Calgary Garden Coach

help! the annuals are taking over!!

This was a brand new area of the garden this spring and it looked fairly bare.  Because perennials take a few years to get going, I started some annuals from seed to fill in the gaps.  I don't really know what I was thinking though, because all the annuals I planted are giants by the end of the season!  Here are lavatera, castor bean, cleome and nicotiana taking over the garden.

They look great but I can barely see my new perennials.  I'm almost tempted to cut these annuals down just so I can get a better look at the permanent perennial composition.  I already pulled out the floppy clarkia and added some 'Husker's Red' penstemon instead (not in this pic).

Hmm, what to do, what to do...  Maybe we'll get an early frost and this will all be moot.  Wait, did I just wish for frost?  It must be getting close to the end of summer and I am getting tired!

do as I say, not as I do

This may be the first picture I've actually taken of the whole front yard!  That's because the right side is done (except for a few minor changes, there are always a few minor changes), but I haven't done anything to the left side at all yet (not even bothered to mow the lawn).

Today I planted a red-leafed rose and 3 cute little nest spruce shrubs on the left.  Did I remove the grass?  No.  Did I prepare the area at all?  No.  Would I recommend this to anyone who is planning to get rid of a little lawn?  No.

What can I say. You do what you have to do when you have 3 little kids and most of your gardening gets done in half-hour bursts before they wake up every morning.  Instead of removing the grass (I have discussed ways of doing this before), I just dug generous holes for each shrub, amended the soil within the holes, and planted.  My plan is to smother the grass starting next spring, then turn the soil, amend with compost, and hopefully by the end of next summer most of the rest of the left lawn will be garden.

I know, it looks like crap.  It helps when you envision a work-in-progress as what it will look in 2 or 3 years, rather than right now.  The neighbours probably think it looks terrible, and maybe my friends and family do too!  But I can picture how the mature shrubs will be large enough to touch each other, how the evergreens will divide the space between the sun-loving plants close to the sidewalk and the shade-loving plants close to the house, how the repeition of key plants on either side of the walkway will bring unity to the whole yard, yadda yadda yadda.  I know it's gonna look great, everyone else will just have to wait and see!!

the new orchard

There used to be a hedge of cotoneasters here, at the north edge of the back garden.  I took them out (I do like their fall colour but I have more elsewhere anyway), and replaced them with 5 fruiting bushes.  In a few years, we'll have a little Upik in our own backyard!

The two shrubs you can see are my two new cherries, Crimson Passion (at the top) and Carmine Jewel (at the bottom).  I had trouble deciding on the varieties, but decided on these two.  I picked Crimson Passion for its large, sweet fruit and Carmine Jewel for its earlier, sweet fruit with a small pit.  Both are classified as sour cherries but are sweet enough to eat out of hand.  The shrubs are big enough I should get a few cherries next year.  Can't wait!

I have also planted 2 haskap (honeyberry) bushes and 1 saskatoon.  They are all seedlings so you can barely see them in this picture.  If you look closely, you'll see the wire cages that I put around them so the kids and dog don't step on them.  Fruit in maybe...  3 years?  We'll see.

mosaic pathway - check!

Way back in the winter, when I had too much time and energy, I had the idea to make this pathway.� It incorporates some rocks and shells I've collected from various trips, glass left over from other craft projects, and of course, hand and foot prints of all our family members.� I briefly considered trying to get the dog to make a paw print, but then decided it wasn't worth the effort on my part and the stress on his part.� The kids love the path and they also loved helping make it (I think the key is to not ask them to help, then they jump in!!)

I'm not totally sure how long some of these stones will last.� I have a fear that water will get under some of the glass and rocks and eventually crack the concrete.� But for at least�a few years it will be neat for the kids to check how much bigger their hands and feet are getting.� And I did put a 3" base of compacted gravel underneath and surround the stones with sand, so I hope that will help with drainage and make the stones last longer.

I am going to let this settle for a while, then add some soil and creeping woolly thyme in some pockets and around the edge next spring.�

This completes the gardening projects I wanted to get done this summer, and it's only August!� Except a month or so ago I decided we needed to make a little more space for veggies for next year, so I'll be digging up a little grass this fall...� Anyway, time for a break to just enjoy the garden.

planning for the future

I like to take pictures of the garden every few weeks so I can review them in the winter months and remember what I wanted to change.  It is especially important to take pictures right now because now is the time of the Calgary Horticultural Society's garden competition, which I hope to enter in a few years!  Yes, I do try to design the garden for year-round interest, but it doesn't hurt to pay extra attention to what the garden will look like when the judges come out!

I tried to deadhead the poppies before taking this photo but got stung by bees twice!  The blue salvia and creeping sedums are just buzzing with them.  Oh well, deadheading can wait.

Anyway, the cranesbill at the very bottom of this photo has got to be moved to a spot with a little more shade next year.  Every year by July the leaves turn brown.

This part was new this spring and with the help of a few annuals from seed (castor bean, lavatera, nicotiana, cleome), is filling in well.  In a couple years it will be a crowded jumble like the photo above.  Also I can barely wait for the rose bushes at the back to get established!!  I think it helps when you're making a new garden to always try to imagine it as it will look in 5 years...

view winning gardens this week-end

If you're looking for some inspiration or just enjoy walking through beautiful gardens, the winning gardens in the Calgary Horticultural Society's garden competition are on display this week-end.  Passports can be purchased here.

Considering this part of my front garden (closest to the sidewalk) was put in spring 2007, I think it's doing pretty well!  I am hoping to enter the competition myself in a few years. 

 The part closer to the house is older, gets more shade, and there are a few minor things I want to change.  However, I am not showing you the whole picture!! 

Aha.  The real truth.  It's only half done!  Here's the longterm plan:

fall 2008: start planting shrubs on the left-hand side of the front yard

spring 2008: finish planting shrubs and perennials close to sidewalk

2009 remove spruce to the immediate left of the front steps (too close to house)

2010: making seating area and plant shade garden where spruce used to be

2010 or 2011: enter garden competition

Yikes.  Things take a long time when you do it yourself, on a budget!  But that's part of the fun.  And why, you may ask, am I waiting so long before I take that *&^$^%& spruce tree down?  Because there are 2 more in the backyard I want to take down first!!  (And before anyone jumps on me for not being a tree lover, let me say that after these are removed, there will still be 4 large spruce trees in my front yard and 5 large ones in the back.  More spruce than anyone could ever want!!)

strawberries vs. holidays.... hmmmm....

We've picked a couple strawberries every day the last couple of days, but most of them still look like this.  I hope they don't all ripen while I'm away next week!!

falling behind...

This year my plan was to post pictures and information about each plant in my garden, to help others find things that are easy to grow in Calgary's dry zone 3.  However, the gardening business, my own garden and the blog are a little too much to keep up with right now!  So I'm posting photos as things bloom, but will have to go back later to add my information and tips for growing each plant. 

Well, I need something to do in the winter months, don't I?

growing veggies - more would be better!

So far so good in the new veggie garden - although my 2-year-old's spring stomping disrupted the planned planting pattern a little...

But after going to the farmer's market last week, I am vowing to make more veggie space next year!  My husband and I have been buying organic for a while, but we're also trying to make more of an effort to buy local.  That means getting to the market and also paying a little more - fine.

But what really is the problem is dragging 3 kids to a crowded market!  Too stressful.  My 2-year-old is at the stage where she is distracted by everything and you can't get her to go anywhere quickly.  My 5-year-old was pulling on my arm the whole time to go faster.  Halfway through the trip I had to stop and nurse my 6-month-old.  Yes, my husband was with me but it was still almost too much to handle!!

So after the cost and the stress, I came home vowing to plant more veggies next year.  I'd rather garden than go to the market any day.  But where?  In my established neighbourhood with lots of big trees, the little area shown above is the only spot that gets enough sun (minimum 6 hours) for a veggie garden.  Except for the small back lawn....  By the time we got home I had a new design in mind to take out more grass this fall in preparation to plant more veggies next spring!!

Fortunately, my husband is not a lawnophile and is on board. 

Another note:  My neighbours are currently taking out their back garden and putting in more grass to make space for their 12-year-old boy to play hockey and football in the yard.  I have 3 younger girls and a corner lot so I think I can afford to lose a little more grass.

garden views from the house

I've talked before about the importance of designing a garden with views from the house in mind.

I'm so happy with my new hill garden in the backyard that I had to get a new mirror so that I can see the back garden from the living room in the front of the house!!  Crazy but true.

what I love about gardening...

... taking fresh flowers to a BBQ at a friend's house.

set up rain barrels... check

The big kids had a sleepover at my parents' the other night, so I set hubby to work setting up the rain barrels.  Yes, the rains of June are over and we may not get more for a month, but better late than never!

It was a big pain because our old house has eavestroughs in a size and shape that is no longer available (we have this problem any time we try to do anything around the house - nothing is standard any more).  So those nice downspout diverter kits you can get won't work here.

Our solution was a flexible downspout extender from Lee Valley.  When the rain barrel is full, we simply unhook the flexi-pipe from the barrel and stick it into a drain pipe hidden behind, which extends out away from the house.  Yes, we have to do it manually but it's probably only for one month a year (June, when we get the most rain).

Extra note:  I purposely designed this fence so you can't see the ugly rainbarrel from inside the backyard!

good to be back

... and my how things have grown!!  I guess the weather was nice when I was away and things are finally taking off.  Here are a few shots from yesterday:

what grows under the eaves?

I'm still experimenting with what will grow on the south side of my house under the eaves.  This is a side garden that only the neighbours really see so I only want plants that can pretty much take care of themselves.

After 2 weeks of almost constant rain, you can see it's still dry under the eaves.  Few plants will grow here.  There's an echinops (globe thistle) growing on the far side, and amazingly, some large-flowered hybrid clematis on the trellis are doing OK.  I do give them a little extra water from the rain barrels when I remember.  I've also grown sunflowers here successfully.

Large bearded iris and hollyhocks in the past haven't made it.  This year I stuck in a transplant of some blue centaurea (perennial bachelor's button) on the right just to fill the space.  But something with a little more contrast against the house would be nicer...  Might have to go back to sunflowers next year.

garden views from inside the house

Speaking of views from inside the house, it's time to be honest.  Instead of just posting cropped photos of each plant as it blooms, it's time to give you a sense of what my garden really looks like.  Please be kind - remember it is in progress and I have kids! 

Anyway, I couldn't take pictures of anything else today since it was pouring rain AGAIN this morning.  This is so honest I didn't even go outside to move the tricycle out of the way (and it was raining too hard...)  Here are the views from the living room (front yard) , kitchen and sunroom (backyard), respectively:

[Update] Here's a close-up of the curb-side garden the next morning - with sunshine.  Finally!  I love the backlight in the early morning - you don't get that if all your plants are next to the house.

the power of referrals

Ack!  Just got back to my office at my "real job" and have 6 new e-mails from people wanting a consult.  Thanks for the referrals, Melanie!

Will call you all this week-end if I'm not totally overwhelmed.  No seriously, it's going to rain so I won't be gardening - I should have time!  Ha ha.

hooray for lilies

Last year was the year of the lily.  It is one of my favourite flowers.  I ordered a bunch of bulbs over the winter in my feverish, flower-deprived winter planning, then I saw a bag of bulbs in Costco in early spring, and couldn't resist buying more.

I spread them all around the garden and can't wait to see them really do their thing this year.  However, I ran out of steam planting last spring, and just stuck the last few in a pot because I didn't know where else to put them.  I was going to transplant them in the fall but by that time I was tired (6 months pregnant) so just didn't bother.

Anyway, this one spent the winter in a terra cotta pot on the patio.  And it's coming back!!  Amazing!  Gardening is always full of surprises!!

back hill renovation... check!

Except for a few annuals I started from seed, my back hill renovation is complete!  This area was all grass when I moved into my house 4 years ago, and I've gradually got rid of a little more every year.  This year I decided to get it over with and finish the whole thing.  I don't know what I was thinking... it was February when I started planning and I always get a little crazy by that time of year! 

I was very motivated to get it done this past week-end because there's a playdate at our house tomorrow, and there may be up to 7 kids running around in the back yard!  The pathways on left (bark mulch) and right (future dry stream bed) are meant for the kids to be able to run around the garden.

I've been so busy planting that I've fallen behind on the weeds - that's the next thing to do before I go on holidays in 2 weeks!!

great gardening weather!

... if you're a morning person.  The past few days I've been gardening for an hour in the morning before the kids get up.  Then rain in the afternoon helps water all my freshly-moved plants so they don't get too stressed.

Yesterday (Sunday) was also a beautiful gardening day - slightly overcast so not too hot.  The kids played in a pile of compost I made for them on the back lawn (eventually I'll just rake it over the grass for fertilizer so I don't care how much of a mess they make - they loved it) and dug for worms, and I got some things done. 

I moved the birdbath closer to the house amidst the bergenia so we can enjoy the view better and also it will be easier to clean and fill.  I finished potting the tomatoes into their final location, and finished moving perennials.  Just a few more annuals to plunk in here and there to fill up space, and I'm done.  Phew!! 

rain, rain, go away

Normally, as a Calgary gardener, I am thankful for free water anytime!  I just wish I'd got a few more of my perennials in the ground before all this beautiful rain waters them.  Not to mention I haven't set up my rain barrels yet.  Bad me.

Sometimes I find it remarkable that anything actually grows here.  Last week we had at least 5  sunny days in a row with daytime highs around 25^o, and this week we are getting at least 6 days of rain with highs around 10-15^o and overnight lows under 10^o.  The poor plants must get so confused.

At least it's not snow.

so many perennials, so little time

Finally!  Good weather!  I'm getting tired of moving the annuals in and out of the house every day to harden them off.  There's no frost in sight in the 5 day forecast.  While that doesn't mean it's safe to put annuals in the ground yet (the recommended time is May 24), perennials can be planted now.

I've got a big new garden area to fill, so I browsed for a few new perennials today and was quite well-behaved - only came home with one thing that I have no idea where I'm going to put it (but a $2.99 perennial!  I couldn't resist!!).  I then went for a haircut and my hairdresser insisted that she'd heard on the Breakfast Show today that it will be too soon to plant this week-end.  I tried to explain to her that they were probably talking about annuals, not perennials, and what the difference was, but she didn't hear me.  She did go on at length about some new line of hair products that was entirely boring to me.  I guess that's why she's a hairdresser and I'm a garden coach...

raised beds

Here are my new raised beds waiting to be put in the ground (and have ground put in them).  With lots of mature trees, I don't have many places in the yard that get enough sun for veggies, so I am squeezing these little babies in a small sunny spot.  I like the raised beds especially beside the patio, because it will be easier to prevent kids (and dog) from stepping on the veggies.  Raised beds also have some other advantages:

• the soil warms up faster in the spring
• you can plop them down on top of poor soil and fill them with good stuff for growing
• the soil doesn't get walked on so never gets compacted
• the higher they are, the less you have to reach down to plant/weed/harvest

I am placing mine in a diamond pattern because I think they look more interesting.  Flowers will go in the triangle between them to make my veggies "prettier".  Can you say "potager"? 

They're made of 1x6's and 2x4's, of untreated cedar.

why gardening in calgary is fun

This was part of my backyard this morning (april 10).  If you're new to Calgary, don't worry!  The perennials will be fine!!  Even the trees will be fine.  It's when it snows in May or June that you have to worry - the leaves on deciduous trees will hold the snow and you'll want to run out and shake them off before branches start falling off.

But oh yes, I was supposed to cheering you up!!  Here are some reasons why gardening in Calgary isn't so bad:

- the off season is long so you have lots of time to rest/plan

- we get lots of sun

- the cool nights actually make our fruit and veggie harvest sweeter

- the dryness means our plants have less problems with diseases such as black spot and powdery mildew

- we don't have banana slugs

- if your garden doesn't look as good as you'd hoped, you can always blame it on the weather!!

garden addiction

It's not just me!!  I read 12 Sure Signs you're a Garden Hoe on Sandra Nelson's blog, and I felt someone really understood me.  Here is my revised version (the ones that apply to me with a few additions of my own):

1. Decreased sleep

• You stay up late into the night reading garden porn, and fantasizing about what you will do next season.
• You find yourself waking early to garden before the kids get up.

2. Impulsive or risky decisions

• You go to the garden centre for one plant, and come home with one of each variety.
• You buy a new plant knowing you have no room in any of your beds.
• You buy a plant that loves sun when what you need is one for shade.
• You have hidden plants to plant later when you’re alone.
• You have removed or changed price tags on purchases so spouse doesn’t know what you’ve spent.

3. Missing family or social events

• You have made excuses to miss events so you can garden.

4. Angry or defensive without cause

• You have been moody or distracted when your spouse wants to spend time with you; it’s sunny and you would rather garden.
• You are pre-occupied on a hot day because you are desperate to go home and water.
• You would just rather be gardening.

5. Trouble paying bills

• You have spent grocery, or essential money on plants.
• Your gardening project has gone way over budget.

6. Neglect self or family

• You treat your plants better than you treat yourself.
• You care more about the appearance of your yard than yourself, your children or your spouse.
• You have as many pictures of the garden as you do of your kids.

7. Neglect possessions or home

• You only do housework when it rains.
• Spring-cleaning happens in January.

8. Obsessive or irrational behavior

• You ask for manure for your birthday.
• You have gardened in mittens.
• You check the weather before your morning pee, or coffee.
• Your lawn keeps shrinking, and you can no longer see the house.
• You are eyeing the remaining grass in your yard.
• You are considering gardening in your neighbour’s yard.
• You don’t realize you’re hungry, in pain, bug bitten, or bleeding while gardening.
• When you move, you spend more time moving compost and plants than packing the contents of your house.
• You go outside in the morning/evening to do one thing, and end up gardening in your pyjamas.

big plans

This is "the hill" in the backyard as seen from my sunroom in March.

Well, there's nowhere to go but up, as they say!  There is a lot of work to do here.  On the right I have taken out two large spruce trees, and I am going to replace them with shrubs this year.  We have 5 giant spruce in the (small) front yard and there were 10 in the back when we moved in.  Apparently when someone landscaped the backyard about 30 (?) years ago, the only trees and shrubs available were spruce, pine, cotoneasters and junipers.  Ugh.  Boring. 

The hose shows were I am going to extend the garden to this year.  I also want to build in some fun stuff for the kids.  They like to climb up to the back of the hill so I was planning to put in a mulch pathway for them (easy to remove later).  But today we had friends over and had 3 4-year-olds and 2 2-year-olds chasing each other up and down the hill, and I realized I needed a circular path!!  In a sudden flash of brilliance, I realized that one of the pathways could eventually be turned into a waterfall for the pond I'd like to put in in a few more years.  Once I finish getting rid of those spruce trees...

(by the way, those are spruce cones, not doggie do's!)