On the day last month when temperatures began to moderate, I felt as though I’d been suddenly released from a sauna set on high heat. Now, revelling in more useable weather, I’m taking time to note the effects the unusual summer has had on different plantings.
Because of the dry weather and high heat, blossom end rot and distortions in fruit shape were problems in tomatoes. Among the perennial flowers, some were conspicuously dwarfed, presumably from the heat. A clump of Heliopsis ‘Loraine Sunshine’ is stunted, its vivid leaf variegation muted, the flowers diminished. The clump usually grows at least a metre tall, with showy foliage and large, golden flowers making the plant a showpiece.
Border sedums in the hottest, driest part of the front garden are noticeably shortened, the stocky, abbreviated stems now bearing broad clusters of pink flowers that are, as usual, swarming with bees. In this perennial, the dwarfing is an advantage. Taller sedum stems tend to flop over with the weight of late summer flowers.
The heat has brought on large, fluffy flower heads on a crepe myrtle I grew from seed years ago. I found the listing in the house plant section of a catalogue from the southern United States.
I grew the plants in pots and put them outside for the summer. One I had planted in the ground and forgot surprised me by surviving. It blooms profusely only toward the end of a hot summer.
I wonder what sort of observations other gardeners have observed during this challenging summer.
Carrots and beets. The soil conditions (light, sandy) in my garden have always produced excellent carrots, especially once I settled on the three varieties that faithfully germinated well and produced nicely shaped, juicy, favourful roots. They were Nelson, Napoli, and Navarino.
Napoli is widely available. West coast Seeds and William Dam Seeds are two sources. Navarino is available only from W.H. Perron. Nelson has now vanished from all the seed company listings I know of and use. It was a superb carrot, much missed.
Then, in the William Dam carrot listings, I happened to notice this in the description for a carrot called Miami: “Rivals Nelson for quality.” And it does. Miami germinated with vigour and produced delicious, early carrots. It is now added to Napoli and Navarino as my regular roster of carrot varieties.
Taunus, a long, cylindrical beet, has for years been a reliably easy producer of juicy, fine-textured roots. Cylindrical beets are wonderfully convenient for slicing.
Despite trying many varieties of round beets, I’d not found one that grew and produced really well in my garden conditions — until I came across Merlin, listed in the T&T Seeds catalogue. I also found Merlin seeds on a rack of Renee’s Garden seeds in a local garden centre. Renee labels it under Roasting Beets as “Sweet Merlin.” T&T also notes that Merlin is “Excellent roasted.”
My Merlin plants grew quickly to produce beautiful round beets with tender, sweet flesh. I’m delighted to have discovered it.
With my first beet harvest of the summer, I made my favourite, super-easy beet dish by steaming the beets tender, slipping the skins, and cutting them in slices or chunks into a blend of balsamic vinegar, olive oil, Dijon mustard, salt, and honey or maple syrup. I add mashed garlic to the blend, but that is optional.
Abkhazi boulevard garden. Abkhazi Garden, 1964 Fairfield Rd. in Victoria, is hosting an Open House and Grand Opening of the Boulevard Garden on Grandparents’ Day, Sunday, Sept. 12, 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Admission to the garden is free. Grandparents with their grandchildren are especially welcome to the event. Numerous prizes include tea for two in the teahouse, plants from the garden, plush bears and more. There will also be a plant sale.
Peninsula meeting. The Peninsula Garden Club will hold a meeting via Zoom on Monday, Sept. 13, at 7 p.m., with a presentation at 7:30 by Elke and Pam, owners of Botanus in Langley. Their topic is “Successful Bulb Growing: The 10 Most Asked Questions.” Membership is required to acquire a Zoom link. For details on membership visit peninsulagardenclub.ca or email president.pgc@gmail.com.
Plant sale. The Peninsula Garden Club will hold a Fall Plant Sale on Saturday, Sept. 18, 10 a.m. to 12 p.m. in the Mary Winspear Centre parking lot in Sidney. Cash in small bills and change, and cheques, are welcome. Social distancing and masks are required.
