If you’re keen to start gardening, but your soil is too cold and damp for digging, consider potting up a spring container instead. Depending on the weather, a few spring containers planted with beautiful, cold-tolerant plants now will give you several weeks of colour until it’s time to replant them for the summer, while satisfying your need to get your hands in some … [Read more...] about Creating a spring container
spring bulbs
The floriferous lawn
These days, you’re likely to find more than just grass growing in many Canadian lawns. This is especially true for those of us who live in provinces where cosmetic herbicides have been banned for almost a decade, and where completely weed-free lawns are rare. But attitudes have shifted, and a few dandelions here and there no longer illicit the horrified gasps they might have … [Read more...] about The floriferous lawn
25 recommendations for favourite bulbs
It’s a leap of faith. You bury a small, non-descript fibrous mass, not always knowing which end is up. Some bulbs you plant in fall; others you plant in spring and dig up in fall, knowing that winter will turn them to mush. You may well mark where they’re buried, then forget about them. But one day you see signs of growth, and you’re pleased with yourself because you made the … [Read more...] about 25 recommendations for favourite bulbs
What fertilizer for spring bulbs?
Question from Beverley in Saint Lazare, Que.: What type of fertilizer does one use on spring bulbs once they have flowered? I heard it was helpful for tulips and daffodils to apply a fertilizer while they store up energy for next year. Beckie’s response: In the case of bulbs already established in your garden, most experts recommend feeding them twice a year with a … [Read more...] about What fertilizer for spring bulbs?
Where and when to plant spring bulbs
Spring is not the time to plant spring-blooming bulbs, such as hyacinths, daffodils and tulips, but it is the best time to plan where you’ll plant these bulbs a few months later, in the fall. I confess that I don’t enjoy planting bulbs, despite the promise of a more beautiful spring the following year. Usually, I’m in denial that another garden season is ending, and put off … [Read more...] about Where and when to plant spring bulbs
