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Thankful for flowers

10/11/2021

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Today, on this Thanksgiving Day, I am especially thankful for flowers.  A stroll in my garden, past the  hydrangeas turned dusty-pink, along the moist, grassy path and the last flowering, pink anemones  bouncing on wiry stems, and toward bright, pilon-orange calendula, adored by nectar-seeking insects; these lush surroundings filled with life worthy of quiet observation, is all that I need to lift my spirits.
All the photos posted above were taken today in my garden, this October 9th, 2021.   It was a warmer than typical October day.  As you can see,  flowers are blooming still, and are even more lush-looking than they were in summer, thanks to cooler autumn weather in my  zone 5 garden.  Perennials  that flower well into autumn, like sedums, asters, ornamental grasses, and cold-hardy annuals, stretch the gardening season and are food for the soul. 
​I hope that you too, took some time to enjoy the flowers in your own garden or in your surrounding neighbourhood.  We have so much to be thankful for.  Wishing all gardeners a Happy Thanksgiving Day!
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Flowers that take the heat.

6/23/2020

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In the garden of my former home in Ontario, drought tolerant purple Globe thistle mingle with pink hollyhocks while a monarch butterfly takes a sip of nectar.
The high temperatures of late have forced me to take extra measures to protect some of my most cherished garden plants.  I usually do not water my established perennials, but this last stretch of high heat without rain were an unexpected doozy, taking a toll on garden plants much earlier in the season than I can ever recall.  Mulching with compost (or any organic material) helps prevent drought stress from lack of rain.  So does planting drought-tolerant plants.  
The photo above is of my first home garden in Ontario.  The globe thistle and Hollyhocks  flowered easily without much help from me.  Globe thistle or Echinops,  should not to be confused with another perennial look alike called Sea holly or Eryngium.  Both are purple, drought tolerant perennials that come alive in summer heat in full sun.  Globe thistle grows larger with ping-pong ball-sized, spiky flower heads that will re-seed freely.  There is also a less known white coloured variety. 
I remember learning about xeriscape gardening (gardens that use little to no water) 20 years ago when I was studying for my Gardening and Landscaping Certificate. I wasn't fond of cactuses so I didn't pay much attention to xeriscapes then, preferring the look of more traditional flower gardens.  I am glad to say that I brought a few of these tough perennial plants with me when I moved from my house in Ontario.  Today, these low-maintenance perennials are of the mainstays of my summer border filling empty earth patches with their architectural qualities even into winter while feeding bees and other beneficial pollinators while in bloom with their lavender-purple, nectar-rich flower balls.  Just make sure to wear gloves while handling them.
 ( For more on plants that take the heat read one of my my articles in the Suburban.)

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In search of the perfect lawn: why you should leave the dandelions alone.

5/19/2020

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Dandelions are the weeds most hated by lawn-loving suburbanites.
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This is a photo of my backyard 5 years ago taken May 15. I barely notice the dandelions.
It's that time of year again and with the return of pleasant spring weather also come things we consider less pleasant, namely sightings of, you guessed it, the dreaded dandelion. (Da-da-duuuum!). 
Homeowners in suburbia have a serious love-affair with their lawns and especially hate dandelions almost as much as they hate pandemics.  They spend much of their gardening time on their knees, removing this perennial weed and quietly rejoicing every perfect expulsion, root, flower and jagged leaves.  Part of what makes the task of removing dandelions so frustrating is knowing that it will eventually re-sprout if a fragment of dandelion’s long taproot is left behind.  Removal must be perfect to be successful.  But even that isn't enough to keep the weed from establishing in lawns in the first place. You need to maintain a strong, healthy turf to crowd out weed growth and that is an awful lot of work.


My neighbour's lawn is as lush and unblemished as a golf green with no yellow 'stains' to speak of.  If any wayward dandelion weed sets up house on his lot, he spots it immediately and it’s off with their head.  He is the master of his lawn and even owns a beloved riding mower.  The loud whirring of the motor signals that his grass cutting ritual is about to begin.  I often watch him from my front window as he rides his machine with pride, like a cowboy hero on on a prized horse, leaning ever so slightly as the machine turns the sharp corners of his L- shaped lot.   I  imagine his calendar is filled with “lawn to do chores” such as Monday: mowing and core aerating, Tuesday: thatch removal and over seeding,  Wednesday: fertilizing, Thursday: more mowing and so on.  (Did I mention he is retired? ).  He even manages to water his lawn in areas where his irrigation system doesn’t reach.  Kudos to my neighbour for all his work and efforts.  Being outside in nature is good for us, both mentally and physically, and if it's his lawn that gets him out and moving around, then good for him.  

My neighbour must scoff at my ‘eco-lawn’ which features quite a diverse rainbow of plants in the spring including white clover, wild strawberries and violets.  Far in the backyard, the forget-me-nots have self-seeded in open dead patches of the lawn.  Instead of digging out dandelions, I dig out these flowers to plant as a pretty ephemeral edging in my garden beds then fill the open lawn patches with grass seed (if I remember), and leave it to the heavens to water.
 Monocultures such as perfect grass lawns are not only exhausting to maintain if attainable, they are the antithesis of pollinator gardens. Diversity is the spice of the garden life, and allowing a healthy ecosystem of plants and animals to flourish will ultimately help you care for your landscape, and mother earth.

Although I don’t dispute the merits of a beautiful green lawn, and dandelion sightings do elicit slight irritability on my part,  I just don't have the energy to remove them.  I prefer to invest my landscaping efforts in perfecting my garden beds instead, enlarging my gardens and re-edging lines of my borders, enriching plantings with my homemade compost and  beautifying my landscape by planting new perennials, shrubs and vegetables whenever possible.     I do try to pluck out the weeds I spot growing in my pathway and flower beds but leave most  weeds be in the lawn.   Besides, once dandelions make their flush of appearance in spring my landscape still looks pretty good, despite a less than perfect lawn.(see photo above).   I also delight in knowing that my lawn is feeding bunnies, birds, bees and other wildlife much more than I delight in having a dandelion-free lawn.  
 I have learned to tolerate weeds like dandelions for several other reasons:


1)Early in the season, dandelions are one of the only choice flowers for nectar- hungry  bees and other pollinators.  Bees pollinate approximately one third of our food crops so are important to our survival.   Letting dandelions be, is one of the simplest things you can do to help bees and other pollinators survival.  If possible, allow dandelions to flower to feed pollinating insects then pick them before they turn to fluffy seed heads.

2)Their yellow flowers only last a short time and their foliage blends in with the rest of the lawn.  In fact, dandelions are often  greener than my grass and they blend in nicely with clover.

3)The entire plant including roots are edible and have amazing nutritional benefits. Yes! you can eat them pesticide free, without having to wait in a long, lineup at the grocery store.  Not just the foliage but the buds and taproot are also edible.   When I was a child sitting in the backseat of my family's car I remember seeing ladies dressed in black picking baskets of dandelions from grassy areas near highway overpasses.  Now I know why. They are free food and readily available in your community.  Just make sure before you eat them that they were not sprayed with chemicals or picked too close to roadways where exhaust fumes linger.

4)Children love picking dandelions and giving these yellow bouquets to loved ones. They also enjoy blowing their fluffy seed heads while making a wish.( A wish to end the pandemic?)


5)Getting rid of them is an exhaustive chore and a losing battle- Just like Arnold, they will inevitably be baaaaack even if your lawn is completed re-sodded.

Hope this helps you find a little solace when it comes to the fight against dandelions.   Its all about changing your perspective.   Let me know how you handle the dandelions growing around your landscape.  Well, gotta go, I see an yellow intruder in my flower garden.
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This Mother's Day do flowers a favour .

5/10/2020

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     This mother’s day will be different from all others since we won’t be able to actually hug or kiss our moms while practicing social distancing, unless of course we are already living with mom in the same household.   It’s also colder than any recent Mother’s day weekends that I care to remember.  Yesterday I woke up to snowflakes blowing around my yard and the wind doesn't seem to have a stop button lately  Brrrr!  If it feels cold for us, just imagine how a basket of flowers feels, especially after having been raised inside a warm, humid greenhouse.  
    Remember that the beautiful potted hydrangeas and hanging baskets of annuals we see at the nursery at this time of year have had very limited or no exposure to harsh outdoor temperatures.   Just like  our home-grown tomato seedlings (see my previous blog post), these too, need to be protected and hardened off before placing outdoors in their permanent positions. 
      Extreme winds and unusually cold spring temperatures can
 tatter foliage, ruining their appearance  or worse, kill frost-tender plants left outdoors in exposed sites.    You may have received or purchased traditional gift flowers this Mother's day.   Do your precious annual baskets a favour this Mother's Day by bringing them inside a shed, garage or on a protected porch until pleasant spring weather returns.  
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Accidents happen...

5/1/2020

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     It's already May 1st and finally a warmish 15℃.   If you haven't hardened off your seedlings yet, now's a good time to start.  Hardening off simply means plants that are started and raised indoors need to get used to the harsher elements outdoors before they are planted for good in the garden.  If they are not hardened off before planting, sunlight, wind and the variable temperatures outdoors may kill delicate plants before they even get a chance.   
​     To harden off seedlings, slowly acclimatize them by bringing them outside for increasing periods of time.  This allows them to  toughen up and eventually handle harsher outdoor environments.   Start on a cloudy day for two hours , then increase their time outdoors over a period of a week or so introducing direct sun with caution.  They should be able to handle sunlight without wilting or getting sunburnt leaves.  My tomato seedlings were transplanted from their original small cell packets over two weeks ago and have been watered and fertilized regularly, so they have grown considerably since seeded in early April.
     Today as I was eagerly bringing my tomato plants outside, I dropped them all over the kitchen floor.  Accidents will happen, especially when you are dealing with many seedlings, which is why it's best for beginners to keep it simple and start with very few plants.   Luckily, they didn't suffer too much damage.  Also seeded in my basement are alyssum, calendula, poppies and cosmos and I'm trying to root a  few cuttings of basil in water.   These annuals are supposed to be easy to grow from seed and fairly quick to grow.  We'll see if that's true in my next post. 
     In the meantime enjoy the comfortable spring weather and ponder nature at its finest as you stroll outdoors  during this most promising season, about to unfold.  It is quieter than ever out there, but this peace won't last forever.   So take the time now to appreciate the calm, soothing sounds of ever present birdsong and delight in a fiery orange sunset.  As you meander through your garden, pull a few weeds while they are young and easy to remove to stay ahead of this unending chore. 
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Home-grown tomato seedlings need  a little T.L.C.

4/14/2020

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        It may be a chilli 5℃ today, but that doesn’t mean you can’t garden.   As I mentioned in my last post,  there are plenty of gardening activities to do to keep green thumbs busy and warm at home during quarantine, including growing tomatoes and leafy greens. 
    Before you begin  know that edible plants can be loosely categorized according to the temperature in which they like to grow (warm or cool), the time it takes to grow from seed to harvest (maturity date), and the best method for starting seeds (directly in the soil or as young transplants).   Read the information on your seed packet.  Warm-weather crops such as tomatoes can be started in the comfort of your home and then transplanted outdoors when nighttime temperatures remain above 13 ℃, sometime in May, after hardening off.   Cool-weather crops like kale, lettuce, arugula, spinach and peas can be planted outside in the garden earlier, even with threat of frost.   You may still want to start certain cool weather crop seeds indoors however to give them a head start, then transplant them outside when seedlings are robust enough.
     I
 started two types of tomatoes: one large, beefsteak style indeterminate variety that matures in about 75 days and cherry tomatoes with a fairly short maturity date called Tiny Tim (see photos above).
    I
 put two seeds about 1/4 inch deep in each cell pack filled with good quality, pre-moistened soil, waited and watched for growth.  The instant gratification that accompanies every seed germinated feeds a gardener’s perseverance.  Once seedlings put on a bit of growth, I plucked out (thinned) the weakest of the two and either ditched it or carefully planted it in the soil where there was more room for it to grow.  This goes against most sage gardening advice, but they looked too healthy to throw away and I wanted to grow as many tomatoes as I could.  Besides, what kind of mother throws her babies out if she can save them?
     I have learned the following key things when starting tomato seedlings:
1)Use any supplemental lighting you have.  
If you already perused the tomato growing sites online you may have read that tomatoes can easily be started by a sunny window.   That may be true if you have a greenhouse or live in the south or enjoy growing etiolated vegetable seedlings.  I have found tomato plants need more light than the sunniest window in your home can offer, especially if starting seedlings in late winter, when sunshine and bright light are hard to come by in northern regions like ours.  If you don’t have grow lights, ordinary fluorescent shop lighting will do just fine (no need to get fancy) or order some online.  
2) Tomato plants love heat  
If yours haven’t germinated yet, try placing a little heat under the cell packs.  If you don’t have growing equipment like a heat mat, be resourceful and place seed containers in the warmest place in your home, the top of a fridge or even a clothes dryer when it’s on will do.  Artificial heat mimics what happens in nature when sun warms the soil and hastens germination.   I didn’t have a heat mat and my electric heating pad died (probably from growing too many seedlings), so I used a magic bag by heating it for a few minutes in the microwave then placing the heated bag under the cell pack a few times a day.  Yes, that may seem laborious, but really, what else do I have to do?
3) Tomato seedlings need air
The other thing that helped my seedlings once they germinated is circulating air.  Air circulation helps prevent damping off, a fungus that regularly kills seedlings in too humid conditions.  Air may also help strengthen their stems as they grow.   I simply placed an oscillating fan a few feet away from the plants and set to the lowest speed for a few hours every day.
4) Give your seedlings a little T.L.C.
Although tomatoes are easy to grow from seed, they still require nurturing.  But that's the the fun part about gardening, isn't it?   I check on my seedlings’ progress regularly to ensure they are watered enough and looking healthy.
     
You can see from the photo at the top left, that after 20 days since initial sowing, my seedlings resemble miniature versions of mature tomato plants.  Soon it will be time to transplant these babies into individual containers and then hardened off.   
      It is a gratifying experience, to watch something as simple as seeds come to life, first when cotyledons appear during germination and then later with the emergence of their first true leaves.
   In fact, now more than ever before, watching life unfold in front of me even from a tomato plant is incredibly fulfilling.  
 
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Five gardening activities to do while you are stuck at home.

4/6/2020

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     It's easy to fall into despair when news of more closures, illnesses and death surrounds us daily.  Medical experts warn that is it now more crucial than ever to remain optimistic and stay engaged mentally and physically in activities that will stimulate us in positive ways, especially over the next two weeks when cases of corona virus are expected to spike.  In a world centred around taming the outbreak, hope understandably wanes.

    But here’s the good news: if anyone is capable of hope, it is gardeners.  Every seed sown and plant nurtured is rooted in hope.  Hope that the gardener’s efforts will blossom into to something wonderful and worthwhile.  And most often, it does.

    If you are staying at home like most Canadians are, there are plenty of gardening activities you can do to keep busy and lift your spirits even if there are patches of snow still on the ground outside.  If you live in an apartment and are without a plot of land, that’s ok.  You can garden in containers.  Here are five garden-related things to do now with links to my articles for those who want more ‘how-to’ information:

1)Plan a veggie garden
     It isn’t too late to sow seeds of tomato, eggplant, pepper and other warm season edibles so they are ready for planting outdoors in gardens next month.  If you have a cold frame, a raised bed or if you garden in containers, you can even sow seeds of leafy greens, onions, beets, chives, parsley and other cool weather crops outdoors now that the risk of frosty weather is unlikely.   If you don’t have seeds in storage, look for them online, in neighbourhood grocery stores and from other local sources that have remained open during the pandemic.  Sow only enough seeds that you have the space for or this task can quickly get out of hand.  Also, carefully read individual seed packets for maturity dates and directions.
Heres the link to my article on avoiding common pitfalls when starting seeds indoors
http://www.thesuburban.com/columnists/elaine_sanders_gardens_and_landscaping/avoid-these-common-pitfalls-when-starting-plants-from-seed-indoors/article_f7027501-dd7c-55e7-a86a-630c59789e80.html


2)Turn your compost 
     Who needs a gym when you have a garden to work in? If you have a home compost in your yard, turning the pile is a terrific workout! (but watch your back!) Our household practices composting throughout the year even during winter and by springtime when contents are defrosting,  it needs a good turning.  I use a pitchfork to move the stuff on the outside of the pile to the centre.  Remember to top off any ‘green’, nitrogen-rich materials (e.g., kitchen scraps) with more ‘brown’,  carbon-rich materials (e.g., dead leaves) at a ratio of approximately 3-1(browns to green).  Turning the pile and maintaining the right carbon to nitrogen balance will speed up decomposition so that home-made compost is ready to feed your vegetable plants and flowers to help them thrive.   Making it yourself also means you won’t need to rely on expensive, commercially produced compost which may be difficult to locate right now.

3) Refresh your planters
     Ditch the winter holiday decor (please!) and make a new arrangement for your door-side planters.  You can order spring flowers online from local nurseries offering online purchases and deliveries.  Now's the time to get creative and use materials found on your property such as forsythia branches or crafts you may have lying around in the basement. (see my last post for a photo of my spring bulb planter)

4)Pot up dahlia tubers
     If you have dahlia or begonia tubers either newly purchased or stored from last season, now is the time to pot them up so they are ready to be planted outdoors at the same time as  your tomato plants.
Here is the link to my article on growing Dahlias:
 http://www.thesuburban.com/columnists/elaine_sanders_gardens_and_landscaping/elaine-sanders-get-a-jump-on-the-gardening-season/article_e71c9f9f-9773-5bac-8adb-785a3918c6c8.html

5) Create a terrarium
     Creating a terrarium is easy and fun to do with kids.  Teach kids about the water cycle by using a cleaned out pop bottle.
Here's the link to my article on terrariums:
 http://www.thesuburban.com/life/home_and_garden/elaine-sanders-revitalize-your-home-s-decor-with-low-maintenance-terrariums/article_11880976-8454-530e-999b-babd1a445169.html


     There are many signs of hope around my neighbourhood.  I saw hope in the crocus blooms emerging from their winter slumber, in the rainbows and the Easter decorations adorning home landscapes, in the flitting about of birds and squirrels oblivious to the world’s perils, and in the drawings on the driveways of children eager to return to playdates with friends.  There is also hope in the way essential businesses are adapting to this crisis.  Garden centres for example, are adjusting their services to include online purchase and delivery of plants, soil and other gardening materials right to your door so you can remain at home.  Call your favourite one to see if they offer online delivery and check the garden centres listed in my links page.
What gardening activities have you been doing at home lately?  I’d love to know.
Until next time, please stay safe and stay hopeful.
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Gardening during the COVID -19 crisis

4/4/2020

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         Hello everyone and thank you for visiting my  blog.
The Covid-19 pandemic is certainly an unprecedented trying period in everyone's life.  Kids are out of school, adults are out of work and life as we knew it is on pause.  For many of us, there is much to feel anxious about.   Most of us also probably have much more time than we know what to do with.
     One of the best ways I know to spend time and relieve anxiety is horticultural therapy, a.k.a. gardening.  Gardening has not only proven health benefits (read my article on how here), but it is the perfect way to practice social distancing.  Last week, fed up with seeing my dreary, winter front door planter (and, for that matter, those beside everyone's front door in my neighborhood ) I managed to find some colourful spring bulbs to fill it with.  Once I located some flowers (yes, you can find some too! More on that later), it took less than 10 minutes to assemble.
I simply emptied the winter arrangement, leaving most of the earth in the pot and keeping some of the red dogwood branches for contrast then planted the daffodils in the centre and surrounded them with purple hyacinths.  I packed my planter fuller than I thought would fit, gave it a drink of water and, voila!    Although I know not many people will be visiting my home this spring, except for the mailman, this fragrant and colourful spring arrangement makes me happy every time I pass it by.
​        It may seem that life was more certain before this pandemic changed our lives for good, but that was just a fallacy.  All we really ever had then, and continue to have now, is today.  So grab  a trowel  or a rake and go ahead and do what makes you happy right now.  And be grateful for this moment.
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Spring planting at J.R.H.S.

5/10/2017

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Just look at what I spotted one morning last week on my way into school basking on the daffodil bulbs we planted last fall in the front entrance of the building. 
Based on a Google search on butterflies, I believe it's a Mourning Cloak (Nymphalis Antiopa)  a cold-tolerant native which is one of the first butterflies to emerge in spring.  The mourning cloak spends the winter hibernating in loose tree bark or other hiding places where it is protected from winter's wind.  Their larval host plants tend to be trees and shrubs rather than flowers, dining on tree sap more than nectar.  The mourning cloak has been spotted flying around as early as March in Manitoba.  Brrrrr! 

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​The gardens at J.R.H.S. have been amended with good compost and the seeds are sowed. With all the rain and hopefully a little sunshine, its just a matter of time before the lettuce, spinach and peas start growing.  The resource kids work hard and take a lot of pride in gardening, as can be seen in the photo above left. 
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Spring at last! But timing is key to tackling garden chores.

4/9/2017

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Warmer weather at last!  There are patches of snow here and there but the birds are chirping and the temperature read 20degrees, so I dragged one of the Muskoka chairs out from the shed today to get a little reading done outdoors for a change.  On the way to the backyard, I took a mental inventory of winter's damage and what needed doing, trying not to get too distracted from the point of being outdoors: to relax and enjoy the warm spring day that had finally been bestowed upon us.  
Spring is after all, when I usually do most of my yard cleaning, not fall.   Partly because I am busy and partly because I am lazy (or at least would rather be doing other things), I am pleased that there are many ecological benefits to letting spent perennials and small leaves decay naturally over the winter.  Gardens that are not cut down and raked up of all debris in the fall are better for your soil and the dried seed heads and stalks of perennials offer birds and hibernating insects a late winter snack.  This is not just good for wildlife, but also good for the plants in your garden.  Besides, plants like ornamental grasses and dried hydrangea flower heads look pretty dusted in snow.
The leaves that were strewn across my garden beds have also shrivelled to the point that they are no longer an eyesore--well sort of.   There are simply other eyesores -bigger ones-that capture my attention more, but they can't be done now, not until the softened ground is a little sturdier- when it doesn't leave a footprint after walking on it is the advice most often preached.  So thankfully, it is still too early for yard work so I can read.  Despite this, chores are calling to me in the garden, a garden that just last week was still covered in snow.
Here's my mental list so far:  cut back to the ground all dried perennials like the peonies, once flattened by heavy snow, that have flopped onto the boxwood hedge and the ornamental grasses which will, sooner that I can find time to get outside again, be sprouting new foliage.  When fresh spring foliage mixes into existing, dried miscanthus foliage it will be too late and impossible to cut back so this job takes priority.   Once new growth starts up again, the boxwood hedge will also need its yearly trimming to keep it looking tidy.  There is also the lawn around the garden to re-edge.  This job-and it is a job due to the size of my garden--is best done early in the season while I can cut into it like butter rather than waiting too long when ground is much harder to cut through.  When timed right, re-edging is a good day's workout, but very rewarding since the garden looks superb with a sharply cut edge.  Then there are dead branches to prune out,  young weeds to pull and I can't forget the rain barrel to set up and (Ugh!) the overflowing compost to clean up.  Maybe this one can be delegated to kids.  
Yes, gardening can be hard work, it is a labour of love for sure.  But it's not all labour.  After spring chores in the 'off' seasons, I can sit in my Muskoka chair and lounge with a good book knowing  all the work that is behind me.  Until I start spot another  weed...
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Last year's flopped over peonies need cutting back.
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Ornamental grasses need to cut right back to the ground before new growth starts.
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Garden beds are best re-edged in early spring when ground is soft and can be cut like butter.
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Gardening is a labour of love, so make sure there is plenty of time to relax and enjoy all your hard work.
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    ELAINE'S GARDEN BLOG

    Welcome to my GARDEN BLOG, where you can read about my personal adventures with plants, plant people and all things gardening.  Enjoy!

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