I almost missed it as I cleaned around a trio of broad cedar stumps. Emerging from a deep crevice on one stump were small, soft creamy yellow, snapdragon-like flowers.
The creeping snapdragon (Asarina procumbens) plant I found at a small nursery years ago has somehow maintained its gentle presence in the garden. The blooms often trail along a lawn edge, accompanied by soft, velvety foliage.
It’s easy to become fond of flowers that self-sow to “volunteer” their presence in sweetly appropriate spots: thick, neat clumps of snapdragon along pathway edges; blooming canary vine trailing through peony bushes; cheery patches of calendula at vegetable plot corners. They speak of reassuring continuity, survival, and amiable surprise.
Another charming garden scene that could easily have been overlooked occurred in a far corner of the back garden where a long-established, boisterous climbing Cecile Brunner rose dwells.
In contrast to its parent plant, a small and dainty bush known as the “Sweetheart Rose,” the climbing form is extravagantly vigorous, clothing itself with small, double pink blossoms in May and June.
Though I prune the climber brutally after it flowers each year, some of the new stems inevitably grow to arch broadly through the air and then droop to the ground. I happened to notice that one long, slender, bloom-filled cane had touched down on a bed of fresh, apple green vanilla leaf foliage where that native ground cover and sword ferns grow. A soft and gentle scene, still worth noting.
Big, splashy plantings like large rhododendrons in full, spectacular bloom are huge, colourful “events” that insert a thrill factor into a landscape. In between, and even amongst, the thrills there appear small, muted scenes that add notes of quiet loveliness to our gardens.
Vegetable plot ornamentation. This year, I’ve edged several vegetable plots in red and green lettuces, frilly endive, and escarole. The results are quite fetching. One planting in particular has created a solid, ornamental line of big, flower-like, frilled lettuce plants in red-bronze and dark green.
My seed source for Bronze Arrowhead, an heirloom lettuce, was Seed Savers Exchange (seedsavers.org). As with all their listings, the catalogue describes the variety’s background: “Introduced as Bronze Beauty by Germain’s Seed Co. and awarded the bronze medal from All-America Selections in 1947. Hailed as ‘the finest, most colourful and most delicious leaf lettuce for the home garden.’ Our favourite oakleaf type.”
The Cottage Gardener (cottagegardener.com) lists Bronze Arrow, which is most likely the same lettuce: “Delicious, silky-textured leaves are arrow shaped, dark green with bronze tinting — absolutely beautiful. Slow to bolt. Mild tasting. Rare.”
I prize Bronze Arrowhead for its gorgeous appearance and its practical versatility. Long before cutting whole heads for the kitchen, I began pulling away large outer leaves for stacking into sandwiches and adding to salads for colour.
Timely tip. Keep rows and block plantings of vegetables such as peas, onions, cabbage, broccoli, carrots and beets weeded to prevent weeds growing large and smothering the vegetable plants. Follow a major weeding with deep watering. Then, to help nourish the plants, conserve moisture and cool the soil, mulch with compost. Deep watering and mulching will be more important than ever in light of the dry, warm, sunny conditions this spring and the hot summer that is expected.
GARDEN EVENTS
Cowichan garden tour. A reminder that I'll be meeting and chatting with visitors from noon to 3 p.m. in a Wilson Road garden as part of the 21st Annual Cowichan Valley Garden Tour on Sunday from 10 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Tickets with maps at $20 are available at many outlets from Victoria to Nanaimo. For the ticket source nearest you, visit cowichanfamilylife.org or call 250-748-8281. Proceeds support the Cowichan Family Life Association, which has provided community support services and counselling since 1970. They also offer literacy services with a Books ‘n’ Bubbles bus.
Penisnula meeting. The Peninsula Garden Club will meet on Monday at 7 p.m. in the Mary Winspear Centre in Sidney. Diane Pierce, UBC Agriculture graduate and plant identification instructor at the Horticulture Centre of the Pacific, will present a demonstration on spring and summer pruning. Visitors are welcome for a non-member drop-in fee of $5. The evening will also include a sale of garden items and a juried parlour show. peninsulagardenclub.ca.
