Containing our Gardening Enthusiasms

A few days of warm weather has made many things leap ahead in our gardens, and in my greenhouse. I spent part of Friday up my containers, most of which are filled with a variety of annual flowering and foliage plants. I use containers as portable gardens once the risk of frost is past, moving them around the yard to where I want a burst of colour. My Halifax Herald column today is about container plantings, and I didn't have a lot of room to provide a lot of plant examples, so I've added some here for people to try.

One of my most beloved annuals for containers is the African daisies, of which there are a number of different genera. The Osteospermums or osteos are among the most common, and are vigourous, longflowering container stars. The top photo includes a white variety, while this one is called 'Summertime Blueberry.'

Here, there, and back again

The merry month of May has been not so merry if you're a nursery operator or a gardener here in Nova Scotia, because the weather has been, to say the least, terrible. Rain, fog, drizzle, repeat as necessary, very little sunshine to speak of, and chilly temperatures have meant that a lot of people haven't been able or willing to work in their gardens.

For this gardener and writer, however, it has been hectic, regardless of the weather. I've put a lot of miles on my car, and brought home a lot of plants from assorted nurseries, doing my part to improve the provincial economy. I've been giving talks and signing books at assorted locales, and visiting gardens whenever I have a chance. This garden outside of Annapolis Royal features a wonder selection of conifers and flowering shrubs and trees, with some bulbs and perennials interspersed for added colour.

April Showers did bring May blooms for not-wordless-Wednesday

Although the weather in Nova Scotia continues somewhat cool, cloudy, wet, and definitely sluggish, our gardens and our plants will NOT be denied, will they? It's been a hectic week, and being away for a few days really brought home the changes when I got back Sunday after Saltscapes Expo. Then we had an election, and while that was good for my riding with the return of my excellent MP, Scott Brison...I worry about my country. That's all I'm going to say about that!