23 May 2012

Bayport Plant Farm has a Sale!

May is always the busiest month in my working year, and this May is no exception. It's been made more entertaining by also being a real spring this year, as opposed to the cold, wet and unpleasant Mays we've seen in recent years. The gardens are blooming like crazy, including the native plants--which some refer to as weeds.

Anyway. I've written numerous times about Bayport Plant Farm and my friend the late Captain Richard Steele and his daughter Diana, who have worked the farm and developed many amazing plants over their years of working with rhododendrons, magnolias, and other choice ornamentals. Captain Steele passed away just over 2 years ago, and we miss him deeply, we plant nuts.


Today I made my way to Bayport, a few miles from Lunenburg, on Nova Scotia's picturesque south shore, to visit Diana, who continues to operate the plant farm. I didn't call before heading down to see her, and it was just good luck that she happened to be home. We hugged and wept a little over lost loved ones, but as we toured around the hilly woodlands of the plant farm, we found ourselves laughing over things her father would do, events that she and he shared in their work on the farm. And of course, I spent a great deal of time gawking at beautiful blooming plants.

Magnolias, evergreens, rhododendrons and azaleas, native plants, rare plants...all grow together in a lush and joyous celebration of horticultural heaven. I can't be sad walking around Bayport, not when the legacy of Dick and Diana's work is all around me. 

Diana doesn't operate a website for Bayport, so I decided to help out a little bit by creating an advertisement for her that links to this post. And if you drop in to visit bloominganswers.com, you'll find a downloadable file of some of the plants she has on sale this spring season. 

Naturally, I had to buy some plants, but this one she gave me...one of her father's crosses, with his beloved signature burgundy 'blotch' in each flower. "You have to name this variety," she told me. And right there and then I named it. "Steeles Legacy". 

For both of them, Dick and Diana, in gratitude for all the fabulous plants they have given us over the years. Long may they bloom.

Want to visit Bayport? Here's the coordinates and the hours:

Bayport Plant Farm
Diana Steele
2740 Hwy 332, Bayport, NS
902-764-2090
Hours Friday, Saturday, Sunday, 9-5;
Other days by appointment
Closed on Mondays


5 comments:

  1. Jodi - I cried for you when you wrote a post about your husband. I left a note but, for some reason, I don't think it 'stuck'. (I'll blame Captcha!) However, I want you know that I have been thinking of you since. Not that that's much use, that, but it might be nice to know.

    I'm more conscious of winter in your garden than summer - it seems to last so long! And these annual mentions of Captain Steele have become a marker.

    Hope all is as well - in a sort of way.

    Esther.

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  2. What a wonderful supporter you are of local spots and this one is a keeper...wished I lived closer!

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  3. Such beauty in a place that to me seems very cold and far north. I should visit, shouldn't I? I enjoy seeing the beautiful flowers and gardens that you write about.

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  4. These hidden treasures are so wonderful. I have found a few local nurseries, one that specializes in hydrangeas, and am enjoying visiting them.

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  5. Your blooms are simply pretty.

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