It’s an oddly shaped, purple-blue berry that is native to northern Russia, northern Japan and parts of Canada, but now also grows wild from Alberta to Newfoundland and in northeastern Europe. It’s touted as having high levels of vitamin C and antioxidants, and is more popular in many other parts of the world because of its distinctive flavour. Meet the blue honeysuckle … [Read more...] about Meet the haskaps
Articles by Jodi DeLong
Blooming where we’re planted
Much of North America is still deep into the winter of its gardening discontent. Here in the Maritimes, we’ve been buried in so much snow, we can’t even claim to have a garden of winter interest, because pretty much everything interesting is under snow drifts and plowed banks and more snow and a little ice to keep it all challenging. The snow is so deep in my garden I can’t … [Read more...] about Blooming where we’re planted
In praise of older garden books
Like most gardening addicts, I have a deep and abiding love — some might call it an obsession — for garden and plant books. I have so many bookcases full of books in my home, my décor style could be called Garden Book Eclectic. True, there are other books on some shelves — Canadian literature and science fiction, for example — but mostly there are books on everything from … [Read more...] about In praise of older garden books
Fiddleheads for spring
When I was a student at the former Nova Scotia Agricultural College, my major plant science project was titled, “Some Factors Affecting Rhizome Regeneration Rates in Matteuccia struthiopteris.” Translation: I was propagating ostrich ferns, the source of the delectable fiddlehead, using different types of soil and soilless media to generate new growth. Exciting stuff. What … [Read more...] about Fiddleheads for spring
Hepaticas: harbingers of spring
What garden event signifies to you that spring has really, truly arrived in your part of the country? Here in Atlantic Canada, we have had what has felt like an interminable winter, with so many snowstorms that we began to joke that if it was Wednesday, we’d have a snowstorm. Finally, however, all but the most determined snowdrifts in woods, ditches and fields have relinquished … [Read more...] about Hepaticas: harbingers of spring
