Spring Tulips

Soldier Beetles on Queen Anne’s Lace

Happy New Year, and HUGE sigh of relief to see the end of 2020!!While we are only 2 weeks to the day, of 2021, I have lots of time to plan (sometimes to no avail) and putter about due to recent lockdown situation from the ever lingering Covid 19. Actually to me it is pretty much the same as last March (and last 9 months) but with a new Emergency Label and Stay at Home order. I only left to pick up additional inventory and deliveries in the later part of the year, all Covid protocols were and are being followed.

I love mosses and lichens and cool coloured bark (lichens) and fungi etc. I wanted to recreate a walk in a woods for either a tablescape or in a box for a table. The living centrepieces did just that, provide a re-creation of the forest which is still very much alive and thriving, but inside your house, for months!

Our Wreath Kits include all the following ingredients - the greenery and some embellishments. Here is how I do a Christmas Wreath, and how I teach it at our Wreath Workshops.

I can remember way back (just shy of 60 yrs) when my Grandmother and I filled bottoms of glass bowels with small rocks from the Lake and the placed daffodil bulbs onto of the rocks and added a bit of water to just below the bulbs. She had these bowls of bulbs in her greenhouse and about the main floor of the house. Their delicate flowers with their amazing scent blooming before and after Christmas. They were Paperwhites.

Our Tulips and Daffodils, being very hardy, were spectacular this year, despite snow on Mothers Day weekend! I am thrilled to say that the potential Fall Bulb Sale has an even better more ‘Boutique” selection than ever before. I place my orders by mid June not long after blooming has actually finished, for mid to late September delivery (maybe later due to COVID) for fall planting before the ground freezes.

So, you just got your Fresh Cut Flowers home and have selected the vase for the Bouquet, now what do you do to prolong the life of these beauties?

As soon as a flower is cut, the clock is ticking on it’s remaining lifespan so you really want to try to slow the process down.

I used to find forcing branches into bloom a hardship, and I don’t always have success either. My Forsythia has become an unruly mess over the years due to improper pruning and care. Jim hates it! I would practice forcing branches under the guise of “I will prune that Forsythia so you don’t have too” mentality. The trick though is selecting the right branches which would have been easier if I had pruned properly.

We have started a new decade and we are starting our 5th year of this Flower Farming Journey!!

I soak my sweet pea seeds for about 2 hours while they plump up slightly. There is a mixture of ideas about this some say to soak others not. So I am going to tell you how I do it - I soak them for about 2 hours! This method has worked for me and I am sticking to it.

When I look at Bearded Iris in my garden, I think of my grandparents. They had a gorgeous collection of them interspersed throughout their backyard, as well as a dedicated bed for them.

I have always loved Peonies so it was a must have in my first Garden at My first home. I researched and found a Canadian Peony Grower and ordered from what I thought was a huge selection of Peonies. This was 27 years ago! Little did I know just how many varieties there really are.

Tulips and daffodils are about to begin popping out ion the ground, bringing Spring with it. Jim and I established these new beds last October, in time for planting them out, and planning the low tunnels over the top of them to force the Tulips to bloom in time for Easter 2019. The Daffodils are placed in permanent locations about the property. Most of these tulips will be dug up right before they are cut in order to produce the long stems required for florists and customers. then the soil will be amend and used for another crop this year.

Ranunculus and Anenomes were new to me two years ago. New varieties have made them very popular for wedding work and very desirable by florists, so I thought I would give them a try. I have not had the greatest experience with them but, mistakes can smarten you up, sometimes. I am determined to get them right.

Dahlias love sun, and it is recommended that they receive at least 6-8 hours of sun per day. The more sun the more blooms.