A noun. A verb. A blog.
She’s a perfect poster girl for my post on yellow: the much-maligned Hemerocallis ‘Stella de Oro’ (not, as is often written, ‘Stella d’Oro‘). This photo shows how effective she can be “when well used.” The day is grey. Grey, grey and more grey. Plus, it’s December. Naturally, this inspires me to begin a series about […]
We are well into fall now and careening into winter, but I can’t let the season pass without noting some of fall’s favourite smells. No matter how long ago you were a student, a new school year always lends fall a special personality: an odd contrast of something starting up, while the growing season is screeching […]
Oh, how I love those mouthful names: Ampelopsis brevipedunculata Its pretty, many-coloured blue and purple berries give porcelain vine its name. I had one of these members of the grape family – the one with the variegated leaves – in the wrong spot in my garden. Please note the use of the past tense. It’s […]
The inaugural issue of the Soiled & Seeded garden zine Canadian gardeners who want more than how-tos from their garden reading now have a new zine on the scene. The first issue of Soiled & Seeded launched this month. It’s worth bookmarking. The zine is a project of Toronto-based non-profit Soiled & Seeded Natural Heritage […]
Finding hidden gardens is always a sneaky treat. Sometimes they arrive all by themselves, or with help from humans, in tucked away places, like Toronto’s famous back alleys. These alleyways, constructed in many Toronto neighbourhoods to facilitate access to garages, usually extend the length of a block. There is something so timeless about walking down […]
Little did I think that when I dropped by The Stop Community Food Centre Green Barn at the Wychwood Barns on Thursday that Jamie Oliver would be hot on my heels. Sure enough, the super chef, food activist and all round cute guy visited The Stop the very next morning. Ah, my almost-brush-with-greatness. In the […]
Guess which witch caught my eye while walking? Are they witches’ caps or gnomes? Whatever they are, they called to me (and my ever-present camera) from the shrubbery as I power-walked through our neighbourhood at 7:30 this morning. Not till I started to move again did I realize which witch was witch-hazel… in this case, […]
Savoy cabbage is one of many cole crops that like a touch of frost. With a few exceptions (we still have some carrots to harvest), we wrapped up our community garden plot back in October. But, next year, I won’t be so hasty. The pictures here, snapped a day or so ago, are reminders that […]
With all the jackhammers and construction barriers at Nathan Phillips Square now, you might have missed seeing the new City Hall Podium Green Roof – especially as there’s no signage at the bottom of the ramp to direct you up to the podium for a visit. Too bad. Because the green roof is worth the […]
Toronto gardeners (or those who know and love them) need to go further for a great little gift or stocking stuffer than The Toronto Gardener’s Journal now updated for 2011. I first wrote about this information-packed gardening journal back in 2009. Besides the timely tips for each week beside your journal entries, the book is […]
Well grown vegetables can be highly ornamental As Sonia Day writes in the Toronto Star, a Toronto family has been ordered by the City to replace their front yard vegetable garden… with sod. Yep, sod. It’s a bit of a shock, with all this talk of food security. The garden clashes with a transportation by-law, […]
The good-things-come-in-small-packages garden of Paul Geary, he of Petal Pushers garden therapy, is around the corner and down the street. To compensate for the petite size of his own garden, Paul has made his city-owned boulevard strip a thing of beauty. Right now the strip is a particularly fetching bouquet of purple and gold. See […]