Helen Chesnut
Getting back seriously into the garden after a largely unusable winter felt like being reborn. With that re-entry came a compelling desire to check out what was happening at the garden centre close to my home.
What a treat. The place was an earthy pleasure palace of inspiration. There were trays of brightly blooming house plants and shelving filled with pots and planters in happy and unusual colours, designs and shapes. In an outer greenhouse were rows of perfect primroses.
I thought about how easy it would be for anyone setting up a pre-spring patio garden to find everything needed at a local garden centre.
As usual, the yellow primrose flowers were most fragrant, with a sweet, citrus scent. I chose some red and yellow ones for a planter at the front of the house. Soon after, I went back for a few red and white primroses to make a small patriotic display beside the front door.
Canada 150. My mail indicates that gardeners are seeking ideas for red and white flowers to plant in beds and containers as celebratory markers of this 150th birthday year of our country.
As summer bulbs flow in to garden centres, look for Celebrate 150: 1867-2017 features that include a red and white striped Canadian Celebration dahlia, whose 40-centimetre plants are ideal for both flower beds and patio tubs. Kept cleaned of spent flowers, the plants will bloom all summer and well into autumn.
True North Lilies is a blend of red and white Asiatic lilies with upward-facing flowers on 90-cm stems in June. True North Gladiolus plants will yield midsummer spikes of white, red, and redwhite striped flowers. True North Dahlias are double-flowered white and white-tipped red dahlias that will bloom from midsummer into autumn on 100-cm stems.
For flower beds, hanging baskets, and other containers sited in light shade, consider red and white begonias, purchased separately or in a readymade blend like the ruffled begonias in ‘Candy Apple.’ I spotted the first begonia tubers at a garden centre two weeks ago.
A Canada 150 flower display could begin now with red and white primroses. Planted in a fully sunny, hot spot, red and white zonal geraniums would give a dazzling show through the summer and early autumn.
For a red and white display in hanging baskets across the shaded front of my house I’ve chosen to grow scarlet and white Tumbler impatiens, which I’ll seed this month. These trailing impatiens varieties are listed in the catalogues from Stokes Seeds and Lindenberg Seeds.
In a patio container, I plan to combine Picobella White, a mounded, smallflowered “Milliflora” petunia (Stokes, Lindenberg) with the brightly flagcoloured Trilogy Red, an award-winning, compact petunia (William Dam Seeds).
Later, in spring, it won’t be difficult to find red and white flowers among geraniums and petunias for sun and impatiens for shade. For a more permanent marker of this Canada 150 year, choose a red and a white rose.
GARDEN EVENTS
VRS meeting. The Victoria Rhododendron Society meets Monday at 7:30 p.m. in the Couvelier Pavilion at Horticulture Centre of the Pacific, 505 Quayle Rd. Doors open at 7. Bernie Dinter of Dinter Nursery in Duncan will speak about the changing gardening world and its impact on gardeners.
Gordon Head meeting. The Gordon Head Garden Club meets Monday at 1:30 p.m. in the Salvation Army Citadel, 4030 Douglas St. (access off McKenzie Ave.). Brian Minter will discuss new trends in gardening. Brian will have plants for sale. Tickets at the door $20.
VHS meeting. The Victoria Horticultural Society meets Tuesday at 7:30 p.m. in the Garth Homer Centre, 813 Darwin Ave. Jeff de Jong will share ideas for keeping gardens teeming with life and colour following the spring explosion of bloom. He will speak about drought-tolerant plants for long-lasting bloom, flowers that will attract pollinators and design ideas for boosting impact. The pre-meeting workshop at 6:30 will feature Gary Brust explaining about grafting fruit trees.
Lily meeting. The Victoria Lily Society meets Wednesday at 7 p.m. in the Victoria Salvation Army Citadel, 4030 Douglas St. Dr. Richard Hebda will be speaking about snowdrops.