• Succulents in garden design

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    Autumn Joy sedum Succulents are drought tolerant, low maintenance and interesting in all seasons. Leaves are unusual shapes and the fleshy texture contrasts well with other perennials. Succulents spread like a typical perennial and some will start a new plant when their leaf or stem touches soil. Preferring lean and or poor soil in…

  • Picture Gallery

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    SymriOwner

    Wildlife in the garden This year we’ve used photographs to share gardening information. Please visit the gallery. We are stewards of the land we live on and as gardeners we want outdoor spaces that are balanced and inviting for ourselves and wildlife. We can do this by growing a diversity of plants from annuals…

  • Scent in the garden

    Scent in the garden

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    SymriOwner

    Pleasant scents can transport us to another time or place and can speak to us on a deeper level. We readily respond to scent and can recapture the past through our sense of smell. Scent registers in the olfactory bulbs that connect to deep inside the brain through the limbic system, where we store…

  • Alluring Iris

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    Iris In Perfumery Iris germanica and Iris pallida are both used in quality perfumery and as a scent fixative in true Potpourri. Since the Egyptians the alluring scent has been part of perfumery and skin care. The Chinese scented rice with it. Indeed, Orris root, its official name, is derived from the iris rhizome…

  • Sustain – 1: to give support or relief to 2: to supply with sustenance: NOURISH

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    …In the natural world fallen leaves and plant debris lay where they fall. And until that leaf litter breaks down its a mulch that conserves soil moisture, deters soil erosion, protects plant roots from fluctuating air temperatures and suppresses weed growth. Thus, supporting the soil. …Leaf litter eventually breaks down. The break down material…

  • Borage officinalis

    Borage officinalis

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    Borage officinalis – Borage, Bee Bread, Common Bugloss and Starflower are a few of its common names. It grows 2 feet tall and wide and self-seeds. Its mature foliage is covered in prickly hairs. Pretty, star-shaped flowers in blue, lavender and pink bloom from May to hard frost. Bees, butterflies and moths prize its…

  • Coloured Foliage in the landscape

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    Incorporating coloured foliage in your landscape can add contrast and heighten visual impact. Green and blue are very restful and soothing, red is more arresting and less soothing and in between is purple. Experiment with a colour in your annual pots. Research the plant you want to add to your landscape and confirm it…

  • Vegetable Container growing

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    Growing Vegetables in Containers is suited when space is not available for a typical vegetable garden or mobility makes bending difficult or wanting to increase your growing area. All are solid reasons for gardening in pots. Large containers are the best as they hold more soil, which dries out slower and provides more growing…

  • Perennial Portrait – Cat Nip

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    I chose to profile this perennial to clarify if catnip and catmint were one and the same. Experts say that Catnip usually refers to the medicinal plant and Catmint refers to the ornamental varieties. The ornamental varieties available have more and larger flowers, deeper colours and a tidier growth habit. Used medicinally for 100‘s…

  • Fertilizers Organic vs. Synthetic

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    Organic amendments add nutrients that are available to plants, and can include nitrogen, phosphorous and potassium.  Organic matter builds soil by: improving aeration of the soil, improving drainage in clay soil and water holding capacity in sandy soil. The organic matter attracts all types of living organisms that also build the soil. In nature…