Hello my dear gardening friends,

It is with mixed feelings that I am listening to the program telling of the end of the war in Europe. A beloved brother returned from Dunkirk, one of only three Sherwood Foresters surviving that hell – (when the little ships (boats) went in an armada to bring the soldiers off the beaches of Dunkirk), a Notts (Nottingham) and Derby Regiment. These young men were at summer camp when war was declared and were shipped out without returning home, to France – he was 19 years old. The regiment was disbanded until the 50th anniversary 1990. Luckily he lived to see that happened. When the regiment was disbanded John became an 8th Army Desert Rat in the Royal Horse Artillery. He was so proud to “guard “ the Queen after the war. Taking his turn to stand duty outside Buckingham Palace.

He was luckier than Jack’s brother Freddy, he died just after leaving the landing craft at Juno beach one of Canada’s heroes. Then I heard about three brothers dying – two together side by side, their brother died a few days later – how can one mother bear such pain???

I have had a wonderful week at Loblaws, although the weekend was a little hairy – we ran out of hanging baskets for Mothers Day – the real excitement was Deborah’s daughter arriving from Florida as a big surprise for her Mother’s Day – looking fabulous – all bronzed and full of sunshine, it was such a delight to see her. Much more of this wonderfully warm weather and we too will look tanned and healthy!! I have just learned that Emma will not be returning to Florida today ( Tuesday) after all, but staying on until Thursday, so Deborah may enjoy her “gift” a little longer.

Some of you come and ask me how to make a hanging basket, among lots of other questions – which I am delighted to try and answer.

Hanging baskets are actually quite easy to arrange, you merely have to choose plants that will not only flourish but bloom at the same time during the summer for the easiest possible upkeep.

1) Before you run out and buy a bunch of plants, decide where the basket is going to be placed/hung. Select plants according to the amount of sun that they will receive. These are summer plants that not only need light but require four to six hours of sun each and every day.

2) Choose a good mixture of shapes – several trailing ones, some bushy varieties, and some upright ones.

3) Choose some plants with interesting foliage, so that when the flowers quit and you are waiting for more blooms to appear – the leaves become the point of interest. It will also help to break up the arrangement and make it even more eye-catching.

4) Buy your summer bedding plants early, this way you get the best choice and the healthiest plants. If you are buying right now – put them outside in the daytime, but be very sure to bring them in at night. This is a good time to purchase your planting requirements, for taking them in and out of the house will make for a stronger plant, they will be totally hardened off before they go outside for good. Will give you a good workout too – get you in shape for all the gardening still to come.

5) Be sure to purchase enough plants to pack tightly into your containers (basket) to give you a rich, full and lush display when they start to flower. Keeping in mind that they will grow – you can actually plant a whole garden in a basket - even strawberries and tomatoes!!!!

To prevent the basket from tipping whilst you plant it – wedge it in a bucket, putting either a few stones (rocks) or water in the bottom to keep the bucket stable as you work.

Water all the plants thoroughly before you begin. Place the basket’s chains to one side. Put a green garbage bag in the bottom of the basket – (with holes punched in it) and then begin to line the bottom with moss as it comes tightly packed in the bag, ease it apart gently before starting to use it. Build up a layer of moss about 3 inches deep. You should place an old plastic saucer in the center of the basket on top of the moss. This will help to retain water, cover this with a 3 inch deep layer of moist potting soil.

Select some small trailing plants, such as lobelia and soft grey-leaved helichrysum. Remove them from their pots, push their heads through the openings in the hanging basket so that the roots sit in the saucer. Add any upright plants or ones that will climb up the chains to the center of the basket. Again make sure that the roots are well covered with potting soil. When these are in place, just fill in around the edge. This is where you use those bushy and trailing plants tucking them in around the edge of the container. Space them evenly around the rim of the basket and pack their roots into the soil with your hands. Now all that you have to do is water the arrangement well, and hang in the spot where you will see and enjoy it.

After all that purchasing and planting you will want to look after it carefully. Water once or even twice a day during very hot weather. Feed the plants once a week with half the strength of the liquid fertilizer called for (always less is better than more). Trim off the dead blooms and leaves, making way for new growth. If it gets very hot – I suggest that you purchase a garbage can – and keep it for this purpose only, put the basket in the can and fill with water so that it covers the top of the basket, when it stops bubbling you know that it is thoroughly watered and all the air spaces are filled, remove and re-hang.

This is a good time to check the pH in your garden – Rural Routes (the Co-Op) has a very efficient soil test kit for only $3.89 – it explains that altering the pH does take time, so do not expect changes to occur rapidly. Rather work toward giving your plants ideal conditions. After you have added either lime or sulpher – whichever your soil needed, retest the pH level in about 30 days. There is a more expensive kit available but this one will get you started.

Loblaws have a special soil test kit – now priced at $19.99, this one does more than test the pH. You send samples of your soil to the address in the box and get a full evaluation of your garden soil, it is particularly recommended for lawns. You will receive a full written report – normally this would cost up to $100 or more – so it is indeed a bargain. The other place one can get a soil sample tested is the Lakefield Research Company in Lakefield – they do water testing too, but the cost is considerably more than either of the test kits. Of course no one is going to have a lawn anymore! Fill the space with either wild flowers, or formal garden beds – Peterborough and area has a toxic pesticide ban in effect, Zero tolerance???

We talk about zones all the time, and the Canadian Version (text from Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada) as as follows:
In 1967, Agriculture Canada scientists created a plant hardiness map using Canadian plant survival data and a wider range of climatic variables, including maximum winter temperatures, length of the frost- free period, summer rainfall, maximum temperatures, snow cover, January rainfall and maximum wind speed. It is therefore somewhat different than the USDA map. In 2000, Natural Resources Canada’s Canadian Forest Service scientists have updated the plant hardiness zones using the same variables and more recent climate data (1961-90). Natural Resources Canada, Canadian Forest Service is now “going beyond the zone” and trying to develop potential range maps for individual species of trees, shrubs and perennial flowers by collecting species-specific information. Check out more about this most interesting project at: http://g4.glfc.cfs.nrcan.gc.ca/ph_main.pl and see how you can become involved.

Lily of the Valley was Jack’s favourite flower – I wish that it did not spread quite so much – but the flowers are indeed heaven sent – when you are working in the garden and that delightful smell wafts across, it brightens the dullest day.

I haven’t shared my delightful little book called “50 Ways to Kill a Slug” with you recently and as that season is about to begin once again I thought that I would amuse you with some of the following:

1) Let Plants Fight Back! There are certain plants that slugs hate!
Choose the following from your local garden center: mint, chives, garlic, geraniums, foxglove and fennel.
Plant a selection around the edge of your garden. Slugs really dislike the strong smell of these plants, which means that they will act as a barrier and stop gastropod infiltration.
They either taste good too or will delight your soul with their beauty.

2) Make time for a haircut. If you suffer from a lack of hair on your head, then perhaps a neighbour could oblige, or a pet dog or cat. Hair makes a great barrier. No matter how silky your locks, a slug will be reluctant to cross them! Instead of throwing away cut hair, collect it and sprinkle it around the base of your plants. The coarse texture of the hair will stop slugs getting through. Save some to reapply regularly. If you know someone throwing out an old horsehair chair or sofa – grab it, and use the horse hair stuffing on your garden. Or Be the Fastest Gun in the Garden:
-Fill a squirty gun with one part ammonia to three parts water
- Head out into the garden at dead of night with a torch or flashlight and seek out your enemy
-Just one squirt and the slug will be history

Whilst we are on the subject of death – those wretched lily beetles are appearing already (along with the black flies and mosquitoes). As soon as you see them – attack! Neem Oil is very good, someone in the garden center the other day suggested Windex, but I loved the conversation that I got into with another lily grower. She goes into the garden – picks them off the plant, or right now the garden soil itself and squishs them. Her daughter was horrified, as she stated, such nice ladies talking about killing those pretty little things! We quickly put her right – of course the other thing is to take a bucket of water to the garden – with a spoonful of oil – drop the pests into the bucket, unable to crawl out they drown, tee hee!!! My friend showed me the red stain under her fingernails from squishing the beetles !!!!!!! Good for her.

My tulips are glorious right now, but soon they will be just leaves – yellowing in the sun, thankfully I have things planted in and around them – to hide the fading blooms etc. Did you do that? If not, mark it in your journal for next year.

This is the time to write in your journal, no I have not forgotten about “that journal” that you are going to order – purchase whatever, more bulbs next fall, write it down otherwise you will forget. When you plant them in October, place the bulbs four to nine inches apart, 4 inches deep, or following the general rule, at a depth two to two and a half times their vertical height.

As your tulips approach maturity and bloom, or after they have flowered, sprinkle a little commercial soluble fertiliser on the soil around the plant. This will act as a stimulant and greatly improve the flowers and bulbs in this and subsequent years.

Tulips are highly prized as cut flowers. When gathering blooms for this purpose, be careful not to remove more foliage than is absolutely necessary. If you leave the flowers in the garden remember to remove the dead bloom so that the plant does not waste its energy producing seed heads. Do not cut down the leaves until they are yellow or brown and quite dried up. While they are green they are manufacturing carbohydrate which is transported to the bulb and stored to play a part in producing next years’ flowers.

Lift your bulbs every three years, separate them and re-plant, thus increasing your stock, permitting a change of soil in the vicinity of the underground parts. May is the proper month to mark the position, flower colour, height and if possible the name of the variety that is to be transplanted in the fall.

Now is a good time to start planting gladioli corms, planted at 10 day intervals until June 15th this way you will have a succession of blossoms from august (remember the flower shows) until September.

I am just wondering what on earth or rather in heaven is happening, it is 9:40am and it is so dark, we must be in for a dreadful storm.

Well my dears – hopefully this will amuse, interest and inform you – I love writing to you all. Good gardening – few bugs, soft gentle rain and few aches and pains!

Lovingly, Beryl