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Saying Goodbye to Summer
Unfortunately, or fortunately, depending on your point of view, the transition from summer to fall this year won’t be much of a shock.
Our cool and damp summer has allowed some plants to thrive, but kept others from looking their best.
On the upside, gorgeous and healthy green lawns are everywhere. It’s a welcome change from the usually parched September streets in Toronto.
The bad news is that our wet spring gave leaf spot, scale and anthracnose diseases a leg up so some species of trees, particularly some Japanese Maple and crabapple, which aren’t looking their best.
Fall in our Lawrence Park gardens is always particularly beautiful because it’s set against the gorgeous changing leaves.
It’s also the second big planting season of the year, so for all those bare spots and problem areas you noticed, now’s the time to fill in and fix.
Keeping great colour in autumn gardens gets easier every year thanks to new varieties and hybrids of
favourite autumn plants. Check inside for Raina’s Picks of the best new bulbs and perennials for planting this fall.
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Larissa’s List: Fall fun in the city
This is my favourite time of the year: I feel a magic combination of the residual excitement of back-to-school with the pure enjoyment of a perfect, crisp autumn day.
Here are three events I think you shouldn’t miss this year. I hope they will inspire you and your family to stay outdoors to the bitter end.
- The Healing Garden Gardening for the Mind, Body and Soul -
Plants, gardens and gardening are good for your mind, body and spirit. Learn practical steps to creating or incorporating a healing garden into your backyard.
Toronto Botanical Gardens, September 22
Contact: 416-397-1340
- High Park Annual
Harvest Festival October 4, noon to 4 pm. Enjoy a corn roast and hot cider, as well as games, storytelling and wagon rides for the kids. Don’t miss this chance to buy pickles and preserves from 19th century recipes.
- Fall Mum & Perennials Sale Sept. 22-26: Toronto Botanical Garden
Contact: 416-397-1340
www.civicgardencentre.org
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Best bulbs for ‘04
Here’s a good rule of thumb when choosing and planting bulbs — and all flowers for that matter: use bold colours in sunny areas and soft colours in the shade. The reason is strong colours really ‘pop’ in sunlight, while soft colours tend to look washed out here. More delicate colours, especially white, will really stand out in darker, shadier areas.
When it comes to colours, I’ve been thinking that it's high time for red to make a comeback in our gardens. It’s particularly great when planted with purple and/or blue. Perfect for a strong show in the spring.
Here's a good combo that blooms early in the season-and is wonderfully fragrant too: Showwinner Tulip and Blue Jacket Hyacinth:
For softer colours and impressive size, try Don Quixote,Dreaming Maid Tulips or Cheerfulness Daffodils.
And remember, most bulbs have a useful life of 2-3 years after which the blooms are smaller and fewer. If it’s been more than a couple of years since you replenished your bulbs,
think about how to create a fresh palate for the
coming year.
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Power perennials
Fall is more than just the season for bulbs. This is the second big planting opportunity of the year— and a great chance to make those changes, improvements and additions you’ve been thinking about all summer.
Whether it’s a bare spot, a tired colour scheme or a wonderful plant you’ve been waiting to get your hands on, now’s the time implement your new ideas.
If you don’t yet have any Japanese anemone in your garden, I highly recommend adding this wonderful autumn blooming flower to your garden. Varieties like ‘Pamina’ and ‘September Charm’ provide a wonderful splash of pink through the fading days of the fall garden.
The new Endless Summer Big Leaf Hydrangea is a very exciting plant arrival this year. The ones we planted for clients this spring are making a great show in their gardens right now. Like all hydrangeas, they bloom either blue or pink according to the PH of your soil.
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Craig’s Turf Talk: Back to nature… or maybe not
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Weeds vs. grass - the eternal struggle. Now that Toronto’s new anti-pesticide bylaws are coming, some people fear they’ll finally loose the battle and their lovely green lawns will disappear under a mat of nasty dandelions, clover and plantain.
I just want to say don’t panic, the sky is not falling.
There are lots of ways to keep your lawn looking great the
organic way. First, there are some great new grasses on the market that are designed to help. One of the best is fast growing rye grass: this is great for both choking out weeks and
reducing fungus growth.
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Getting back to basics with good old hand weeding is the simplest and best way to get rid of weeds. Done a few times a year – at the right times – will solve your weed problems quite easily.
The right time means catching weeds when they are leafy but haven’t gone to seed yet. This gives you the chance to take hold of the plant firmly and remove all of the root system when you pull them.
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