Edible Garden Newsletter August 2018

The Edible Garden Newsletter August 2018 is now available.  Virtually all parts of Ontario have been in severe and long lasting drought.  We polled some of our Master Gardeners and learned their secrets for dealing with drought.  This may be too late for this year but are excellent strategies to employ.  Ever hopeful  and thinking August may be a little wetter, we have recommended some plants that you can plant now and still have a vegetable harvest this year.  Sage is a herb that most of us have in our kitchens.  Learn more about this valuable herb--its history and methods to propagate.  Goji Berries are touted as having great beneficial properties.  Learn more about this delicious and surprisingly easy to grow tree/vine.  Jicama is not a vegetable that would easy to grow in our area but could become a welcome addition to your dinner table.  Finally, our Tool series continues with an article on choosing the ever important Shovel.  Sorry about the snow for August but Sage is tough and can be harvested in winter.

Edible Garden Newsletter July 2018

The Edible Garden Newsletter July 2018 is now available.  This month we feature an in depth article about the popular approach to gardening using raised beds.  This article defines the advantages and disadvantages of using raised beds. where to site them and how to prepare the location.  We outline the various types of materials that can be used to crate them and finally the mix of soil used to fill them.  Our Bee Line series continues with an article emphasizing the need for continuous blooms to attract your bees all summer long. 

Lanark County Farmers Markets

One of the joys of summer is visiting local Farmers' Markets.  In Lanark County, we are blessed to have many Farmers Markets that are open every Saturday morning all summer long.  Some of our favorites are in Perth, Almonte, Smiths Falls, Carleton Place and McDonalds Corners.  Farmers Markets provide fresh, locally grown produce.  You also get a chance to chat with the farmer who has grown it.  Lanark County Master Gardeners are available to answer your gardening questions at the Almonte Market on the third Saturday of the month and at the Perth Farmers Market at the first and third Saturday of the month.  Drop by to ask your questions or just to say hello.  If you cannot make it to the market, use the Contact button in the upper right hand corner to send an email and we will get back to you right away.  Hope to see you there.

Edible Garden Newsletter June 2018

The Edible Garden Newsletter for June 2018 is now available.  This month our focus is on the nutritional powerhouse, Haskaps, also known as Honey berries.  This plant is well behaved and is hardy to Zone 2.  The main requirement to get a crop is that it has to have a partner and like many of us is picky on which partner it works with.  A favourite vegetable, and no nutritional slouch itself, is the common carrot.  We feature a carrot myth, a childhood favourite and a recipe.  We also have suggestions for some interesting Edible Planters.  Finally our Bee Line series continues with a tribute to a ghost in the making, the Rusty Patch Bumble Bee.

Edible Garden Newsletter May 2018

The Edible Garden Newsletter for May 2018 is now available.  This month we have a special focus on Clay Soil,  Is it a gardener's worst nightmare or a gardener's best friend?  Learn how you can change this dreaded foe to a trusted ally.  Delicious, nutritious and bountiful--Aunt Molly's Ground Cherries.  Follow one gardeners adventure as she grows these delicious fruits.  Finally, read all about a Victory Garden for Bees.  Photo is thanks to Anna MacDonald Iowa Environmental Voice.

Plant Sales

Plant Sales are a primary source of funding for many hard working garden related volunteer organizations.  These groups help to make our local communities brighter and more beautiful and a better place to live.  Across Lanark County, May is the month that your local Horticultural Societies host their Plant Sale. Lanark County Master Gardeners will be at all the Horticultural Societies Plant Sale and we will be selling plants at the Perth Sale.  See Calendar on the right for sale dates and locations.

Why should I buy plants at a Plant Sale?

• Some of the best gardeners in the county are members of the horticultural societies.  They divide and donate plants from their own gardens.
• The plants have proven to grow successfully in our climate.  If they didn't the gardeners have none to donate.
• The Horticultural Societies develop and care for many of the beautiful gardens across the county and their tireless work makes our home towns a better place to live. Funds raised at Plant Sales support these efforts.
• The plants are offered at a price you will not find anywhere else.
• There is always a wide range of perennials, some you will not find at any garden centre.  Sometimes there are roses, trees and shrubs and lots of vegetable bedding plants.

In addition to the Horticultural Society Sales, we have included information about two Ottawa based plant sales:

• The Native Plant Sale sponsored by Fletcher Wildlife Garden.
• The Rare and Unusual Plant Sale sponsored by the Friends of the Farm (Central Experimental Farm.

Hope to see you at one of the sales.

The Edible Garden Newsletter April 2018

The Edible Garden Newsletter April 2018 is now available.  This month we demonstrate that edibles are good for more than just eating.  Many edibles are a natural source of dye and we explain how to use them to create beautiful colours.  We often think that large showy double flowers are best to use to attract bees to you garden.  Start thinking like a bee and you will soon see that single blooms are in fact the best to use.  Do you love Horse Radish?  If your answer is yes, try growing it in your garden.  Continuing in our favorite tool series, read all about one gardener's favorite saw.

Fletcher Wildlife Garden Native Plant Sale

Fletcher Wildlife Garden Annual Native Plant Sale takes Place on Saturday June 2, 2018 from 9:30-12:30.  Hundreds of wildflowers are native to Eastern Ontario.  Plant a wide variety of plants for a garden that changes from month to month and attracts birds, butterflies and bees, to your garden for lunch.  Can't make the sale? Visit the demonstration gardens and pick up free plant lists and "how to" information to attract pollinators.  The garden is located on Prince of Wales Drive, South of the Arboretum.  Plant Sale Info.