My decades-long delight in our benign coastal climate has been tarnished with the events of recent years, but this month has delivered an encouraging reminder of the long, slow-warming, forgiving spring seasons that used to be — a season with time to complete early plantings and other spring projects that help to smooth the passage to summer in the garden.
Pleasantly coolish, sunny afternoons out in the garden, however, have not been without moments of unease as the dreaded “d” word remains a relentless, nagging concern. I found myself hoping each cloud cover that appeared would produce some rain.
Meanwhile, leaves and straw that covered plots over the winter have been gathered and stored in bags, ready for use as heat-deflecting, soil-cooling, moisture-retaining mulches around plants as soil and air temperatures heat up.
A friend noticed bags of coconut fibre (coir) on sale and bought two for me. I’ve been adding the soft fibre, along with my own compost, to soils in preparation for planting. Coir enhances moisture retention and acts as a buffer against temperature extremes.
Shade cloth is at the ready for protecting plants and seed beds easily damaged by direct, hot sun.
Managing our gardens has become more complex in recent years, but the extra effort is worth it. Think of lovely blooms for the house, crisp, sweet carrots, tangy tomatoes, and sun-warmed, succulent strawberries.
And … There be bunnies, grazing on the lawns as lettuces and other enticing greens are ready for transplanting and likely munching by the furry eating machines.
Enter the tall rolls of lightweight wire mesh that have been stored in a corner of the garden shed for years. It was time to devise a way to use them for creating simple protective tunnels for rodent-proofing vulnerable plantings.
Before remembering that my Felco pruners had a wire cutting notch at the blade bases, I purchased a pair of wire cutters. They’ll come in handy though, as I enlist a gardening friend to help with the cutting of appropriately sized pieces from the rolls of wire, which can be awkward to work with.
In praise of heathers. As home gardeners stroll through local garden centres, they would do well to consider heather plants. They are among the most easy-care and long-lasting flowering plants.
I am reminded of this early every spring, as a broadly expansive Springwood Pink heather becomes covered with bloom that lasts through March and most of April.
It’s an old but still very beautiful plant, dug from my father’s garden on Lochside Drive in Sidney in the spring following his death, decades ago. A few years ago I was delighted to find and purchase another Springwood Pink heather, which has become a bright spot in a small bed in the back garden, in front of a red-flowering currant shrub.
Over the years I’ve found that the heathers that have become most quickly established in the garden and that remain wonderfully minimal-maintenance parts of the landscape have been purchased as young plants in 10-cm wide pots.
In memory of my father, and in recognition of the long-lived nature of the Springwood Pink in the front garden, every spring I cut a few of the heather sprigs and combine them in a small container with miniature daffodils for little bouquets in the house.
GARDEN EVENTS
Gordon Head meeting. The Gordon Head Garden Club will meet on Wednesday, May 1, 7 to 9 p.m. in the Gordon Head Lawn Bowling Club, 4105 Lambrick Way. Ken Luther will speak about “Boss Mosses of Southern Vancouver Island.” Visitors are welcome at no charge.
Plant sale. The Gordon Head Garden Club will host its Annual Plant Sale on Saturday, May 4, 9 a.m. to 12 p.m. in the Gordon Head Lawn Bowling Club. Plants, tools, floral displays, the Garden Cafe and door prizes.
Qualicum plant sale. The Qualicum Beach Garden Club will hold a plant sale on Saturday, May 4, 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. at 525 Yambury Rd. in Qualicum. Plants, vegetable transplants, garden related items.
Ask a question. Victoria Master Gardeners serve the gardening public in many ways. One of their projects, “Ask a Master Gardener,” involves members with expertise in different areas answering questions from the public via email at [email protected].
