A sneak preview of next spring’s hot new greenery
Have you ever bought a new variety of a much-ballyhooed plant in spring, then been bitterly disappointed by it come summer?
What a silly question. Of course you have. It happens to all of us, because a large part of gardening is fantasy, not the hard reality of getting things to grow well. Everyone is sucked in by those alluring photos of new arrivals posted beside pots of plants at garden centres.
Perhaps a pretty new purple petunia takes our fancy. Or a container tomato plant that’s touted to be a prolific producer of the sweetest, tastiest little fruits ever. Whatever, we haul that purchase home with great excitement. But for a variety of reasons, it fails to measure up as the summer wears on — and we wind up wondering why we bought the damn thing.
So here’s a tip: If you want an honest assessment of how well new varieties of plants will perform here, go take a look at Landscape Ontario’s Trial Garden in Milton before the frost hits. It’s quite an eye-opener. Strictly speaking, this impressive showcase of plants isn’t open to the public — and be warned: it’s not exactly a peaceful place to visit. Big, deafening trucks constantly rumble by on Highway 401only yards away. There’s also a noisy factory next door. But the garden wasn’t designed to be a pretty retreat from the world. Instead its purpose is to give people who operate garden centres an idea of what they should order to sell to the public the following year — and it does that spectacularly well.
So what’s in it for us? Well, no one at Landscape Ontario minds if we drop by and get a sneak peek at next season’s offerings too.
This summer, there’s an enormous array of interesting plants to examine. For example: 300 different annuals and perennials, about 164 rose cultivars (many of them Canadian), 18 different types of hydrangeas, new cultivars of trendy vegetables such as eggplant and kale, and a lot of decorative plants developed specifically for containers.
They’ve all been contributed to the garden by breeders and plant distributors in many countries, including Canada. (Our own Sheridan Nurseries is a big participant.) And to me, the best part is that everything is clearly labelled with a name and the company that developed it.
Thus if you’re enraptured by a dashing new dahlia called Crushed Crimson from Proven Winners, you know to what to look for when shopping for plants next year. But if a new gerbera called Sweet Sixteen from Florist Holland strikes you as kind of ho-hum, well, you can skip it.
The garden is mostly the work of trial manager Rodger Tschanz, a delightful, unassuming guy who deserves kudos for the tremendous amount of effort he puts into this venture. A University of Guelph horticulture specialist, he gets help from the university’s summer students — also David Turnbull, Landscape Ontario’s property manager — but the lion’s share of the labours are his alone. He even does all the labels himself and, as if that’s not enough, he runs three other trial sites too: at Guelph, Vineland in Niagara, Ont., and the Royal Botanical Gardens in Burlington.
“Generally, I’m very happy with the gardens this year,” he says.
“Regular rain and moderate temperatures helped. Some of the heat lovers like peppers, lisianthus, celosia and squash got off to a slow start, but by August, they were catching up.” His personal favourites? He reels off a list of four: Helianthus Sunfinity, Calocephalus Bed Head, Salvia Mystic Spires Blue and Cyperus Prince Tut.
As for me, I loved a new ornamental millet called Pennisetum Copper Prince — definitely on my list for next year. To find your own fave, drop by the garden soon, before Jack Frost shows up. It’s only open Monday to Friday, from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Groups from garden clubs are also welcome, but call PR manager Denis Flanagan in advance. Location: 7856 Fifth Line South, Milton. Phone: (905) 875-1805. landscapeontario.com Note: If you’re into things herbal, also consider Penny Beaudrow’s Back to Your Roots herb day at her farm in Cannington on Sept. 7. Herb walks, talks, live music, fire dancing, palm reading and more. Costs $95. To register: penelopebeaudrow@gmail.com. soniaday.com