A Low(er) Maintenance Toronto Garden Bed

Do you have full sun and lousy grass in Toronto?

I often get asked about how to make a client's front lawn nice, weedless, and green (again) with minimum effort and cost. I try to answer diplomatically that these are contradictory goals. The homeowner must either put in the effort to (a) re-seed or re-sod; b) fertilize and apply weed killer regularly;  and c) mow or pay a "mo-blow-and go" landscape professional a living wage to do so.

Uncomfortable silence usually ensues.

If I'm lucky and have good karma for the day, I might meet someone/couple who sees past a brown and patchy monoculture (a.k.a. failing turf) and envisions a design that is much more more interesting and ecologically sustainable.

Promising bed, not-so-promising lawn

The little (6' long by 3' wide kidney-shaped) bed above was cut out of a thin patchwork of turf. The front area of this client's house faces south looking onto a quiet street. Although the site is in full sun, the lawn is not lush and full as there is no sprinkler system involved with a poor, compacted, and infertile soil profile. With the client's input, I chose perennials and a shrub which appreciate the southern aspect and drier conditons. These include Papaver orientale "Allegro", Stachys byzantina, Caryopteris x clandonensis "Worcester Gold", Perovskia atriplicifolia, and Cotinus coggygria "Young Lady." The soil was profusely amended with homemade compost and bagged triple mix and topped with a 2" layer of mulch.

The client planted orange tulips and purple alliums last fall which have finished blooming now. We'll have a sequence of continuous blooming from April to September with minimal watering and weeding and no fertilizing. Lastly, there are plans to enlarge this bed in the future!

Don't Fence Me In! (or "Scared Straight", Horticulturally.)

Toronto Parks, Forestry and Recreation taking a hard line towards flower pickers?

Yes, I know...I've been neglecting you, gentle reader, as it's been a month since my last post. Weeding, transplanting, and pruning almost daily (when it hasn't been raining) for my clients makes the time fly by. Finally, we're experiencing sunny and warm weather in late May and early June. This is truly one of my favourite times of the year to be outside. We know that the humidex readings of over 35 will be arriving soon so let's savour days like today.

Speaking of today, I had no reason not to take pictures and write this post since the flowers are blooming so vividly around the corner.  Paul Kane House has what I believe is the only English perennial border (or a reasonable facsimile) downtown. 

 Here's what is blooming right now:



Love those fuzzy pom-poms!

"Purple Sensation" alliums give vertical interest.  I've seen them used with great effect planted in and among "Sum and Substance" hosta. The hostas' chartreuse leaf colour and broad shape contrasts very well with the alliums' vertical nature and fine mauve inflorescences. In this bed, they contrasted nicely with the hot yet fragile-looking poppy flowers.

Allium hollandicum "Purple Sensation"
and  "Sum and Substance" hosta 

Allegro Oriental poppy bloom 
at Paul Kane House gardens 

A closeup of an Oriental poppy flower and hairy buds (This may be the cultivar "Allegro.") Yes, I can hear the whining about perennial poppies going dormant after a two week show but really, how can you not love the red-orange crepe-like petals and that dark hypnotic eyeball of a centre? And those buds! Since we're all consenting adults, am I the only one who sees them as, ummm, testicular and labial simultaneously? Yeah, maybe it's just me.

Papaver orientale "Allegro"
Oriental poppy bloom detail 

Papaver orientale "Allegro"
Oriental poppy blooms

A perennial best appreciated in someone else's garden

I'm not a fan of bearded irises and prefer Siberian ones instead but I'll admit, these big blooms are eye-catching. The flower shape just doesn't do anything for me but I appreciate the purple and yellow contrast. A herbaceous peony bud is about to open to the left, sans ant/s.

Early summer blooms in a perennial bed

Here's a shot taken from the side looking up/down the bed. The lower left clump is summer phlox (Phlox paniculata), cultivar unknown. To the right, a mass planting of "Caramel" heuchera gives a nice mellow contrast to the poppy fireworks. The back of the bed is a yew hedge which is the classic backdrop for this high maintenance English border. Other perennials in the bloom sequence are false lupin, peony, catmint, hardy geranium, and hollyhock. You might think you're in Great Dixter until you see this...

Nobody knows the troubles I've seen...

We are in downtown Toronto and the perceived threat of plant injury, theft, and overall mayhem is so high that the city's bureaucrats/garden cops have expensed this lovely partition to keep out ne'er-do-wells. It's all good and well to lean over and look but forget about actually smelling or touching a flower or leaf. If you cross your eyes and think positive thoughts, you might even make the barrier go away! Well, maybe not.

 

Looking west on Wellesley St. E., 
with the parcel of land behind "condo ready!"

I'm not out to be overly critical because I realize that these plants are nicer than the typical euonymous and Emerald cedar combos inflicted upon us and deserve to be protected in the urban environment. But this reality still doesn't make the fencing any less unattractive or minimizes the city's message: don't feed the plants!



You Can Keep Your Lilacs...

Fragrant shrubs we should see more in Toronto gardens

I can't think of too many fragrant flowering shrubs that are blooming now in Toronto. Yes, I know, lilacs will be doing their thing in another month but we need spring to smell heady and overpowering right now! Since I love hyacinths but can't grow them due to the presence of those beady-eyed devils that inevitably nip off blooms the day before they are set to open, a woody substitute is a fragrant viburnum.

My wife worked at Mount Pleasant Cemetery this past weekend and before meeting her after work, I strolled/stalked around looking at tree and flower buds which are just about to open. As an aside, if you are a tree "nut" (bad pun absolutely intended), the cemetery has a selection that rivals any arboretum in Toronto. Not expecting to smell anything besides that distinctive earthy/wet odour heightened by a month of solid rain (it seems), I was smacked nasally with a clove-y, sweet and sharp waft of viburnum pungency remarkably akin to vanilla Coke! (Other viburnums like V. dentatum and lantana smell of dirty socks, wet dog, or cat urine according to some sensitive noses!)

I followed my nose to this shrub....

Farrer's viburnum in bloom

Lucky for me there was a label nearby as I was not familiar with this species. I have a Fragrant Snowball (Viburnum x carlcephalum) in my back garden but the leaves are different from those on this shrub that drew me in. This is Farrer's viburnum, named after the early 20th century plant explorer Reginald Farrer. The plant's height and width was around 8' by 8' or so with a loose and leggy structure. Like most viburnums, I suspect it doesn't need coddling with respect to soil and moisture needs. It's thriving in a cemetery after all!

After walking some more and clearing my head a little, I saw some pink-white blooms in the distance down-wind from me (the air flow direction will be pertinent in a moment.) Maybe Saucer Magnolia blooms? But with the slow spring and the fact that Star Magnolias are blooming now, the bigger and later blooming x soulangiana flowers were unlikely to be the answer. Purple leaf Sandcherries or a cherry in general? A little too early as well.

Getting closer...

Bodnant viburnum blooms



That remarkable smell again but with pink flowers! No label to help me this time but with leaves very similar to V. farreri, I think this is a specimen of Bodnant Viburnum (Viburnum x bodnantense "Dawn".)  The grouping of three of these viburnums amongst a grove of serviceberries produce a great show through most of the year in this part of the cemetery. The fall colour should be outstanding, I'll need to revisit.  The viburnum's fruits ("drupes") will turn from red to purple-black and last much longer than those devoured from the serviceberry. Additional winter interest from the berries makes viburnums make the genus a multi-season choice.

Space permitting, consider placing a fragrant viburnum down-wind near a deck or patio to enjoy. Or right near a path so that you can stick your nose right into the blooms, inhale, and bliss out for a few moments!

No More Forsythia Balls! Choose Cornus mas Instead.

Toronto gardeners have an alternative: Cornelian Cherry Dogwood (Cornus mas)

In a "parkette" nearby which doubles as a dog run (watch out while treading!),  the City of Toronto has planted some more "unusual" shrubs and perennials. I use this adjective because I constantly see the "classic" run of the mill selection like yews, euonymus, and forsythia in private foundation plantings instead of public spaces. You know there's a disconnect when the city's park planners are more progressive than many landscape contractors.

Cornelian cherry (Cornus mas) in bloom

Anyway, off my soap box, here's a shot of some Cornelian cherry or Cornus mas blooming right now in downtown Toronto. The bright yellow flowers cluster along tan branches and are welcome at this time of the year.
 



A closer image of Cornus mas flower buds yet to open


A closer look at some buds which will open within a few days. One can expect red oval fruits the size of...cherries...by late July and August. The shrub doesn't have a noteworthy form or structure but the fall colour is a nice purple/red/violet mix so we have at least 3 seasons worth of interest. Cornus mas is also very hardy here in zone 5/6 so one doesn't have to baby it through the winter. And you get rewarded with a bright shot of colour in these still early days of spring. Can't you tell I love this plant?

Three Cornus mas shrubs in full  sun

Here's a grove of several Cornelian cherries facing south and west and getting full sun (8 hours plus.) These plants are about 15' tall by 10' wide or so each and should be given the proper spacing. They shouldn't be pruned/tortured into cubes, balls, or other odd shapes, which leads me to...forsythia!

We will be seeing forsythia blooming in about another month and, to be sure, the shrub will be ablaze with yellow...for about two weeks. Afterwards, it will revert to a green blob or a huge tangled mess. No appreciable fall colour, no wildlife interest, prone to galls and anthracnose, the choice is obvious: choose Cornus mas instead!

  

Allan Gardens Conservatory 2011 Spring Flower Show

In need of some colour, quick!

After I visited a potential client this morning, I had some time to fill before picking up my kids. Allan Gardens Conservatory is nearby so I hopped in for a short visit. You can't beat the price of admission--free--and the greenhouse complex is easily reached by public transit.
  

What we want our garden bed to look like right now

Upon entering, I'm always hit by a smell of, I think, dormant oil spray. (I guess I'll always associate the place with this odour.) Does anyone else have this experience?

One section has rotating themes throughout the year and right now there are spring bulbs and perennials in bloom. To the right, this section of a bed presents a complementary contrast between the purple tulips and yellow pansies. (Sorry, there were no name tags detailing the cultivars so enjoy the pictures for now, there's no plant i.d. test at the end!) Spilling over the top is a variegated English Ivy tying the purple and yellow together. The daffodils bring up the rear while the phorium crashes the party and makes its presence known!

Could you not see this combination in a spring container?

Look at me, darn you!

I couldn't resist taking this shot of this primrose. She/he/it was among the gaudier of the others. The markings seem almost fluorescent and that halo is just...I love it! This little guy jumped at me from about 20 feet away it seemed. (Magenta and yellow tend to cause this or a migrane I guess.)

Another section of the Conservatory holds all the tender tropical plants that need high humidity and warmer temperatures.  I snapped this shot of Strongylodon macrobotrys or jade vine, a tropical vine native to the Phillipines.

Strongylodon macrobotrys (Jade Vine) 

My lousy pic during overcast conditions doesn't do justice to the flowers' glow. It's really a colour you don't expect to see walking through the greenhouse, your eyes drawn to the vibrant reds and yellows of the croton, alternanthera, and coleus. Then the blue says hello. And you smile.