Gardening with Candy Venning
PLANTY TO DO IN JANUARY
SUBMITTED BY CANDY VENNING Wooot woot! This stimulating time of the year is prime time to pore over the online Dahlia & seed catalogs, I mean, what else ya got goin’ on??? Dahlias have been one of my favourite cut flowers, they’re stunning in a garden, easy to...
Gardens and Other Comforts
By Candy Venning Did you find solace in the garden this summer? Was it the buzzing bees, the wind sighing across branches, the birds you had never seen before or the tide lapping in the bay? Perhaps the simple act of working with your hands in the soil, coaxing plants...
Gardeners’ Cheeky Checklist
by Candy Venning The end of the gardening season is in sight, a relief in some ways but as always, a little sorrow mixed in. Put down that mocha-chaca-spice-latte whatsit and pull up yer booties for a final fling round the yard, it’ll give you a satisfied grin to go...
BULBALICIOUS, BOUNTIFUL JOY BUCKS
SUBMITTED BY CANDY VENNING I just purchased approximately 18,000 fall bulbs, I don't live in a castle so no, they're not for me. Fortunately, as the buyer for all my garden clients, I can pick all my favourites and watch them come up in gardens around the city. May I...
GARDENING IN THE NORTH END
SUBMITTED BY CANDY VENNING What a spring we’re having! Hot, cold, panicky, rainy with a chance of Covid? The following is a point of view with some collected observations loosely grouped around gardening. As a landscape designer I’ve never, ever been so busy creating...
7 steps towards supporting nature with your garden
This spring we longed for nature like never before, quiet streets meant clearly hearing birdsong. With more time to notice each flower, you may want to know how your little or large, patch of urban garden can contribute, here’s my top seven ways. 1) Birds: planting...
Gardening
‘Desperate times call for desperate measures’ seems to be the refrain dancing around most of our heads, at least some of the time. Combine that phrase with ‘stay at home’, add a bucket of springtime enthusiasm and you’ve got yourself a recipe for garden mania with a...
Losing the Lawn Part 2
Losing the Lawn part 2 Plans and Plants By Candy Venning Last issue I discussed removing some or possibly all of the sod, cautioned against rototilling, encouraged working in phases and suggested having a plan. There are a multitude of reasons for planting perennials...
Sod it, I’m losing the lawn!
Are you considering turfing the turf? Are you aiming at a pollinator friendly, native plant matrix, ‘No Mow’ or natural look? You’re definitely not alone, although you may be the first on your block. Many of my landscape consultations start with clients requesting how...
I double dare you!
A couple of weeks ago I heard a loud, odd ‘squaaawk auwkkkk’ and looked up to see two huge Red tailed Hawks in the top branches of our big old Maple trees. That may not be unusual in some areas, but we live in the downtown core, near Barton and Mary streets, so I was...
