The publisher of the 2022 Toronto & Golden Horseshoe Gardener’s Journal is giving away two copies of the popular garden diary that is celebrating its 30th anniversary. This is a great guide for your own gardening or a good gift for someone.
The journal has been expanded to include a 23-page source list, a zone map for Southern Ontario, more pages for seed sowers to record plantings, and seasonal at-a-glance guides. The annual journal/diary was started in 1991 by Margaret Bennet-Alder, who in 2017, at age 90, passed the publishing operation to sisters Helen Battersby and Sarah Battersby. The journal sells for $24.95. More info is at gardenjournals.ca.
The draw closed Nov. 22, 2021. Two winners were randomly selected from 554 entries: Carole E. of Bowmanville, Ontario, and Susan K. of Brossard, Quebec. Read about how we make a draw.
With the good comes some bad, and with all gardens, come some pests. The (unhelpful) insect variety, of course, but also animal pests — such as deer, voles, squirrels and rabbits — that have appetites for your flowers, vegetables, shrubs and trees. Many gardeners have discouraged visits from animal pests by applying the Plantskydd solution to their plants.
Hostas that have been eaten by deer. (Photos provided by Plantskydd.)
“Plantskydd repels animals before they take a bite of your plants, not after, ” says Alaya Boisvert of Tree World Plant Care Products, based in Sechelt, B.C. “It’s safe for plants, pollinators, pets and people.”
Made from natural and upcycled ingredients (dried porcine blood, vegetable oil and water), Plantskydd is the first animal repellent to be listed by the Organic Materials Review Institute (OMRI) as suitable for use in the production of organic food. The active ingredient is specially processed porcine blood, which emits an odour that smells like predator activity.
“It’s just nature telling hungry herbivores to steer clear of plants sprayed with Plantskydd,” Boisvert says. “There is no waste in nature.”
Plantskydd (means “plant protection” and is pronounced: “plant-skid”) was developed in Sweden to protect tree seedlings in an environmentally safe way from deer and moose during Sweden’s long winters.
“It’s durable, sticks to plants and won’t wash or flake away, so it doesn’t need to be re-applied after rain or snow,” says Boisvert. “Farmers are discovering substantial yield increases that come from protecting their crops with Plantksydd.”
Although Plantskydd has its roots in Swedish silviculture, it’s now made in the U.S. and used in home gardens across Canada and the U.S.
Tree World is a family business that gives back to the community, contributing more than $155,000 in support of WaterAid’s clean water and sanitation programs in Africa since 2003.
Vole damage in a garden in late winter.
Plantskydd is not sold in big box stores, but is available at thousands of independent local garden centres.
The company also actively supports gardening clubs, Master Gardeners and sponsored events in the U.S. and Canada by providing free samples for contests, give-aways and conservation efforts. Contact [email protected] for more information.
Winners of a package of Plantskydd to protect plants
Congratulations to 10 lucky readers who have each won prizes in our draw that closed May 16, 2021. From 936 entries we made random draws. (How we make draw)
Winners are Ann C. of London, Ontario; Carlyne S. of Ottawa, Ontario; Diane J. of St. Catharines, Ontario; Ian T. of North Vancouver, British Columbia; Janet F. of Waterville, Nova Scotia; Joy R. of Toronto; Sandy I. of Toronto; Sharon R. of Fort Erie, Ontario; Susan B. of Scarborough, Ontario; and Susan J. of Algonquin Highlands, Ontario.
Prize includes a container of ready-to-use liquid spray, reusable shoulder tote, a package of bee-attracting seed and a notepad.
From Calgary, there are two new releases in the handsome series of gardening guides focused on growing conditions in the Prairies. Created by Master Gardeners Janet Melrose and Sheryl Normandeau, the latest two editions are The Prairie Gardener’s Go-to for Seeds and The Prairie Gardener’s Go-to for Small Spaces.
The book on seeds includes detailed charts with specific information about seed starting on the Prairies, with several plant lists to help you decide what selections work best in a variety of situations and conditions.
In the small spaces book, the authors provide advice on container gardens, raised beds, small plots and postage-stamp sized yards, and how to try your hand at vertical gardening.
The two new editions join two volumes released in 2020 on vegetables and pests and diseases.
Janet Melrose is a garden educator and consultant, and an advocate for Calgary’s Sustainable Local Food System. She has a passion for horticultural therapy and facilitates numerous programs designed to integrate people marginalized by various disabilities into the larger community. She is a regular contributor to The Gardener for Canadian Climates magazine. She lives in Calgary where she runs her education and consulting company, Calgary’s Cottage Gardener.
Sheryl Normandeau is a freelance writer specializing in garden writing with hundreds of articles published. She is a regular contributor to The Gardener for Canadian Climates,The Prairie Garden Annual,Herb Quarterly and Mother Earth Gardener.
Each book sells for $15. More information about the books is available on the publisher’s website, Touchwood Editions.
Draw for copy of the Prairie Gardener’s Go-to for Vegetables
Congratulations to Lynn T. of Kelowna, BC, whose entry was randomly selected in our draw from 238 entries as the winner of a copy of one of the first two editions in the series.
Perhaps because of the challenges of gardening on the Canadian Prairies with its short growing season and potential for extreme cold snaps, there is a fine tradition among gardeners in the Prairie provinces and the Northern Great Plains states to share knowledge and ideas. This is evidenced by the annual release of The Prairie Garden, a non-profit publication “dedicated to the advancement of horticulture in the northern Prairies.” The 2021 edition of The Prairie Garden focuses on flowering shrubs, especially roses.
The Prairie Garden is a digest-sized, soft-covered book published annually by a volunteer committee consisting of about a dozen members, with assignments organized by the editor and an annual guest editor. Started in 1956 as a standing committee of the Winnipeg Horticultural Society, the project has long extended across all the prairie provinces.
The last edition to focus on shrubs was its 2009 edition, but hundreds of new flowering shrub cultivars have been introduced, many of which are well suited to prairie gardens. The previous edition that focused on roses was in 2008, but since then new hardy roses such as the Canadian Artists and 49th Parallel Series have come on the market.
Plant developers play a major role in breeding, selecting and trialling all kinds of hardy flowering shrubs for the prairie landscape. Philip Ronald , the 2021 guest editor, was raised in the Canadian Prairies and educated in plant breeding and horticulture at the University of Manitoba and the University of Saskatchewan. He currently devotes his time to teaching ornamental horticulture at the University of Manitoba, managing Riverbend Orchards, and providing support to the research and marketing programs at Jeffries Nurseries.
Linda Dietrick, the 2021 editor, retired in 2016 as a professor of German language and literature at the University of Winnipeg, and is a Master Gardener who has gardened for more than 30 years.
Get the 2021 Prairie Garden
The Prairie Garden is published by The Prairie Garden Committee; $17.95. It is available in garden centres and book stores across the prairies as well as from bookseller McNallyRobinson.com.
Winner of draw for The Prairie Garden
Congratulations to Barbara W. of Stratford, Ontario, whose name was randomly selected from 489 entries in our draw that closed Dec. 15, 2020. A copy of the book was mailed to Barbara by The Prairie Garden Committee.
As the gardening year wraps up, we’d like to ask you a few questions about your gardening. Your replies will help us plan future content. This is a quick and easy survey. Thank you.