Four Seasons of Gardening In Mississauga

Inserting Code for Wind

Ever want to check the wind to find out if it’s going to be a good laundry outside day? Well here’s a useful tool.

Inserting Music into your blog

Here’s a short instruction on how to insert music files into your blogs using Soundcloud and an embed code. It works really well if you have a slideshow that runs above the music or put the file before your text, not after, as I did, so people can get some background while reading your posts. I’m using html instead of visual at this point to add the embed code. The video is made using Camtasia Studio.

Coyotes Ranging in Daylight

Today is rainy and the coyotes have been spotted on the lawns again after a short hiatus. My wild cat has made an appearance after a few days of being MIA, so I’m glad to see she has been able to skirt the predators. I do think they are using stealth of dampness to hide their scent and are being attracted by all the bbq parties this weekend. There will be plenty of overflowing food snacks in the parks after buskerfest in Port Credit.
David Gray / Babylon by jobranch

Gardening Podcasts

Here’s a video on how to find and download podcasts to your ipod.

Asian Beetles are Killing My Plants

The hot sunny weather has brought a blight on my garden. This big bug as big as a housefly has chewed through each blooming hybrid tea rose, chomped the leaves and has moved on to the Rose of Sharon and Potentilla bushes.

Asian beetles on the tea roses

You’ll usually see two together mating and if you want to shake them off, they’ll just fly off. If you grab them, they’ll buzz in your hand like a hornet’s nest.

Clusters of mating bugs

The best solution so far is to drop them into soapy water where they expire in seconds.

Rose of Sharon used to be free of any pests - not any more!

But now I’ve become obsessed with checking my plants several times a day for these horrid things. And there’s no real preventative remedy as they’ll alight as soon as the heat comes in.

Asian beetles like to mate - a lot! When they're not eating!

Well so much for my sunny border. My garden is for the most part taken to trees and shade. The birch which had to come down this year has been replaced by two Eastern Redbud. I think it’ll have to be semi shade for the better part of that location as these hot summer days have also meant increased watering, wilted and exhausted flowers and this invasion of the horrible beetles.

Daylilies in July

Plant World in June

Going to garden centres on a regular basis makes it easier to see what is growing at its best during the seasons. There are always new ways of displaying the plants and hardier cultivars of species we might already have. Here’s what was on hand and in bloom on a rainy June morning.

Orchid Bulbs

Can anyone help me identify this orchid bulb? I’ve lost the tag.

Canada Blooms 2010

Terrestrial Orchids

Just bought some terrestrial orchid bulbs only to discover that these plants are invasive in warmer climates. Well they won’t be any danger in zone 5 as I’m sure they may not survive our winters. I’m glad to hear though that they are so hardy that I should have good luck with them. Orchids being so sensitive to conditions. I’m using this post as a reminder of what are the best means to plant this kind of orchid. Sand, mulch, leaf and bark, with fertilizer feedings during the flowering season. Watering by immersion once a week and then leaving to dry out for the week preferably hanging up with plenty of airflow. This plant can tolerate more direct sun as the leaves are almost non-existent, looking more like grass like stems. The flowers are not showy but look subtle and interesting.

These ship as bulbs with a small bit of rooting system. I can tell that they are eager to start to flourish. Hopefully, I can learn how to divide my orchids by trying this variety.

All my prejudices about most plants needing plenty of good soil, room to grow in the pot, preferring clay don’t seem to work with orchids. Clear plastic pots are traditional for orchids so that the stems can get light. They also like to be crowded in a pot mostly unless there is too much outside growth. Then re-potting is in order. Regular water can kill them if they sit too much in damp conditions. They like a 40% humidity level, so I have a thermometer, water meter and ph meter. I tend towards found materials in my gardening, so will take the inner part of a rotten tree to use as soil builder for the orchids, and use coconut fibre or husk for hanging. Here is a comprehensive list of materials which can be used in various mixes.

aerolite, aliflor, broken brick, cedar, charcoal, cobblestone, coconut husk, cork chips, cypress, diatomite, fir bark, granite chips, hydroton, marble chips, Monterey pine bark, packing peanuts, pea gravel, peat moss, pumice rock, Redwood bark, rice hulls, rockwool, sand, sphagnum moss, sponge rock, stalite, tree fern fibre, turface, vermiculite, and volcanic rock.