You are invited to A DAY FOR GARDENERS

Register using this registration form (pdf) or this (docx)

A Day for Gardeners, for the new gardener who is not quite sure where to start or the home owner who loves to garden and would like to find out more, this is a workshop presented by the Peterborough and Area Master Gardeners on Saturday, March 4, 2017, 9:00 a.m. - 2:15 p.m., at Activity Haven, 180 Barnardo Ave, Peterborough ON, $30 for all day (this includes lunch).


Topics include…


• Caring for Orchids (Dianne Westlake)

• Container Gardening: Thinking Outside the Planter Box (Gary Westlake)

• The Rain Garden (Cauleen Viscoff)

• Edible Landscape (Cathy Hooper)

• Integrated Pest Management (Sue Flinders-Adams)

• Gardening Trivia: Test Your Knowledge (M.J. Pilgrim)

Victory Gardens for Bees

by Christine Freeburn

It was a very nice surprise to find in my local library, a new Canadian gardening book with a timely subject matter. Lori Weidenhammer, author of Victory Gardens for Bees published by Douglas & McIntryre, is a Vancouver based artist and educator actively involved in making Canada and the world a better place for humans and bees. This volume is beautifully illustrated with full colour photographs, seasonal planting charts, illustrated garden plans and historical facts about the original Victory Gardens. It is the type of book you can read chapter by chapter, use as a reference book or flip through for random information.

Chapter one describes the Colony Collapse Disorder, explaining that the 20,000 different species of bees worldwide are in serious danger. Currently there are 57 bee species on the endangered list. Weidenhammer gives us a clear history of what has happened over the past ten years. She suggests a bee wise program similar to the ocean wise system where we, as consumers, buy only from responsible sustainable-conscious growers and producers.

In chapter two, the author gives us the history of the original Victory Gardens along with garden plans for several bee friendly gardens. She lists sixteen essentials to creating a safe garden space for bees. By letting a few of your vegetables and herbs bolt, you will allow bees to enjoy the pollen from these plants. Did you know that 70 % of bees nest in the ground? Another reason not to dig!

Chapter three shows us some of the bee species that visit our gardens. It is well illustrated, easy to read and gives the reader so much good information about the many types of bees. After reading this chapter you will be eager to try to identify the bees in your garden.

In the following chapters, the author discusses growing specific herbs, vegetables, trees, shrubs, bulbs, perennials and annuals for a bee friendly garden. She talks about hedgerows, pastures, traditional gardens and container gardening. Each chapter has lovely photographs, charts and tips. We learn about bee habitat and how to create homes for bees. Did you know that a stumpery is an ideal spot for bees to nest and it can also be garden art?

There is also a chapter on beekeeping and the importance of having enough food for native bees as well as hive bees.

The final chapter sums up the importance of getting all generations involved in gardening, again referencing how during the world wars, Victory Gardens drew families and communities together. There are common sense tips on how to avoid bee stings, a reminder that solitary bees do not sting or sting very lightly. Weidenhammer encourages us to become bee guardians and to 'Dig for Victory!'

An index at the back, allows the reader to look up by plant or bee species. A list of sources gives you places to obtain more information and the end notes add more information.

Lori Wiedenhammer has given us a well written, beautifully illustrated, informative resource that is timely, inspirational, Canadian, and deserves to be on any concerned gardeners bookshelf.

Winter Gardening

by Christine Freeburn

When the dark days of winter are upon us, we gardeners yearn for ways to explore our passion. We devour gardening books and seed catalogues.We look at photographs of beautiful gardens and dream about the coming season. And some of us continue to garden indoors with houseplants. If that is not enough for you, why not try to over winter some of those annuals you enjoyed through the summer months.

Pelagonium x hortorum or annual geraniums are available in many different coloured flowers and some interesting leaf variations. You can have success with over wintering these annuals a few different ways. When the cooler evenings begin in September, slip some stems off your favourite geraniums, let the base dry out slightly, then plant in a small pot of good potting soil and set in a bright window. Stem cuttings should be taken just below a bud joint. Do not over water, but keep the soil slightly moist. Keep plants away from any direct heat. As your geranium continues to grow, you can prune it back to keep a nice shape and if you fertilize it, you may even get some winter blooms. When late spring arrives and frost warnings are over, you have an established plant to put in the garden or container.

Another method for over wintering geraniums is to pull the entire plant out of the dirt and stuff it into an onion bag to hang in a cool dark place. This is generally done sometime in late September or early October, removing any blossoms that are still on the plant, but leaving the leaves on. I have even had success with a stem that I ripped off a huge plant. It had green growth and a few leaves coming just like the rooted plants. After labeling the bags, hang them where it is cool and dim. By February, check on the plants, and you should see that they are sprouting leaves. Gently remove the plant from the bag, and cut slips about 4” to 6” long where there is green growth. Get some pots ready with potting soil or you can even use cell paks. Remember to label, so you know which colour has survived. Success rates vary year to year and will depend on the health of the plant when you dug it up and your storage space being cool enough with just enough light. You can also pot up the mother plant after you have cut it back. Be sure to leave some green on it and try to shape it so it will grow uniform without stems crossing over each other. Moisten your soil, but keep the plants out of direct sunlight for a few days until they get used to the brighter light. Gradually move them into a bright window or under lights.

Any ivy that you have growing in containers outside is easy to over winter. Take slips, stick in water until roots form, then pot up and put in a bright window. English Ivy (Hedera helix var. baltica), German Ivy (Delairea odorata), and Swedish Ivy (Plectranthus verticillatus) are all easily rooted and can fill up an outside planter with great green textures. You can slip these from your houseplants in March or April and pot up when roots have grown.

It is recommended to spray any plants you bring indoors with a safers soap, so you are not bringing in any garden pests. There is nothing worse than wiping out your entire indoor plant collection because you harboured those little bugs from fall into the winter months.

In late spring, you will need to harden off any plants you have over wintered inside before putting in your containers. To harden off, set your plants outside, out of wind and direct sunlight for a few hours each day when temperatures have warmed. Continue to bring inside overnight until evenings are temperate and frost is over. Over wintering plants that you can pop into gardens or containers can be very satisfying and leave you extra cash to purchase more exotic flowers.

Our Clivia is flowering again

Our Clivia is flowering again.  It seems to like to flower when the roots are crammed into the pot.

Finding Room For a Few Edibles

Norma Evans


Garden styles are changing. Edibles are in! Fortunately, it is easy to add a few herbs, onion sets or a tomato or two somewhere in your garden. Perennials such as hostas and grasses have joined foundation evergreens and this season it looks like edibles will turn up in beds and containers.

An added bonus to growing many edibles and aromatic herbs is that they attract beneficial insects and pollinators. It is important, however, to watch that you combine plants that have similar watering needs, sun and food requirements. Herbs that are invasive such as mint can be grown in containers either above ground or sunk into the ground.

Where should we look for room? Space can often be found around early and late blooming perennials. The early bloomers will be cut back and offer room for an expanding tomato or pepper plant. The late bloomers such as rudbeckias are slower to shoot out and won't mind sharing space with lettuce, green onions or radishes or garlic.

Pruning Grapevines

Here is an excellent video on pruning grapevines by Jason Kerr. The video is from New Zealand but the principles are the same the world over.

Methods of Growing Fruits and Vegetables Efficiently in Small Spaces

Raised Beds

In a small garden, it is practical to grow vegetables in raised beds. Normally, this involves building a wood frame to hold the soil up to 10 inches above level ground but it also can involve just mounding the soil. These raised beds need to be narrow enough so that all parts of them can be reached from outside the bed since, once built, they should never be walked on. There are well tested and successful schemes for growing in raised beds such as "No-Till Gardening" and "Square Foot Gardening" which are described next but just using a raised bed with a lot of compost and staying off it goes a long way to success. Here is an article on managing garden soils and another on creating a new garden.Sources of Information

There are some great sources of information on vegetable gardening on the web such as the videos listed on our video links page or this series of videos by Claire Burgess.Weeds