français)
Antirrhinum majus (snapdragon, gueule de loup
Calibrachoa (million bells)
Campanula rapunculoides (~~creepy~~creeping bellflower, campanule fausse raiponce) (almost done blooming)
Conyza canadensis (horseweed, vergerette du Canada)
Dianthus chinensis 'Double Gaiety Mix' (China pinks, œillet de Chine)
Echinacea purpurea (purple coneflower, echinacée pourpre)
Erigeron annuus (eastern daisy fleabane, érig&eaucte;ron annuelle) (mostly done blooming)
Fuchsia
Helianthus annuus (sunflower, tournesol)
Heliotropium arborescens (heliotrope, héliotrope du Pérou)
Hibiscus syriacus (rose of Sharon, althéa)
Hosta (almost done blooming)
Impatiens walleriana 'Accent Lavender Blue'
Lathyrus odoratus 'Royal Family Mix'
Lilium 'Dot Com'
Lobularia maritima (alyssum, alysson)
Mentha sp. (mint, menthe)
Monarda didyma 'Jacob Cline' (almost done blooming)
Myosotis sp. (forget-me-not, souvenez-vous-de-moi) (almost done blooming)
Nepeta cataria (catnip, cataire) (just getting started)
Nicotiana 'Perfume Mix' (flowering tobacco, tabac d'ornement)
Oxalis stricta (wood sorrel, oxalide)
Petunia 'Cascadia Mystic Purple' (shown), 'Sanguna Lavender Vein', 'Famous New White', and unknown cultivars in light pink, bright pink, and dark purple
Polygonum lapathifolium (pale smartweed, renouée à feuilles de patience)
Primula vulgaris (primrose, primevère)
Reseda odorata 'Mignon's Finest Mix'
Rudbeckia hirta
Solanum ptycanthum
Solidago canadensis (Canada goldenrod, verge d'or du Canada (just getting started)
Tagetes tenuifolia 'Lulu'
Tropaeolum majus 'Jewel Mix' (nasturtium, capucine)
Viola x wittrockiana 'Delta Pure Rose'
Zinnia elegans 'Polar Bear'

Check out what's blooming in other gardens this Bloom Day! And thanks to Carol of May Dreams Gardens for hosting.

Agrimonia sp.

2009-08-13T12:27:00.001-07:00

Agrimonia spp., known in English as "agrimony" and in French as aigremoine, is a genus of about a dozen herbaceous perennials native to the temperate northern hemisphere, generally with spikes of yellow five-petalled flowers. There are four species found in Ontario, according the USDA's PLANTS database, all of them native:

Agrimonia gryposepala (tall hairy agrimony, aigremoine à sépales crochus)
Agrimonia parviflora (harvestlice, aigremoine parviflore)
Agrimonia pubescens (soft agrimony, aigremoine pubescente)
Agrimonia striata (roadside agrimony, aigremoine striée)

The agrimonies of Ontario look virtually identical, and Peterson's guide¹ says they can only be distinguished by "technical characters" so I don't feel too bad about not being able to precisely identify this one (though if any of you reading this know which one it is, please let me know!).

The leaves of agrimony are compound, and have distinctive mini-leaflets between some of the larger leaflets.

I photographed this plant in my local ravine.

1. Peterson, Roger Tory and Margaret McKenny. A field guide to wildflowers: Northeastern and northcentral North America. Boston: Houghton Mifflin Company, 1968.

Portulaca oleracea: foliage

2009-08-01T15:22:00.000-07:00

Portulaca oleracea, known in English as "common purslane", "wild portulaca", "verdolaga", "pigweed", "little hogweed", "pursley", or "pusley", and in French as pourpier potager or pourpier gras, is a succulent annual probably native to Eurasia. It's easy to identify because let's face it, how many succulents volunteer in Toronto gardens?

Purslane is a common weed here in Toronto, and can produce surprisingly lush growth in only the smallest amount of soil, e.g. in a sidewalk crack. The leaves are not only edible, they are fairly tasty and contain more omega-3 fatty acids than any other leafy vegetable. So next time you're weeding, why not save and wash the purslane? You can eat it raw or cooked; try some of these recipes!

Dianthus chinensis 'Double Gaiety Mix': you've come a long way

2009-08-01T13:11:00.000-07:00

Compare this photo to the one I took at the end of March!

Amaranthus tuberculatus in bloom

2009-08-01T12:40:00.000-07:00

Amaranthus tuberculatus, known in English as "roughfruit amaranth" or "tall waterhemp" (je ne peux pas trouver un nom commun en français), is an annual native to much of eastern and central North America and a few west-coast states. It can reach two metres in height. The spikes of green flowers are not especially showy, but produce abundant seed, making this a useful food source for birds. The glossy foliage is eaten by the larvae of the common sootywing skipper (Pholisora catullus) and some moths.

Solanum ptycanthum

2009-07-31T14:04:00.000-07:00

Caution: this plant is poisonous. Solanum ptycanthum, known in English as "eastern black nightshade" or "West Indian nightshade", and in French as morelle noire de l'est, is an annual or short-lived perennial native to North America east of the Rockies.

Click for a closer look at the dainty white flower.

Echinacea purpurea in bloom

2009-07-31T13:48:00.000-07:00

The old Echinacea plant which we've had for a few years is in glorious bloom. This is one of my favourite plants, even if it isn't exactly native (we're a bit north of its native range). Not only is it pretty, but it's one of those perennials you can plant and forget. Click to enlarge this photo and see the inflorescences in many stages of development.

Descurainia sophia in bloom

2009-07-31T13:42:00.000-07:00

The flixweed (sagesse des chiurgiens) is in bloom, and starting to set seed. Now that it has seedpods, I know that this is non-native D. sophia, rather than native D. pinnata (see details on distinguishing the two). A shame. I do like the lacy bluish foliage.

Veronica serpyllifolia is spreading!

2009-07-27T12:59:00.000-07:00

The native veronica that I photographed last May has spread nicely in the last two months or so. So far I'm liking it as a groundcover.

Lilium 'Dot Com' in gorgeous bloom

2009-07-27T12:55:00.000-07:00

Nicky's lily is in bloom!

Monarda fistulosa in bloom

2009-07-25T13:08:00.001-07:00

Monarda fistulosa, known in English as "wild bergamot" and in French as monarde fistuleuse, is a perennial native to much of North America. As you can see it looks a lot like its close relative, M. didyma, but with pretty mauve flowers.

This photograph was taken at High Park.