 The weather forecast for the Easter weekend in Southern Ontario is stunning. Mainly sunny and a high of 25C for Good Friday and Saturday. What better way to spend the Easter weekend than playing in the garden and then enjoying a drink on the deck. Luckily, I hauled my patio furniture out of the garage last weekend and washed it. All I need to do now is grab the cushions and enjoy the first warm spring weekend of the year.
Of course it wouldn't be an Easter celebration without some outdoor decor in the garden. Aside from a few brightly coloured eggs hanging from the apple tree, I'm planning on taking a trip to the garden centre to buy a few pansies to fill a few planters. It may be too early for annuals, but these cheerful plants will add a splash of colour to the deck.
 Although the temptation to play in the garden is incredible now that the warm spring weather has arrived, I urge you to wait just a little bit longer. I know that it’s hard – especially after having spent the whole winter cooped up inside, but try to resist. Even though spring looks like it’s arrived in southern Ontario, that lovely layer of leaves is blanketing the garden and protecting the new shoots underneath. We may still have a few more frosty mornings to deal with.
Aside from walking around the garden to see what plants are emerging, I did cut back a few perennials and ornamental grasses within three inches from the ground. This will let the sun warm up the soil where the new shoots are about to sprout.
I always enjoy this time of year in the garden. It's the calm before the storm or at least the calm before the onslaught of things to do in the garden!
 What are you planning on doing this year for Earth Hour? On Saturday, March 27th at 8:30pm, we’re encouraged to turn off the lights, turn off the television, and yes, even turn off the computer. It may seem like a small request, but it helps bring attention to the affects of global warming. Personally, I think we should try to reduce our consumption of electricity on a regular basis, but Earth Hour is a great place to start.
Here are a few tips to celebrate Earth Hour in the garden:
- Replace your patio lights with rechargeable solar lights.
- Look up at the sky! As your neighbours turn off their lights, take the opportunity to appreciate the night sky without the normal light pollution.
- Light a few candles and spend the hour reading through a few garden magazines and books. You’re sure to find inspiration for your own garden.
Welcome to the new Gardener’s Playground. I started this blog while I was working as the Web Editor of CanadianGardening.com. I loved my job, the magazine, and the company, but the hour and a half commute each way was killing me. After taking a few months off from blogging, I realized how much I missed it – especially now that spring is quickly approaching. So here is my new version of a Gardener’s Playground. Hopefully you’ll find my playful perspective of gardening interesting. Feel free to read through my previous blog entries below that were originally published on CanadianGardening.com.
As for the future of a Gardener's Playground, I plan on boldly going where no gardener has gone before. To explore strange new plants. To seek out new gardening techniques and garden gadgets. To boldly go where no gardener has gone before, but making sure I’m having fun along the way!
Please feel free to leave a comment or question!
 Have you ever wondered what you’re houseplants are thinking? Well, thanks to this cool gadget, your houseplant can now tweet. By using Twitter, your houseplant will communicate with you via the Internet. The Botanicalls DIY Plant Twitter Kit easily translates all dialect of ‘houseplant’ to English.
So how does it work? The original breakthrough was made when the chief scientist at CERN (the European Organization for Nuclear Research) was trying to communicate with a patch of catnip by using a super computer.
“I CAN HAZ TWITTER?” said the plant. This confused the scientist, but his granddaughter was able to figure out that the plant wanted to Tweet! Plant who tweet don’t have much to say, but they do request that you water them and thank you once you have.
Fact or fiction? Who knows, but this fun toy is perfect for a techie gardener who is feeling stir crazy during the long winter months!
Now that my garden is fast asleep, I fulfill my gardening urges by sorting through my garden photos. We all admire plants for their colourful blooms and interesting foliage, but what about their other unique attributes.
Take curls for example. I found these two examples of plants with curls in my garden photos, but I know there are many other plants that showcase these curly tendrils. Of course I admire the plant’s ”whole package’, but sometimes it’s fun to focus on one interesting aspect. So today, it’s all about curls!  Yucca tendrils  Pumpkin tendrils
 The 89th Annual Mum Show recently took place in Hamilton this past week. Unfortunately, I didn’t get a chance to enjoy the artistic splendor. If it was anything like last year, then I really missed out. Not only does the event showcase new varieties and traditional favourites, the creativity involved in designing elaborate displays filled with mums is impressive. Last year’s show included water features, gazing balls, and other artistic installations strategically placed amoung the thousands of potted chrysanthemums.
Aside from the sheer beauty of the Mum Show, another thing I love about the show is the smell. There’s something about the smell of mums that I love. I don’t know if it’s just me, but the smell of mums is irresistible.
 This past Sunday, we were enjoying a quiet family breakfast, when all of a sudden we heard two chainsaws rev up. Now it was almost nine o’clock, but seriously – it was SUNDAY morning!
Apparently our neighbour was having a tree removed. I didn’t think arborists worked on Sunday, but obviously these guys do. Aside from being slightly annoyed at our tranquil morning begin interrupted, I couldn’t help but admire the grace and agility of the arborist clamouring up the tree. The tree is question was a Tree of Heaven (Ailanthus altissima). It hadn’t been in good shape – several main branches were dying and it had barely sprouted any leaves this spring. From the time the two man crew started, it took them two hours to cut the tree down. One man was in the tree cutting the branches off it sections, and the other was on the ground, cutting up the branches into smaller pieces.
I had to take an arboriculture class in school and we did several field trips where we had to climb (or attempt) a tree using all the gear. Let me tell you – it’s TOUGH! I really admire how easy they make it look. Not only do they have to make sure they’ve got a safe roosting spot in the tree, but they also have to wield a chainsaw and direct the falling branches to a safe location below. I’m impressed …. even if it was Sunday morning!
 With the arrival of Halloween tomorrow, the houses in my neighbourhood are becoming ghoulish haunts. Front yards are littered with tombstones and zombies and skeletons are lurking in the shadows. I love when homeowners make the effort to create haunted gardens, even if it’s a traditional jack-o-lantern greeting children as they scream “trick or treat?”
Have you ever wondered why we crave pumpkins for Halloween?
The tradition dates back several centuries to Ireland, where a lazy farmer named Stringy Jack invited the Devil to have a drink with him. When the time came to pay for his drink, Jack convinced the Devil to transform into a coin, but instead of paying with it, he put it the coin in his pocket with a silver cross to prevent the Devil from transforming back. When Jack finally decided to let the Devil go, he made the Devil promise that the he wouldn’t take his soul.
Unfortunately for Jack, he died the following Halloween (of unrelated causes) and was turned away from the Heaven because of his sinful lifestyle. Turning to the Gates of Hell as a last resort, he was turned away by the Devil because the Devil had promised not to claim Jack’s soul. Poor Jack was alone in the darkness, but the Devil took pity on him and gave him a glowing piece of coal to light his way. Luckily Jack found a turnip and put the burning coal inside. To this day, Jack is roaming the earth, carrying the turnip lantern to find his way in the darkness.
Although there are many different versions of Stringy Jack’s story, all lead to the tradition of carving turnips. Since pumpkins were more plentiful then turnips in North America, Irish emigrants decided to hollow out the large orange gourds when making their Jack-o-Lanterns for Halloween.
To read more Halloween horticulture, check out Charmian Christie’s article ‘Halloween Plant Lore.
 If you haven’t been outside lately, you’re missing the fabulous fall foliage. As the days get shorter and the temperature drops, trees sense the approach of winter. During the fall, the green canopy of summer transforms into a colourful smorgasbord of reds, oranges, and yellows. Have you ever wondered what triggers the leaves to change colour?
During my horticultural studies, my ornamental plant professor explained it best. Leaves change colour because of a chemical shift in the foliage. During the summer, leaves produce chlorophyll, which is used to absorb sunlight, which is then turned into glucose – in other words, photosynthesis. As the tree prepares to hibernate chlorophyll production slows down and the glucose and nutrients from the leaves are absorbed by the branches, trunk, and roots. Since chlorophyll makes the leaves green, the remaining pigments in the leaves take over. Yellow and orange leaves contain carotene (the same pigments that give carrots their bright orange colour). Red and purple leaves contain anthrocyanins (which give radishes and red roses their vibrant red colour).
 Pretty technical, I know, but it does shed some light on the chemical shift that the leaves are experiencing. Of course, there are other factors that influence how vibrant the colours become including temperature and soil moisture. In southern Ontario, our fall colours seem to pop after we enjoy several consecutive warm, sunny days and cool nights. I can’t imagine living somewhere in the world where they don’t experience changing seasons. As we transition into each new season, the garden is filled with new splendors to explore!
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