A reminder of why I do this blog after 100 posts

About Me

I was born in the Dunnville, Ontario Area. I lived across the Country as my Father was in the Royal Canadian Air Force, I was in the Canadian Navy (Maritime Command) now retired. I was raised in such places as St. Jean, Quebec/ Rivers, Manitoba/ Tafino, British Columbia/ and New Castle, New Brunswick. Both my Grandmothers gave me a joy of the garden and now I work my maternal Grand-mother's garden. She passed a couple of years ago at 93, unfortunately with dementia. So this is for her really. If you ever have a dime to spare give a portion of it to dementia research Thank-you

This is what I posted the first day of this a new blog a month ago. This Tuesday will mark my late Grand-parents 75th wedding Anniversary. For those who follow the Blog and knew my Grandparents they will understand.
To Grandpa thank-you for all the manual labour spent, and for Grandma all the weeding and caring given to this a wonderful garden. It is international now!!!!!!! I will say it is no longer the particle vegetable garden that you had but it has become what some would say is the finest garden in this town

Winter Protection for our Roses in Canada and Northern USA States

The Chrysler Imperial Hybrid T Rose This is one of the most highly fragrant of the Hybrid T's. It was the all round winner of the 1952 Rose Shows, as well as the first rose to be used in Car promotions

Protect Roses.

Many roses, including most Shrub roses and Old Garden roses, require little or no winter protection, except in very cold winter regions.This includes the Explorer, Morden, Nearly Wild, and Parkland Roses here in Canada

However, tender roses, such as Hybrid Tea roses and Grandiflora roses, should have winter protection. In Zones 5-8, tender roses need to have the graft union and roots protected from changing winter temperatures. When soil keeps freezing and thawing, it can twist the graft union and break feeder roots.

Winter protection also helps keep soil evenly cool in the late winter or early spring.

The best way to winterizing roses and provide basic winter protection for tender roses is by mounding soil over the crown and lower stems to a depth of 8-12 inches.

The sloping mound of soil will also protect the surrounding root system.

Protect roses with soil mounds from mid to late fall after one or more freezes. Bring the soil in from another part of the yard, or purchase it. Don't scrape up soil from around the rose plant since this will damage the roots and expose them to the cold.

For additional protection in zones 5-6, pile straw or dry leaves around the roses. To keep mulch in place, when winterizing roses, form a corral around the rose plant using chicken wire or other mesh fencing secured by stakes. Then fill in the corral with loose mulch. In spring remove the mulch and soil gradually as the weather warms up.

"What a tangled web we weave..."

Here is a small portion of a part of the garden taken in the Fall. I will just let the picture do all the talking here!!!!. All said it is a haven for plants, insects, animals, and birds. This is how I get so many pictures of a wide variety of subjects. This style really is a love it or hate it. But I do not do this for people at any rate. I do it for God's other creations.

Cole-slaw Any One

The cabbage butterfly, Pieris rapae (Linnaeus)

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cabbage_Butterfly

This is a female. The way to know this is by the two black spots on the fore-wings. The male does not have these spots. However both have the black tips on the fore-wings.

I actually find these rather fun to see in the garden. I like them actually. However like the name implies they love cabbage and broccoli as well. The adult is not a threat in them selves. However the caterpillar can cause great crop damage in some areas.

My Dad used to give me money as a kid if I killed the little green guys (caterpillars) when I found them, hence I was a great hunter. To-day I leave them alone and let nature do it for me. I do not grow cabbage either so that may well be the reason I do not go after them !!!!! Besides Terry would kill me. She will now any way after she reads this !!!!

This one is sitting on the leaf of the Elephant Ear Plant featured just below this picture. It seemed so small on the huge leaf (1 meter X 1/2 meter) big.

 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Elephant_ear_plants
Colocasia esculenta. Elephant Ear Plant, or Taro

How to Grow Elephant Ears:

Plant bulbs in the spring.  Find a sunny location, as these plants like hot sun and humidity. Elephant ears prefer a rich, organic soil.  They are moisture lovers, but the soil needs to drain well.

Note: Elephant Ear plants can be invasive. You may want to install a border edging 3"-6" deep into the soil around the plants, if you live in the southern USA. If you live in Canada don't worry about it. It will freeze out.

Plant bulbs in early spring. Mix in plenty of compost and organic matter. Apply a nitrogen rich fertilizer once a month for optimum growth. Keep soil moist all season long.

Mulch around plants heavily every year to help retain water, and to replenish organic matter.

In the fall, dig up the bulbs for storage. The bulbs will survive overwintering outdoors only in the warmest area of the USA.  That said, it will survive in South-western British Columbia but needs a lot of protection during the winter.

These are a wonderful tropical plant in the garden and the leaves can be huge, up to a meter. Very striking near a pond. I highly recommend these. Here in Southern Ontario I would start it in the house in the spring. It does take awhile for them to start up. But once they do they grow fast.

In the Indian Subcontinent it is known as Arabi, Arbi, Alvi, Chaama, Ghuiya, Patra, Mukh, This is a favourite starch food there. Also note that some types can be poisonous. So be careful what you buy.

Life Cycle of a Queen

This is a series of photos of the same butter-fly from Egg to Adult. It took several weeks to get through all the stages. I was lucky to be out on my front Veranda when I saw the mother depositing an egg on a Milk-weed that I let grow in the flower bed. I kept track of it all along, at times it was a search but I stuck to it. I had taken hundreds of pictures. These represent the essence of what happened. As the Title would indicate this is a female

A Wednesday Quote of Christ

And he spoke to them many things in parables, saying, Behold, the sower went out to sow: and as he sowed, some grains fell along the way, and the birds came and devoured them; and others fell upon the rocky places where they had not much earth, and immediately they sprang up out of the ground because of not having any depth of earth, but when the sun rose they were burned up, and because of not having any root were dried up; and others fell upon the thorns, and the thorns grew up and choked them; and others fell upon the good ground, and produced fruit, one a hundred, one sixty, and one thirty. He that has ears, let him hear.

This is my favourite of all the quotes of Christ. I also used it at My Grandmother's Funeral. Referring to her as the good seed. She was a religious woman and a Farmer.
I believe it describes our lives so well.  The particular plant that this Ear of Corn came from was saved by the birds from a bird feeder, it had landed by luck in a large planter, in wonderful rich soil. I allowed the plant to live. However I did understand how corn grows, and what makes an ear of corn full. This plant grew to 3 meters, fantastic leaves and so healthy. However it was by it self. so when it came time for propagation it only had itself. So although all things where perfect for it. The plant still failed. We are all like that in a way. we are not islands, nor did God want us to be. Even if all things are perfect, alone we still can not succeed. .

Polygonia comma:, Eastern Comma Summer Colours
http://www.cirrusimage.com/butterfly_ecomma.htm

This guy is on a Spiraea x bumalda Goldmound:, Goldmound Spirea. This is a lovely yellow leafed plant that thrives here. One of the great features of the plant is that it attracts a huge range of butter-flies to this garden. Such as this one here enjoying the pink flowers. These butter-flies are not rare here but I actually do not see them very often. I am asked often what it is. I believe they are more common in the Eastern Seaboard States of the United States.
What I find most attractive about these is the shape of the wing edge.

Same Memorial Garden Later in the Year

I always put these in the reverse. The one just below this one should be here, anyway. this pic is of the same spot in my garden as the previous one but taken towards late September. The previous one was in mid June. The fountain/ planter is filled with nursery flowers, and it does make for a fantastic show of colour and a cascade effect. The trick to this is two fold. Firstly add a fair amount of fertilizer to it and the second is to over plant. Because this year was so cool and wet some things like Wondering Jew did not do as well. However the Asparagus Fern was in heaven the plants grew incredibly well.

A More Formal Part of the Garden

This is a small memorial garden with in the main garden. For perspective that large fountain /planter is 2 meters high. I am showing this so people can understand that my gardens are not all on the wild side. I actually really like the formal setting as well. It is at the end of the long main walkway threw the gardens. What makes that a great place to put this is that the stroller going threw the garden can see a destination. It actually helps to draw the person to see the whole of a large garden.  If it works too well as this one does people go straight to it and miss the biggest parts of the gardens.

This was a hot day. What I do sometimes if it is a day off, I allow the water to go on the pavers a bit. This is wonderful for butter-flies and small birds.

Another Over View

This shot is looking due East. The pond is in amongst all that. This area is the most wild if you like. Everything here is Native Ontario. With few exceptions, for contrast and for some early blooms, however minimal. In the spring it is awesome in that this area is also my tulip nursery. I take all the bulb-lets that I find and plant them in this area. In three years they are the same as the ones you would acquire at the store. This was taken in September

an Overview

Here is an overview of the garden taking in the North West Corner of it. It looks like a lot of work but it really is not. A lot of it is self contained. I will admit this kind of a garden does not appeal to every one. For me it is to enjoy the interaction of plants and animals. So to get that in the true sense a garden like this is important. What you do not see here is that there are several pathways threw the garden so you never have to walk on soil, or tramp on anything

A Golden Treasure

The Tiger Swallowtail butterfly (Papilio glaucas)

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eastern_tiger_swallowtail

This is a Female. The way you know this is by the amount of Blue at the base of the lower wings. The Male is blackish in those spots,. She had just come form a Tiger Lily, as you can see the orange pollen on her back, and spots of it on her upper wings. She is on  Hosta Bressingham Blue, a Hosta leaf here resting, or posing .

I never get bored of seeing these in the garden. In an earlier post I put a black version of the same butter-fly. As mentioned before there are two variations of the same. However the Male is always Yellow and Black

Praying For You!

John 11:3
"Therefore his sisters sent unto him, saying, Lord, behold, he whom thou lovest is sick."

the lord's ears are always opened to our prayers.
the last week sonny has been ill and there are i am sure some of his dear friends praying for him.

the lord tells us..James 5:14
"Is any sick among you? let him call for the elders of the church; and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord:"
now even though we can't do this, we do have the great privilege to pray for our dear friend.....
and this we will continue to do for our beloved gardener...reg!

now this is a good quote of the lords sonny sikora! .....love terry

Poor Me !!!

I was really Ill with the flu but I am all better now, sort of !!!
So I will start posting again to-marrow