MESSAGE TO MEMBERS
In mid September, CGC embarked on a new phase in our history with the hiring of our full time horticulturist. Anne Marie Van Nest is a graduate of the Niagara Parks School of Horticulture and of the Longwood Program. She joins us after having worked for a year at the greenhouse complex at York Cemetery. This broad background, including wide ranging practical experience, will help Anne Marie in responding to the many general gardening questions we attempt to answer each week.
With Anne Marie working 5 days a week and Hal working the other two days we will be able to offer a consistency never before possible. Our educational displays, and show plants throughout the building, will receive the ongoing attention they deserve. We hope to be able to plan ahead for our outreach displays and grow some of the plant material in our limited area under lights. It is our desire to encourage further volunteer participation in this area as well as in working with our juniors and garden therapy group.
Anne Marie and Hal will continue to offer the garden queries now 7 days a week 10:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. This will allow for maximum public access without unduly disrupting the many other jobs we have lined up for developing our educational outreach, including mini lecture programs, walks in the park, and a future soil Ph testing service.
The financial practicality of offering our 7 day a week service has been made possible through a grant from the Edwards Charitable Foundation who are also benefactors of the CGC s 3rd annual Edwards Memorial Lecture.
We look to all our members to help us spread the good word about our major fall season fund raiser - Cornucopia is developing into a very popular Arts &
Crafts festival. This year, Sue McCoy has greatly increased the number of participating exhibitors. We will have approx. 50 different crafts people.
Cornucopia s overall convenor, Gerda Ferrington, tells me we will need lots of volunteers to man all the related areas operated by the centre.
Barbara Burns, our Christmas Greens convenor, has had a crew working for months on handcrafted holiday decor items including many cone wreaths. Our Green Thumbs have planted up a selection of terarriums for sale.
The Great Gardening Conference has been completely organized through our volunteer committees. I sense a feeling of real excitment building amoung the members. I hope you have decided to attend. The opportunity exists to play a role in the many background hours preparing exhibits featuring the role of the C.G.C., its user groups and other fine Canadian groups & institutions who contribute to amateur horticulture today.
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Oct. 1
The CIVIC GARDEN CENTRE
1985 PROGRAMME SCHEDULE
Mens Garden Club meeting at 8 p.m.
5 Green Thumbs (Junior Garden Club) 9:30 am - making pine cone animals
6 Toronto Gesneriad Society 2 - 4 pm Open House and a plant sale
6 S. Ontario Orchid Society meeting 1 - 5 pm Orchid Photography by Ted Sues
8 North Toronto Horticultural Society meeting 8 p.m. George Dalby will be speaking on Horticulture Past, Present, Future Garden Therapy Group meeting 1:00 p.m. for handicapped people
Ikebana International meeting 7 - 9:30 pm
Bridal Bouquet workshop - a one day for students who have had at least a Basic and an Intermediate workshop from 10 am - 3 pm
10 EDWARDS MEMORIAL LECTURE - 7:15 p.m. Speaker will be Roy Lancaster The famous plant explorer giving an illustrated talk Plants of the Great Wall of China
14 Toronto Bonsai Society meeting 7 pm lecture and demonstration on Shimpaku juniper
16 Beginners Ikenobo Ikebana Flower Arranging - 3 week course 10 - 3 pm
16 Rhododendron Society of Can. 8 p.m. - Barrie Porteous will give a slide program on Rhododendrons in Britain A visit to Gigha, Brodick, Younger Botanical Gardens, Exbury, Wakehurst and other gardens.
17 Tree and Bush Fruit for the Garden 3 week course starting at 7:30 pm
17 Basic Flower Arranging 5 week course starts at 9:45 am, 1:30 & 8 pm
20 York Rose and Garden Society meeting 2 p.m. Preparing Roses for Winter by Ken McFarquhar
20 Ontario Rock Garden Society meeting 2 p.m.
20 Art Drysdale Topic - South Africa - a Prettier Picture 21,22 Driftwood Workshop - 2 days 10 - 3 pm first day preparing your driftwood, second day doing an arrangement with the driftwood 26,27 CHRYSANTHEMUM & DAHLIA LATE SHOW - Canadian Chrysanthemum & Dahlia Society - Sat. 1 - 5 pm, Sun. 10 am - 5 pm
28 Flower Arrangements using Dried Material - one day workshop 10 a.m.
30 Hobby Greenhouse meeting 8 p.m.
Nov. 1,2 AUTUMN CORNUCOPIA - Open to public 10 - 6 p.m. 3 9 X} 12 - 6 P-m-
5 Mens Garden Club meeting 8 p.m.
6 Intermediate III Ikenobo Ikebana workshop - 3 week workshop 10 - 3 pm
9 Green Thumbs (Junior Garden Club) 9:30 a.m.
10 Toronto Gesneriad Society 2 - 4 p.m.
10 S. Ontario Orchid Society meeting 1 - 5 pm - Native Orchids of North East America
11 Toronto Bonsai Society meeting 7 p.m.
12 North Toronto Horticultural Society meeting 8 p.m. Mr. J.G. Smart will show slides of Gardens in Europe
13 Garden Therapy Group meeting 1:00 p.m. for handicapped people
COMING EVENTS AT THE CIVIC GARDEN CENTRE
Art at the Centre
In the Link Gallery:
Sept. 24 - Oct. 7 - Judith Rabin photographic artist (Edwards Gardens)
Oct. 8 - Oct. 29 - Mary Anne Miller watercolours & pen and ink florals & landscapes
Nov. 9 - Nov. 14 - Raissa Costin oils, flowers and landscapes
orkshop
Specializes in dried and silk flower arrangements.
Arrangements for sale in The Trellis Shop or
Come to the Centre Mon. or Tues. 9.30to 2 p.m.
Bring your favourite container or try one of ours, and give us your colour scheme and size requirements.
General Information
Volume 12, No. 8 ISSN 0380-1470
Editor: Gordon D. Wick, Exec. Dir. Assistant Editor: Grace Tughan Advertising Inform. (416) 445-1552
Trellis is published ten times per year as a member s newsletter, by the Civic Garden Centre, 777 Lawrence Ave. East, Don Mills, Ontario M3C 1P2 Telephone (416)445-1552
The Centre is located in Edwards Gardens, at Leslie St. and Lawrence Avenue East, at the geographical centre of Metropolitan Toronto. It is a non-profit, volunteer based, gardening and floral arts information organization with open membership. Opinions expressed within do not necessarily reflect those of the Centre.
Printed by Munns Press Ltd., Whitby, Ont.
COURSES STARTING SOON
Please note registration deadline date
Oct. 10 Bridal Bouquet Corsage Workshop - one day only 10 am - students must have completed a Basic & an Intermediate in Corsage (Registration deadline Sept. 28)
Oct. 16 Ikenobo Ikebana Flower Arranging for Beginners3 week course 10 am - 3
Registration deadline Oct. 5
Oct. 17 Basic Flower Arranging 5 week course at 9:45 am, 1:30 or 8 pm
Registration deadline Oct. 5
Oct. 17 Tree & Bush Fruit for the Garden - 3 week course at at 7:30 pm
Registration deadline Oct. 5
Oct. 21 & 22 - Driftwood workshop 1st day finishing driftwood pieces collected over the summer - then next day making an arrangement with the driftwood 10 - 3 pm
Registration deadline Oct. 12
Oct. 28 Dried Material in Flower Arrangements - one day workshop to do dried arrangements 10 am - 3 pm
Registration deadline Oct. 19
CGC OPERATING HOURS FALL HOURS
from Sept. 3rd to Nov. 11th Trellis Shop and Library Mon. to Fri. 9:30 - 5 pm Sat.Sun 12-5
Recollections of a Student Gardener
by David Tomlinson
Our final project was to prepare a Lily bed on a level area of ground at the foot of the mound. For readers who are familiar with Kew the mound is located by the Palm House Lake, and hasa little Grecian temple on the top. In Spring it is covered with thousands of daffodils. We needed a rest after hauling rocks and as lily bulbs are normally planted between 6 and 9 deep we did not envisage that this would be a very energetic task we were mistaken.
Mr. Preston came along and marked out a large irregular shaped bed with canes. We expected to be told to remove the sod and dig the area over. No such luck! We were told to excavate and remove all the soil to a depth of 2 6 . This we did with hard effort using spades and a hand cart which two students pushed and two pulled. Before we could start we had to construct a timber road across the grass so we would not damage the grass or the bulbs. As soon as we had emptied it a truck arrived and dumped an enormous heap of Kettering loam (a rich soil from the Midlands) which we had to wheel back into the bed. I should explain that the soil at Kew is very poor and consists of a thin layer of sandy topsoil over almost pure sand and gravel, so special beds have to be prepared for all plants which require a rich soil. As we refilled the bed we had to work into the top 18 lots of well-rotted manure and leaf mould to create a really rich woodland soil.
Needless to say because we completed our six months in the Alpine section we did not get the plum job of planting either the section of the rock garden we had constructed or the lily bed. This was done by the next group of students.
As well as gaining practical experience we were expected to attend lectures,
which were mainly held during the evenings. We were also given demonstrations by the assistant curators on various skilled aspects of horticulture and were allowed one hour a week to botanize in the garden to prepare for our weekly plant identifications.
Twenty specimens were taken at random from all over the garden. These were put in jam jars in the Iron Room and by the time you had completed your two years studentship you were expected to be able to identify most of them.
The Iron Room where the lectures were held was full of character. It consisted of a corrugated iron shed built in 1880 for Queen Victoria s Great Exhibition. After the exhibition was over it was removed to Kew and used as a store. Eventually it was converted into lecture rooms by dividing it in half, lining it with boards and filling it with very old wooden school desks, which when I arrived were full of the initials and names of many of the most well-known gardeners in the world, no doubt carved with their issued budding knives during not too enlightening lectures.
Several generations of Kew students heard some of the most distinguished horticultural speakers of their age in this rather primitive environment, which most of the time was adequate except during an infrequent hailstorm when it was a little like sitting in a tin can & someone outside banging on it.
Cont. pg. 15
Mini Rose Nursery
Collector of Miniature Roses For list and map Write Florence Gahagan
P.O. Box 873, Guelph, Ont. NIH 6M6
VOLUNTEER NOTICEBOARD
Dear Volunteer,
When I wrote last month, I was asking you to come and help to make the beautiful Christmas crafts which we will be selling at Autumn Cornucopia November 1, 2 and 3.
This month I 'm asking you to come and help to sell the crafts or work at the reception desk or in our shop or help in the tea room during the show.
November 1st and 2nd (Friday and Saturday) the show will be open from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. On Sunday, the 3rd of November from noon to 6 p.m. Two shifts each day should work well.
I don t have to tell you how important Autumn Cornucopia is to our Centre. Last year we raised over $7,000. and this year we re hoping, as usual, to top that figure. We can t do that though
If you would like to make cookies, muffins or muffin mix to be sold in the tearoom at Cornucopia, please let me know so I have an idea of the quantity.
Please do try to set some time aside for our Centre during these three days. Maybe you have a friend who would enjoy lending a hand with you? Working together is always fun.
By the way, thank you so much for looking after our booth at the C.N.E. Quite a lot of literature was picked up by visitors to the Ex. As a result our courses are filling up quickly and I am sure that we ll have many new members because of that publicity.
Looking forward to hearing from you.
Dorothy without your help.
Where
Great Gardens
At your closest Sheridan Begin And Sheridan 's nursery Garden Centre you will stock is guaranteed for find the finest selection of nur- ~one full year. sery stock in Canada, including At Sheridan Garden Centres you more than 750 varieties of will also find qualified nurseryplants and trees grown on men who will be pleased to help Sheridan 's own farms. you in any way they can.
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Tel. 621-9100 UNIONVILLE OSHAWA KITCHENER 4077Hwv 7,Unionville 847 King St. W., Oshawa 100Elmsdale Road, Kitchener L3R1L5 Tel. 728-9429 Tel. 743-4 Tel.477-2253
LANDSCAPEDEPARTMENT:Metropolitan Toronto, Markham, Mississauga and Oakville 822-7575.
THE SPECTACULAR DAYLILY
A PERFECT PERENNIAL
by Dugald Cameron
Daylilies are more popular now than they have ever been. A great plant for the low maintenance garden, they are used to provide a bright splash of colour in foundation plantings, patio gardens, and perennial borders.
Although daylilies are classified in the Lilaceae or Lily family, they do not grow from bulbs, tubers or rhizomes.
They have clusters of plump, sausagelike roots which give rise to the foliage and the flowering stalks or scapes. The long narrow leaves are folded in half down the back, forming flat sprays or fans. The flower scapes emerge from the fan of embracing leaves and the very large, trumpetshaped flowers are carried well above the foliage. While individual flowers only last a day, each scape will carry up to 100 buds which creates a long season of bloom.
Daylilies belong to the genus Hemerocallis which is a combination of two Greek words meaning day and beauty . They have a thousand year old history going back to China and the Far East where they were grown for food and medicine. All parts of the plant were used. The buds and the flowers as condiments, the young leaves as a mild stimulant, and the juice extracted from the roots as a diuretic. In the 16th century the early daylilies found their way to Europe and eventually accompanied the early settlers to the New World.
Today, in many parts of Canada, the tawny daylily (H. Fulva) is a common sight in July along many a roadside.
This, and the familiar Lemon Lily (H. Flava) are among the ancestors of our modern hemerocallis cultivars.
From these simple origins plant breeders have developed a range of hemerocallis so varied and so beautiful that enthusiasts turn over their entire gardens to the genus. Blue & white are the only two colours unrepresented to date (and hybridizers are working on these). The veritable rainbow of colours available now includes apricot orange, creamy pinks, rosey red, chrome yellows, peach, melon, orchid, deep chocolate red, and raspberry pink,. As if this incredible colour range was not enough two or more colours may be found in the same flower and many varieties have attractively shaped and textured blooms.
Daylilies are not fussy about soils but they do respond well to a location which offers plenty of organic matter & a regular supply of water. Although daylilies are frequently suggested for semi shaded locations, they prefer sun and plenty of it. About six hours a day is best. Insects and disease are no problem and daylilies are most adaptable to planting time, Spring, Summer, or Fall. When you add daylilies to your garden prepare for an incredibly lovely display which will increase every year as the plant develops more and more flower scapes and hundreds of plump buds. cont.
THE GREAT GARDENING CONFERENCE
NOVEMBER 16 & 17, 1985
Don t let the title intimidate you. The Civic Garden Centre is proud to introduce to its members and friends, gardeners from around the world who, with words and slide - photographs, will excite, enthuse and instruct. All the speakers are noted authors or journalists. Many of you will have read their books and articles.
Dinner Friday, Nov. 15th ($25.00 per person) at the Bayview Country Club features Henry Mitchell, gardening correspondent of the Washington Post and author of The Essential Earthman. This witty gentleman holds some strong views eg. Nothing in all gardening requires so much work for so little return as a rock garden . We wonder what else he will have to say!
Dinner Saturday night, Nov. 16th, ($25.00 per person) at the Toronto Cricket Skating and Curling Club will have John Brookes from the United Kingdom as the keynote speaker. This highly successful author and landscape designer who runs his own business will certainly be interesting and provocative.
Saturday morning at 9:30 a.m. the Conference starts in the Floral Hall at the Civic Garden Centre. The cost Members of C.G.C. $75.00, non-
THE SPECTACULAR DAYLILY
cont.
Tetraploid daylilies are the spectacular result of chemical manipulation of the genetic material by plant breeders to double the number of chromosomes in each plant cell which produces huge flowers on stronger stems and lusher foliage. The named varieties of tetraploid hemerocallis currently available to Canadian gardeners includes those which bloom from EM (early midseason) June 5 to June 25, M (mid season) June 25 to July 15, ML (late
members $85.00, Seniors (while tickets last) $50.00, entitles each of us to 2 days of lectures and coffee and lunch. Each speaker is an expert on his or her topic and will broaden your horizons. There will be an opportunity to talk to the speakers at noon and after the afternoon sessions.
SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 16th
9:30 a.m. John Brookes (U.K.) the aforementioned landscape designer will speak on DESIGN.
11:00 a.m. Peter del Tredici (USA) a plant propagator at the Arnold Arboretum of Harvard University in Boston and a horticultural detective writer will speak on CONIFERS.
at 12:15 lunch will be served by Milne House Garden Club, in the Studios & Garden Hall Auditorium.
1:45 p.m. David Leach (USA) from North Madison, Ohio, author, lecturer, consultant and propagator will be talking on AZALEAS AND RHODODENDRONS.
3:15 Allen Paterson (Can.) the former curator of the Chelsea Physic Garden in England, now Director of the Royal Botanical Garden in Burlington. This renowned author and lecturer will speak about CLIMBERS and WALL PLANTS.
mid-season) dJuly 15 to August 15, L (late) August 15 to September 1.
EM: Persiane Shrine, Stells de Oreo, Blazing Sun, Kittens Paw, Meadow Mist, Screech Owl.
M: Footnote, King Alfred, Satin Clouds, Tang Talisman, Ruby Throat, Chicago Raspberry.
ML: Blessed Peace, Sacred Song, Nuthatch.
L: My Hope, Chicago Arnie s Choice, Evening Gown.
Saturday night s dinner has already been mentioned, we should say that we are sorry Mr. Pierre Bourque will not be present and hope those of you who wished to hear him speak will not be too disappointed.
SUNDAY, NOVEMBER 17th
9:30 a.m. Trevor Cole (Can.) The curator of the Dominion Arboretum in Ottawa has broad interests, from Rock gardens to Perennials, however this author will be speaking from his professional point of view on DECIDUOUS TREES and SHRUBS.
11:00 a.m. Brian Mathew (U.K.)
The principal scientific officer at the Royal Botanic Garden at Kew is one of the world s great experts and authors on his topic BULBS.
12:15 lunch (as on Saturday)
1:45 p.m. Frederick Case (U.S.A.)
Chairman of the Biology department at Arthur Hill High School in Saginaw, Michigan, Mr. Case is a recognized author and expert on wildflowers, especially orchids and trilliums. He
received the Edgar T. Wherry Award from the American Society of ROCK GARDENS; his topic, and one he has lectured upon widely.
3:15 Rosemary Verey (U.K.)
Author and gardener, owner of the much admired Barnsley House in England s Cotsworld Country, this talented lady will be our final speaker on PERENNIALS.
These capsule comments on The Great Gardening Conference speakers will, we hope, whet your appetite for what promises to be a most exciting weekend. The Centre will have books for sale by our noted speakers, there will be displays by many educational organizations as well as by our own User Groups. All of us will have our horizons broadened.
Those of you who have already sent in your applications will be receiving your tickets shortly - everyone elseMark your calendar for Nov. 15,16,17, and send in your application NOW.
HOLLAND BULBS ARE IN!
Approximate Date September 7, 1985.
The Trellis Shop
by Jackie Brisby, Shop Manager
We were happy to see so many of our members back in the shop after the holiday season and look forward to seeing many more of you between now and Cornucopia.
The Centre s list of Flower Arranging courses is extensive and it is our intention to attempt to stock every item required by students of these classes. Included among our latest shipments from England, California and Japan are Mayfair cups (candle cups) in black, white, silver, brass and green in four sizes from 95 cents. Members participating in the Intermediate course will be interested in the selection of bases in wood, metal, cork and suede. We are stocking, also, a small selection of candles for those requiring them in their class arrangements. Also available,acomplete line of pincups and pinholders including the extra-heavy lead wellholders with felt covered bases.
The volunteers have been busy this month unpacking and pricing a large selection of wonderful new gift items carefully searched out by our gift committee during the summer months. Included among these are beautiful painted trays from France in a lovely selection of colours and designs from $12.95.
We are introducing this month a new line of packaged gourmet herbs and spices with recipes attached, from Gourmet Village. These include bouquet garnis, mustards, mulling spices, dips and dressings. These have been tested and tasted by the Centre s staff, all of whom found them most delicious!
Very inexpensive and most attractive gift items are delightful hand painted
light switches by Cheri Meggs of Toronto. These are only $5.95 and come in a wide selection of florals, herbs and children s motifs.
Our large selection of high quality spring bulbs are selling quickly. If you have been waiting for these don t leave it any longer. We have the bulb planters, trowels and fungicides you may require for planting.
WONDERLAND OF BULBS
Send $2.00 for our new catalogues, refundable on first order.
The multitude of rare and interesting bulbs listed, over 700 varieties, many difficult to obtain elsewhere, will prove to be a revelation. By far the most complete bulb catalogue in Canada.
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The Civic Garden Centre Members Programme Committee announces the 3rd. Annual
R. E. Edwards Memorial l.ecture
at the Civic Garden Centre
777 Lawrence Avenue East (Edwards Gardens), Don Mills - 445-1552 on Thursday, October 10th, 1985 at 8:00pm
An illustrated talk in the Dunington Grubb Floral Hall
Plants of The Great Wall of China Roy Lancaster
Internationally famous lecturer, plant hunter and plantsman.
NO ADMISSION CHARGE OPEN TO ALL
Funding courtesy of the Edwards Charitable Foundation Refreshments will be served at 7:15 p.m.
About our speaker Roy Lancaster s interest in wild plants began as a schoolboy when he compiled the flora of his home town of Bolton, England. Upon leaving school he joined the local Parks Department, then served for two years with the army in Malaya, where he made a collection of over 1,000 plant specimens.
Following two years of study at the University of Cambridge Botanic Garden, he joined Hillier Nurseries and became the first curator of the Hillier Arboretum in 1970. During this period he was deeply involved in the preparation of the world famous Hillier Manual of Trees and Shrubs , published in 1971.
A Member of the Royal Horticultural Soc. and is the recipient of the Society s Veitch Memorial Medal. He is also a Fellow of the Linnean Soc. of London. Roy Lancaster is the author of five books and his articles appear on a regular basis in a number of professional journals and publications. He has, for many years, broadcast on British radio and television and is currently presenting a series on Great Plant Collections .
From plant hunting in his own backyard he has participated in and led many expeditions to many parts of the world and was a member of the first SinoBritish Botanical Expedition to Yunnan in southwest China.
GARDENING NOTEBOOK
By Ruta Stancikas
OCTOBER
In the gardener s calendar each day of October should have time allocated for the numerous garden activities to be done. Jobs this month include planting, raking, pruning, raking, cleaning up and more raking! Wind shelters should be put up where required and garden furniture needs to be cleaned and stored. But. . . give yourself a break and take the time for a stroll through the many parks peaking in riotous autumn colours. Or, take a fun trip to the country you ll find numerous orchards selling a variety of freshly picked apples.
GARDEN FLOWERS
Bulb purchasing and planting is now in full swing. Remember. . . choose only good, sound bulbs. The smart gardener should remove the dry outer scales from a sampling of bulbs to inspect for disease. For best results, bulbs should be covered with 4 inches of soil. However, if bedding plants are to be planted above them next spring, setting the bulbs another inch deeper will be advantageous. In cold, northern climates slightly deeper planting and a protective mulch of straw, leaves or peat is advisable.
Why not plant groups of small bulbs in the rockery? Crocus and grape hyacinths are ideal. And, for early bloom in the rockery or border, plant groups of winter aconite.
Gladioli are best lifted this month. Cut the foliage an inch above the corm, clean, air dry, label and store in a dry, cool location.
Dahlias should be lifted after the foliage has been blackened by frost. The fleshy tubers should be laid out and allowed to dry for about a week, then cleaned, labelled and stored in slightly dampened vermiculite or peat moss in a frost-free place.
Pot up a few fibrous begonias before the frost kills them. They ll add a touch of colour on a sunny windowsill alongside your geraniums. Begonia tubers should be lifted, dried off and stored.
Chinese lanterns are ready to be gathered the beginning of this month and should be hung up to dry. They re terrific for indoor decoration!
If the sunflowers you grew for bird seed escaped the onslaught of the neighbourhood squirrels, cut the heads off and allow them to dry before gathering the seeds.
SHRUBS
Evergreens should be kept well watered right up until the ground freezes, and continue watering roses to encourage fall flowering.
All deciduous shrubs will benefit from a dressing of superphosphate.
o @ountry Squireo @arden"
Steeles Ave. W. (2 miles west of Highway 10) R.R. 10 Brampton L6V 3N2
Bloomin Money Gift certificates $10.00 up in $5.00 increments by mail
Over 2000 different hardy plants, alpines, dwarf conifers and shrubs, Hardy ferns, vines, groundcovers and native wildflowers
Send $1. for a plant list by mail to above address
FRUITS AND VEGETABLES
Any remaining pears and apples should be gathered before the weather breaks. They ll keep best, stored in layers, in slatted boxes and kept in a dark, cool location.
Clear all remaining vegetable crops and dig up the garden. Pumpkins and squashes will do best stored at 10 deg. C. (50 F.) and potatoes should be stored in a well-ventilated, dark, frost-free place.
LAWN
Spread a winterizer fertilizer over the lawn and don t let yourself get too far behind in leaf raking. It s a more bearable task if done every few days. As well, heavy leaf accumulation can smother your lawn if not removed periodically.
INDOORS
It s time to start cutting back on watering and stop fertilizing most houseplants as they prepare to go into dormancy.
The Amaryllis considered the showiest of pot plants start to appear in garden centres and stores this month. The giant Dutch hybrids produce blooms up to 8 inches across, opening in clusters of three and four huge flowers at one time. Sometimes new stems emerge for repeat performances! You can purchase Amaryllis bulbs individually or complete with pot, saucer and potting medium. All you have to do is plant, water and watch it grow. Growth is so fast you can measure the difference from day to day. The giant hybrids come into flower four to six weeks after you start watering and you re guaranteed a spectacular show!
If you kept your Amaryllis from last Christmas growing in the garden, it should be brought indoors the begin-
ning of this month. Cut the leaves about one inch from the neck of the bulb and place the pot in a dark cool spot, around 10 12 deg.C. (50 54 F.) Moisten lightly every 3 to 4 weeks rest before the blooming cycle resumes again by watering the plant thoroughly and moving it to a warm spot.
Christmas cacti should now be allowed to rest-up for the upcoming festive season. Keep them in a cool, dark location and withold water.
Abutilons (flowering maples) should be pruned back hard this month. Root the cuttings to make new plants.
Ruta Stancikas is a Toronto journalist.
°Book Review
THE ESSENTIAL GUIDE TO PERFECT HOUSEPLANTS
by George Seddon & Andrew Bicknell with Elizabeth Dickson
For the first time, a houseplant book tells how to display plants as well as how to care for them. Dickson s opening section on Home Decorating with Plants describes the right plant for spacious living rooms and cosy apartments, for stairways and dark corners, for subtle decoration and bold, bright design statements.
available in cloth $27.95
WINDOW GARDENS
by Lizzie Boyd
Window ledges are the only piece of garden that many city dwellers possess. This book is packed full of ideas for making the most of these potentially rich and under-utilized areas. Gorgeous colour pictures and detailed captions offer suggestions for colour schemes and plant combinations that will enhance every type of window.
available in hard cover $22.95
THE FALL FERTILIZATION OF TURF
R. W. Sheard, Professor, Plant Nutrition & Turf Management
Ontario
Agricultural College
University of Guelph
The fall period is important in the life cycle of turf. It is a time during which rapid tiller (shoot of plant springing from bottom of original stalk) formation occurs to fill in the thin areas resulting from the ravages of summer drought, disease and insects. As the fall progresses root reserves are laid down which allow the plant to survive the winter. Root reserves are generally considered to be carbohydrates, however, research has also shown nitrogen compounds are also important components of the regrowth system when grass recovers from a prolonged period of stress such as winter. These nitrogen compounds must be stored within the plant before the advent of winter.
Research agronomists working with legumes have evidence to show potassium to be important for the winter survival of legume species; a concept which has been extended to turf without supporting any evidence that potassium is of equal importance for turf. Legumes, however, differ markedly from grasses, for example, grasses are highly dependent on external sources of nitrogen whereas legumes obtain a major part of their nitrogen from microbiological fixation.
Fall fertilization programs should be divided into two parts. The first application is made in late August to mid-September, an application which is vital to the healing process and for fall growth and should contain nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium, such as a 4:1:2 ratio material. The second application is made in late October to early November and is commonly known as a Winterizer or dormant application. This application should be a high nitrogen material or even pure nitrogen fertilizer.
The current discussion about what fertilizer to use for a Winterizer material depends on the objective of the fertilizer program. The original objective of some years ago was to aid the plant to survive the winter, an objective which may be fulfilled by a low nitrogen-high potassium material. However winter kill of turf is not a problem in Ontario except where ice covers the grass for a prolonged period. A realistic objective for the average home owner is to maintain green color on his lawn until the snow falls and then have a rapid greenup in the spring. To accomplish the objective it is necessary to apply a high nitrogen material as a Winterizer treatment.
The latter recommendation has been supported by field research conducted at the University of Guelph over the past five years on both bluegrass lawns and bentgrass greens, using medium to low potassium testing soils. These studies have clearly shown spring color and growth were superior where Winterizer nitrogen had been used. No evidence has been obtained of a response to Winterizer potassium. Removal of tillers in early April from the field plots and placing them under controlled growth chamber conditions showed previous nitrogen treatments produced 3 fold more new tillers, 30% greater tiller length and 21% more new roots in 14 days. Potassium treatments had no significant effect on tiller development.
Since nitrogen-treated tillers produced more tillers and leaf growth, they
The Fall Fertilization of Turf - cont.
would show green color more rapidly in the spring. Likewise increased root growth would provide the turf with enhanced nutrient-absorbing ability to increase further the spring growth and color. Furthermore late fall mowing about November 1 will allow the green color to show earlier in the spring above winter desiccated foliage. Other research has demonstrated water soluble nitrogen fertilizer will provide the same effect as slow-release fertilizer. Even on very sandy soils less than two percent of the applied nitrogen leached from the root zone during the winter months.
The fertilizer use philosphy and supporting research outlined in this article have resulted in a recommendation that a high nitrogen-low potassium fertilizer, at 1 to 1.5 kg N/100 m2, applied between Oct. 20 and Nov. 5, will fulfill the objective of the average homeowner.
Recollections Cont. from pg. 5
Things have certainly changed dramatically since I was a student. The Iron Room has been demolished and replaced with an ultra modern lecture theatre with workshops and a laboratory. Many of the old greenhouses have been demolished including the old Alpine House. The new house now has specially refrigerated sections which stay cool in the warm weather, so that now some of the most difficult plants to grow, the alpines which flower in late summer on the edge of melting snow, can be successfully cultivated. One thing I am pleased to say has not changed Kew still has one of the finest (if not the finest) collection of plants in the world and students can still study them growing, in as near to perfect conditions that the art of horticulture can achieve.
thite Rose
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