Christmas Urns 2013

Balcony before

Balcony after

A group of retired teacher met to do a workshop on Christmas urns with me. What a crew upbeat, eager and open to ideas. In spite of the same materials each urn is as individualistic as the owner.

 RWTO Garden club 2

Example from Sheridan.

back in touch

All of the main buildings are open air.

Our little lOve nest

Definitely a Thai theme here, even the hangers are made of twigs.

the vista

That's us # 501.

After our days at sea we are once again on dry land. Actually it is a volcanic  island, very romantic and out of the way. If it weren't for the rain, it would be perfect. We had a bout of flu. The Handyman spent one day aboard flat on the bunk, not the best space to weather the flu. He missed a whole day of diving. He was a trooper about it and never complained, but i knew it was serious when he didn't' want to eat. I think one young man brought it aboard. I was congratulating myself on not getting sick, I had brought along Lysol wipes, when I was laid low as well, but at least I was back on dry land. I think we have used every one of the pills the travel doctor gave us. And we gave away Advil to those in need.
Tomorrow we are off to James Bond (or James Bon, as they call it here) island and the caves. We'll keep you informed...

Just loafing

I think my bathing suit is bigger than anyone else's on the beach. Mine is the niqab of bathing suits. The handyman said he is tired of looking at all the over 60 jiggly bits here on the beach. The staff are covered head to toe and the 'Farangs' (Thai for tourist) are all dressed in bikinis regardless of age and toning.
The sea is incredibly warm _ warmer than the pool. We swam in 3 out of 4 of the pools and bobbed in the ocean, but the surf was very strong.

Chinese Lanterns

Once you get this plant from seed or seedlings, you have it for life.

Nothing says Fall like Chinese Lanterns,  Physalis alkekengi. The book says: "Plant where they have lots of room to grow." They will wander all over your garden and each year will emerge in a new spot.  It will drive you crazy if you believe in law and order with your plants.  Gardens must really match our personalities or its a battle you can't win.  I have them in a 'wild' section with ferns and don't mind where they emerge.
My trick to make them stand out is to pinch off the leaves that block the lanterns after they develop so that they are seen more easily.
Next year I'm going to put some seedlings in a pot in the Spring and then move them where I want them in the Fall.

Morning glorious

Grown from seed.  Every year I fill this planter with morning glories.

 I tried the new grafter tomato plants this year.  I choose cherry tomatoes one yellow and one red variety.  The grafted tomatoes are grown on heirloom root stock which makes them vigorous but has the superior taste of the newer varietials.  I was apprehensive about the final size of this plant. It is supposed to grow to 8 ft! While the red variety was not as juicy as I would have liked.  The tomatoes matured earlier and started bearing fruit very early in the summer.  Worth growing for that alone! I have a very shady location and the tomatoes probably only get 4 hours a day max. but they managed to produce a fair number of tomatoes.  At between $8. - 12 a plant.  You need a few salads to make it worthwhile!

The red varietal., firm flesh, like small plum tomatoes.

Yellow miniature tomatoes. Delicious!

Fabulous Phlox

When people ask me what plant to add to the garden for Fall colour I have to mention phlox as one of the mainstays in the garden.

Don't know the name of this phlox, but  blooms first and furious.  It starts blooming in July and just keeps on going. 

 Not only is phlox a great scrabble word, but it fills in a provides a great background in the garden. The main problem with phlox is mildew. Phlox paniculata cultivars are very susceptible. Various home remedies (1 tsp baking soda to 1 liter of water) help in the early stages, but eventually the leaves just need to be removed. Local climate and soil conditions affect the fungus, but wet summers like this one, help keep the fungus at bay. Some phlox become more susceptible with age, so it is best to pull then out and start anew.
You can also reduce the chance of infection by providing lots of moisture, good air circulation and by thinning the clumps. So, thin mature plants every Spring.
But before the mildew sets in, enjoy the glorious beauty of this garden joy.  My favourite is the phlox above, but I don't know it's name.  It was a division from my sister-in-law and I have watched for it ever since.  It is usually finished blooming by the time mildew sets in, so you can cut it down and let something else take over.
My recommendation is that you plant phlox in spite of the mildew problem.  The plump greenery of this plant is a great backdrop in Spring and Summer to your other garden choices.

This phlox is a very old variety.  I received it from my mother-in-law.  It is probably from the 1940's or 50's. It opens next in my garden.  

Love the colour of this 'Starfire' phlox.  It has the added feature of emerging in Spring with a wonderful red hue to the leaves and then going green as Summer progresses.

This white phlox is has a almost indicernible pink star in the centre.  I gets badly mildewed as the season progresses.  But for now it is beautiful!

Scarborough Bluffs

Lots of erosion, so stay away from the edge of the cliffs. 

Great time of year to see the bluffs.  Vegetation has not come out.  Note the yellow of the willow twigs.

From Cathedral Park above the bluffs towards the marina.

Looks tropical, doesn't it

The beach at Scarborough Bluffs

Peaking down the ravine from the top

Wikipedia states the following about the geology of the bluffs:

They run 15 kilometres (9.3 mi) from the foot of Victoria Park Avenue in the west to the mouth of Highland Creek in the east, reaching as high as 90 metres (300 ft), the equivalent of twenty-five storeys.^[4] However, the escarpment continues westward inland, running between Kingston Road and Queen Street East, pausing over the Don Valley, and continuing on the north side of Davenport Road. The escarpment forms the old shoreline of Glacial Lake Iroquois, formed after the last ice age, which left valuable geological records as the part of the escarpment by the lake eroded. The eroded alluvial deposits from the Bluffs then settled westward to form the Toronto Islands.

We had a beautiful day for our visit.  It was a great time of year to see the bluffs without the vegetation covering up the shore line.  We had lunch at Bluffer's Restaurant which is a beautiful setting. We need a restaurant like that in Port Credit!  The serve was off slightly, but not enough to really annoy you, but on a busy day, it might be a problem. 

You have to see the bluffs, especially in the Fall when the monarchs butterflies are massing to fly to Mexico!