The CIVIC GARDEN CENTRE Garden Topics & Events Newsletter
OCT. 31, NOV. 1 & 2, 1986
Fri. & Sat. 10a.m. - 6 p.m. Sun. Noon -6 p.m.
Over 50 Craft Exhibitors in the Floral Hall, Studios, Links and Garden Hall And our own
CGC Christmas Crafts & Decorations
Door Swags, Wreaths and Handcrafted decorations
Winter Bouquet Workshop Open House
House Plant Sale & Bulbsfor Indoor Forcing
Christmas With Milne House
Special Occasion How-to demonstrations on the hour
Tea Room Light Refreshments Home-made Baking
777 Lawrence Avenue East (Edwards Gardens)
Don Mills 445-1552
Admission: $2.00 Free Parking
TOUR OF PRIVATE GARDENS
For me the most successful programme at the Civic Garden Centre this year was the tour of private gardens, organized by Hazel Lyonde (a member of the CGC s Board of Directors). The garden visits were spread out throughout the season, a very superior arrangement.
In the middle of May there was a blaze of colour in Barbara Wilkins garden. Rhododendrons and azaleas in great profusion surround the path in the woods but the overall effect is very naturalistic and not at all indigestible. There were also woodland and rock garden plants and I particularly remember a lovely white Epimedium as well as Houstonia caerulea and some unidentified Veronica.
The Helen Skinner garden transformed an ordinary-looking city back yard into a place of repose of exquisite design. The strong lines of the beds contrasted with the good-sized clumps of mostly muted-coloured plants. On one side irregular stepping stones are surrounded by small patches of water and plants, providing for a wonderful effect in the half-shade.
ORCHID
TROPICAL
PLANTS Plant Emporniam
Chinatown 393 Dundas St. West (UnitG) Toronto (416) 591-7953
Chinese Cymbidiums available
At the end of May the visiting was at Muriel Stafford s where the long straight driveway is lined by clumps of Iris. In the back at the top of the garden the design is formal, incorporating Japanese maples, running water and evergreen shrubs. Further down the hill there is a wet meadow which is ideal for moisture-loving primulas and other woodland plants.
D. W. Oke also transformed a level city back yard into something altogether different. The contours of the land have been changed, with the axis of the garden running diagonally. The water and the elevation changes also make his garden look bigger than it is. The emphasis is on rhododendrons and azaleas (which he is selecting and hybridizing to extend the bloom) with some bulbous plants to follow later in the summer.
Three rose gardens visited in the third week of June were all very different. The E. D. Goulding garden s principal focus is on classically arranged all-rose beds, with the flowers very clearly labelled. The shadier parts of the garden are less formally designed but equally successful. This is a very large garden in terms of what is there, and as in other specialist gardens, one should really take good notes.
In contrast the F. E. Goulding garden was informally arranged, no labels, and projected a very casual atmosphere. The plants were well-grown and the visitor felt at home.
cont. pg. 9
Steeles Ave. W. (2 miles west of Highway 10) R.R. 10 Brampton L6V 3N2
Knowledgeable staff
Open 7 days a week from April 12 - Oct. 19
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
Toronto Gesneriad Society meeting 2 - 4 pm - Open House & Plant Sale
S. Ontario Orchid Society meeting 1 - 5 pm
Mens Garden Club meeting 8 pm - Kurt Crist of Weall & Cullen will speak on Acquiring and Maintaining Indoor Plants
Garden Therapy Group meeting 1 pm for handicapped people
Ikebana International meeting 7 - 9:30 pm
Christmas Arrangements and Designs - 3 week course 9:30 to noon
Toronto Bonsai Society meeting 7 pm
North Toronto Horticultural Society meeting 8 p.m. - David Tomlinson will give a slide presentation on Small Garden Design
MEMBERS NIGHT 7:30 pm - A joint meeting of the Ontario Rock Garden Society and the Civic Garden Centre - Speakers will be Steve Noonan & Phil Pearson - nurserymen from state of Washington
Tommy Thompson Memorial Walk 2 p.m.
York Rose and Garden Society meeting 2 p.m.
Indoor Gardening Society meeting 2 p.m.
EDWARDS MEMORIAL LECTURE at 7:30 p.m. Speaker will be David Tarrant from the University of British Columbia and his topic The Public and Private Gardens of Vancouver
Styrofoam Fruit Workshop - one day from 10 am to 3 pm
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.
Nov. 17 Driftwood workshop10 - 3 Finishing driftwood 24 -10 - 1 Making an arrangement
Nov. 20 Christmas Corsage workshop one day from 10 am - 3 pm
CROSSWORD PUZZLES ANYONE!
A new bi-monthly addition to Trellis if we can find an enthusiastic composer of crossword puzzles.
If you are interested call Sally Sullivan at 445-1552.
CGC OPERATING HOURS
Weekdays 9:30 -4
Weekends 12:00 -5
CONGRATULATIONS to Beverley Newton the winner of our postcard contest. To all of our readers who entered the contest and made the task of choosing a winner such a difficult one A heartfelt thank you.
MEMBERS PROGRAMME
A joint Meeting with The Ontario Rock Garden Society on THURSDAY, OCTOBER 16th, at 7:30 p.m.
PHILIP PEARSON & STEVE DOONAN from Washington will speak on ALPINE PLANTS: HABITATS & CULTIVATION
Members of the CGC or ORGS free Non-members $2.00
The Civic Garden Centre Members Programme Committee announces the 4th Annual
R. E. Edwards Memorial Lecture
WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 22nd, at 7:30 p.m.
DAVID TARRANT
of the
UNIVERSITY OF BRITISH COLUMBIA BOTANICAL GARDEN COME AND SEE
THE PUBLIC AND PRIVATE GARDENS OF VANCOUVER
The combination of eccentric characters, rain and a temperate Pacific climate make Vancouver a gardener s dream come true.
The mild air allows Palms, Rhododendrons, Kiwi Fruit, Figs and Monkey Puzzle trees to thrive like weeds.
The city supports a fine parks system, two of the better known being Stanley Park and Queen Elizabeth Park both of which will be featured in the lecture.
Vancouver s strong connections with Asia have been instrumental in the development of two outstanding asian gardens. Nitobe Memorial garden is said to be one of the most authentic Japanese Gardens in North America, combining Japanese and BC native plants. The latest garden to be developed in Chinatown is the Dr Sun Yat Sen Classical Chinese Garden. All of the structures are genuine and were shipped from the Peoples Republic of China, and include exquisite screens carved from Ginko wood, and unusual rock formations from Lake Tai. This garden was opened in May this year after a two year construction period, which was carried out by 57 artisans from the Peoples Republic of China.
There are two Botanical Gardens. The Univ. of B.C. Botanical Garden has the largest collection of Rhododendron species in North America, over 400 species. Also a fine Rock Garden featuring alpine plants from every continent, including Australia and Africa. The Van Dusen Botanical Garden is located in the heart of the city and features many fine seasonal displays.
Last but not least there are the private gardens nestled in rocky coves close to the waters of the Pacific, and on mountain slopes near the winter snowline. While in the inner city, they are in courtyards, on balconies and even on Houseboats. All of which will be featured in the talk.
Admission Free Refreshments from 6:45 p.m.
VOLUNTEER NOTICEBOARD
Dear Volunteer,
CORNUCOPIA!
We re really making our mark. As of the beginning of August, not only had we sold all of our craft tables but we had a waiting list!
Our own workshops for our Christmas Crafts and Gift Ideas are so successful, I just can t believe them. Many, many thanks to our workshop teachers and their volunteers.
We re on the map and not just for Cornucopia, we re growing daily. You did this. You with your dedication to The Centre, in helping at the Exhibition and with our Garden Tours and with a multitude of projects throughout the years.
I hope that you ve enjoyed this experience the way that I have. I won t say goodbye because I will still be working
closely with you, in my new position. I would like to tell you how very much that I have enjoyed being your Volunteer Co-ordinator. An experience that I will never forget.
For probably the last time, I m asking you to come and help at our major fall fund raiser, Cornucopia
As always, your friend
Dorothy
UPCOMING EVENTS
IKEBANA INTERNATIONAL ANNUAL EXHIBITION
SAT., NOV. 22 and SUN. NOV. 23 from 10 a.m. -4 p.m. at The Civic Garden Centre
This is the umbrella organization of all Japanese Flower Arranging Schools. Masters, teachers and students from these various schools will be displaying their arrangements. Ikebana containers for sale.
SHERIDAN LIMITED
Where
Great Gardens
At your closest Sheridan Garden Centre you will find the finest selection of nursery stock in Canada, including more than 750 varieties of plants and trees grown on Sheridan s own farmes.
MISSISSAUCA NORTH-CENTRAL
606 Southdown Rd., 2827 Yonge St , Mississauga L5) 2v4 Toronto M4N 2J4
Tel. 822-0251
Tel. 481-6429
Begin. And Sheridan's nursery stock is guaranteed for one full year.
At Sheridan Garden Centres you will also find %Jalified nurserymen who will be pleased to help you in any way they can.
AGINCOURT
ETOBICOKE
3444 Sheppard Ave E 700 Evans Ave Toronto M1T 3K4 Etobicoke M9C 1A1
Tel 293-2493
Tel 621-9100
UNIONVILLE OSHAWA KITCHENER 4077 Hwy. 7, Unionville 847 King St. W., Oshawa 100 ElImsdale Road, Kitchener L3R1LS Tel. 728-9429
Tel. 477-2253
LANDSCAPE DEPARTMENT: Metropolitan Toronto, Markham, Mississauga and Oakville 822-7575.
Tel. 743-4146
HORT HAPPENINGS
by Anne Marie Van Nest
OCTOBER 1986
STORING TENDER BULBS FROM THE GARDEN
CANNAS
Garden bulbs that are not hardy over the winter should be dealt with immediately after the first frost has touched the foliage. Cannas from your garden can be kept quite easily over the winter if the proper conditions are present for storage. After the frost has blackened the foliage, cut the stem just six inches (15 cm) from the rhizome (you may use the upper leaves as compost). Dig the Canna roots, keeping as much soil as possible with the roots, and place them in an airy, warm area for a week to dry. The final storage location should be a cool frost-free cellar at 5 deg. C. Leave the Canna rhizomes in open crates or boxes. Another method of storing Cannas over the winter is to remove most of the soil from the roots and to pack them into boxes of sand or vermiculite to prevent them from drying out. Cannas do not like to be stored in wet conditions, but they will not survive if they become too dry either.
DAHLIA
Another member of the tender bulb group is the Dahlia. To save this plant, cut the tops down to six inches (15 cm.) after the first frost and leave them in the ground for a week. This will allow the tuber to swell with additional moisture. Dig the roots carefully with a garden fork and leave them upside down for a few hours to drain off excess moisture. When they are partially dry, store them in a frostfree cellar (5 deg. C.) which is humid as these plants suffer when allowed to dry out. Very much like the Canna, these plants can be stored in slightly
dampened peat moss or vermiculite. Dahlias can be divided at this time or in the spring, but each new division must contain a bud or eye.
BEGONIAS
Begonias require a slightly different set of storage instructions. After the frost has damaged the plants, immediately dig the plants with the tops attached. Spread the plants in a warm area, away from the sun, to dry for about a week. At this time, break off the tops and fibrous roots and pack the clean tubers in a container of slightly moist sawdust, peatmoss or vermiculite. Store them at 5 - 10 deg. C., until spring.
GLADIOLUS
The last of the tender bulbs commonly grown in gardens is the Gladiolus, which is actually classed as a corm. Let me explain the different bulb types. A true bulb is an underground stem with a tiny bud that will become the following year s plant. This bud is surrounded by scalelike layers of tissue. Tulips, Daffodils and Lilies are true bulbs. The next type of bulb is the corm, which has one or more growing points and has a solid mass of storage tissue. This is found in the Crocus and Gladiolus. The third type of bulb is the tuber and is also a solid mass of storage tissue. Moreover, it does not have a basal plate like the previous two. Shoots and roots grow from the eyes of tubers such as Dahlias and Begonias. The last type of bulb is the rhizome, which is a thick underground stem made up of solid storage tissue. Stems and leaves grow from buds on the top and underside. Iris are a good example of a plant having rhizomes.
Now back to the Gladioli. In the fall, as soon as the foliage is brown, cut it off just above the soil level. On a warm sunny day, dig the corms and let them lie on the ground for a few
HORT HAPPENINGS
hours to dry. Then spread them thinly over a flat surface and place them in a warm dry room that has good air circulation. ~When the corms have dried sufficiently, remove all tops, roots, soil and loose skins. Dust the corms at this time with an insecticide/ fungicide to prevent damage over the winter. Store the corms in a shallow open box at 5 - 10 deg. C. Please be careful not to breathe the dust or get it on your hands. Check your bulbs periodically throughout the winter for mildew, fungus disease, insect problems and shrivelling.
VEGETABLES
Vegetables from the garden can be stored in very much the same conditions as the bulbs. Do not store ethylene producing vegetables and fruits with others as this gas will speed the ripening process and shorten storage life. Apples, pears, peaches, plums, apricots, muskmelons, and tomatoes produce this gas. Other vegetables produce very strong odours and should be stored in isolation. Onions, celery and cabbage are very good examples of this. Store only the very best vegetables that are free of bruises, cuts and insect damage, since inferior quality produce is much more susceptible to rot and moulds. Root crops such as beets, carrots, parsnips, horseradish and salsify can be stored at 0 degrees C. in perforated plastic bags or layered in peat, sand or straw in a dark, cool area in boxes. Potatoes should be stored in a dark, slightly drier area at 7 - 10 deg. C. along with winter squash and pumpkins. Onions need the driest conditions of all the vegetables but they keep the best at temperatures just above freezing. This vegetable should be cured for several days. All vegetables should be cured for a day before storage. This will dry the skin and slow the exit of moisture.
CHRISTMAS CACTUS
A cool, dark area is also a very good location for your Christmas cactus to be kept to encourage Christmas blooming. Leave your plant unattended in this cool area until small buds can be seen on the branches. Immediately bring the plant into a slightly warmer and brighter location and water it well. Watering is very important at this time. Your Cactus should not be over-watered, nor should it dry out entirely or the buds will fall off.
TYPES OF BULBS
HORTICULTURAL INFORMATION
The Horticulturist will be available to answer questions either by telephone or in person during the following hours only:
Week-days Week-ends 12 noon to 3 p.m. 12 noon to 2 p.m.
True Bulbs
:' Corms
GLADIOLUS
Tuberous Roots
BEGONIA DAHLIA 7}
Audrey Meiklejohn doesn t restrict herself to roses, but certainly they were the highlights of her garden, especially the large bushy ones. She grows quite a few singles and they have an elegance that doubles can t usually match. Eye Paint was particularly spectacular. The overall design is deceptively casual, it is a large garden and there is a lot in it.
Because of holidays I missed the Fee garden and the walk in Edwards Gardens but in the middle of August was able to visit the joined PopeBell gardens. Here again the starting point was level lot with shade from high trees. Apart from the more permanent shade-tolerating plants, such as hostas, the effort went into carefully designing and coordinating the use of bedding plants to give colour throughout the season. This was extraordinarily well done there was colour everywhere, and the overall effect must have taken years of experimentation to achieve.
Had I taken notes during the visits I could now do more justice to the gardens as it is, in addition to thanking the participants, I can only hope that I will have the chance to go back and see the gardens. Please, Hazel, organize another tour next year. Are there any chances for fall garden visits? In the meantime, congratulations and thank you to all who made the visits possible.
Andrew Osyany, Shelburne Member of the CGC s Board of Directors
Mini Rose Nursery
IN MEMORIAM PROGRAM
Collector of Miniature Roses
For list and map Write Florence Gahagan
P.O. Box 873, Guelph, Ont. NIH 6M6
MEMORIAL CONTRIBUTIONS are an appropriate way of assisting the Centre while remembering families or friends.
MAIL TO:
The Civic Garden Centre 777 Lawrence Avenue East, Don Mills, Ontario, M3C 1P2 or Phone: (416) 445-1552
MEMORIAL CONTRIBUTION
I would like to make a contribution
So that the bereaved are informed that a memorial contribution has been received and of its donor, please provide the following:
Name of Dereaved ...cc.isvi ossuossesesssess
Aadress..
Charitable tax receipts will be issued for all contributions.
You may use Visa or Mastercharge for your convenience.
@ Please charge the fee to my Credit Card o 6 0 0 P 1 R R R 3 P R L e (LT
CLORINDA
by Brenda Addington
The first time I saw the scentedleafed geranium Clorinda, snugly potted in a greenhouse at the Chelsea Physic Garden in London, I immediately succumbed to the wurge to possess, which is so familiar to the collector. For here was the finest bloom I had yet seen on one of these plants; instead of the insignificant little mauvish flowers they usually bear, this was a head of bloom worthy of a single zonal geranium, in a vibrant colour that might be described as softer and deeper than shocking pink. The scent - - pine? eucalyptus? - - was pleasant and uncloying and the leaves themselves, three-lobed and almost quilted-looking were handsome, more substantial than the fussy or even limp leaves often found on the scentedleafed pelargoniums (to give them their correct name).
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.
C. A. CRUICKSHANK LTD.
Since 1925
Canada s Leading Bulb Specialists
1015 Mount Pleasant Road Toronto M4P 2M1
488-8292
One look was enough; I must, without further ado, get Clorinda. 1 did, without further ado, get Clorinda, but life seems to have been one long ado ever since, for Clorinda has a mind of its own, and battle has been joined between us.
It was almost a year before the plant bloomed, and during that time, it bore scant resemblance to the comely specimen that had so captivated me at Chelsea. (This, I suspect, is a fairly common phenomenon, highly unnerving to the owner of a new plant). Clorinda, in fact, developed a distressing tendency to straggle and fall about. I decided to ignore this tacky behavior, in the hopes that it would go away. And perhaps it will, perahps it will; in time.
The long-awaited blooms were all that I had hoped for, and in June I set the plant in the garden, in a prominent spot where I knew that its luminous colour would be set off by neighbouring plants. Eagerly I looked forward to the display: one catalogue said that Clorinda had the habit of a zonal . All I can say is that I hope they never use zonals of that habit in front of Buckingham Palace. The plant ceased blooming immediately, and I was treated to a mass of sullen green for the rest of the summer. Baffled, I retreated to my corner; Clorinda had won that round.
Of course I had overlooked the fact that the scented-leafed geraniums, like the regals, set their buds in cold weather and bloom during the spring. In September I cut the plant back hard in an attempt to encourage.a more shapely habit of growth, and in my ignorance, I went on pinching out the shoots all winter, thereby of course cutting out all that season s bloom.
It now seemed to me that I had acquired a close relative of the century plant, which having bloomed once cont. pg. 13
Trellis Shop
by Jackie Brisby
Lots of new items in the Trellis Shop this month with the arrival of our special selections from the Gift Shows. Included among these is a beautiful selection of Portmeiron in the Botanical Garden Pattern.
We thought we had sold them to everyone in town but for all of you who keep asking for more we have a new shipment of glass napkin rings with the spout for fresh flowers. In the same shipment a large selection of glass flower holders in various heights, for holding one or two flowers, in black and white.
Also, in stock a large shipment of attractive baskets, in all shapes and sizes from tiny to huge, many plastic lined for potted plants and flower arrangements.
Our bulbs for Spring should be selling well at this time and we invite you to have a look in our Gardening section for bulb planters, trowels and fungicides for Fall planting.
IN THE LIBRARY
by Pamela MacKenzie, Librarian
DESIGNING WITH FLOWERS, by Tricia Guild. New York, Crown, 1986.
Handsomely illustrated, this book emphasises the relationship between informal groupings of cut flowers and their surroundings. Arrangements are seen as an integral part of interior design.
DICTIONARY OF PLANT NAMES, by Allen J. Coombes. Portland, Timber, 1985.
This is one of the few books on plants to give the pronunciation of their scientific names. With references from popular names and brief historical and horticultural notes, gardeners and wildflower enthusiasts alike will find this book most useful.
Don t forget that the library is open from 6 p.m. on Members Nights and for the Edwards Memorial Foundation Lecture, so I look forward to seeing some of you on Thursday, October 16th and Wednesday October 22nd.
INCREASE THE VALUE OF YOUR HOME
It's easy, just call your nearest Weall & Cullen Centre for a Landscape Design appointment today! A professional Design Consultant will visit your home and draw up and easy fo follow scale drawing of your new landscape, designed with your tastes in mind. Give us a call foday, it could be the best investrent you'll ever make in your home. Then sit back and watch it grow! A Weall & Cullen L only $30 for a front or back yard ($60 for both). The $30 fee is tofally refunded witha of $200 worth of Weall & Cullen Landscape Piants. ini This service available o lyin designated areas. Surcharge may i/g
* All our nursery stock is backed by our fomous One Year Guarantee m
* Many of our plants are grown right on our Own Ontario Farms
* Our Container Grown stock can be planted anytime plan is OPEN 7 DAYS A WEEK WITH 5 LOCATIONS TO SERVE YOU!
Th Trellis Shop
f ¥ No. 112SC ROUND SEED SILO & SEED CATCHER
| Save expensive seed!! Same feeder as No.112 packed & ¥/ with an 8% diam. seed catcher' (SC - 72) and & necessary hardware. May be post mounted outside a ® favorite window or in a treeless yard. $21.95
No. DF - 72 THE DISTLEFINK
Copied by everyone - duplicated by none!! The FIRST niger seed feeder. Exclusive tear drop shaped openings save seed. Aluminum cap, base and and hanger. 2% diam. x 18" $10.95
SOILSMNNER COMPOSTER
Convert your garden and kitchen waste into FREE, nutritious compost in weeks.
Unique thermal construction and complete ventilation system ensure complete rapid decomposition. Two easy access doors to remove compost. Designed to be seenforconvenientbackdoorcomposting. $104.95
TIERED LIGHT GARDEN
Economical Dual Spectrum lighting
Handy vertical slide adjustments
Quality decorative casters
Easy to assemble
Each fixture individually wired, separately switched and CSA approved
Neatly packaged for safe transport
Sturdv modular frame
Floralight s exclusive super tough garden trays
® No tools required
All covered by Floralight s exclusive product/service warranty
65 High x 50 Wide x 20 Deep
during my lifetime, was hardly likely to do so again. At this point, the collector becomes selective and begins to weed out undesirables. But I decided to give Clorinda one more chance - it might be that the tendency to straggle and reach out was merely a frustrated desire to go up in the world. Like her relative, Rollisson s Unique, Clorinda might be an untidy social climber. Accordingly, I set the pot in the ground outside for the summer, provided stakes, and let nature take its course.
When I brought the plant in before the first frost and stood it on the greenhouse bench, it nearly reached the roof. By late January, it was a mass of buds on top and for weeks thereafter it produced dozens of blooms. Bewildered visitors asked What is it? For while there was a dazzling display on high, whether from cold, hunger, thirst or a naturally nasty disposition, Clorinda was steadily shedding leaves down below. When the plant went out in June, the woody limbs were almost naked. Leaning exhausted against a wall like an aging streetwalker, Clorinda still flaunted her last few bedraggled charms.
This year lo! the fair Clorinda seems to have come under the influence of a snake charmer. Nothing else, surely, could cause those gnarled and knotted stems to twist themselves around each other like a Laocoon. The plants I started last summer are lush and green, and just that - - lush and green; all the buds are on the mis-shapen contortionist. When I ask friends about the fate of cuttings I have given them, they do not seem anxious to discuss Clorinda. It s wierd , they reply, or even more evasively, Oh, look, there s Princess Di chasing a grizzly bear out of the garden. Isn t that a gorgeous hat she s wearing? Princess Di, I mean, not the grizzly bear...!
I understand that there is a miniature geranium called Jane Eyre and I am sure that like Mr. Rochester, I would be much happier with a Jane Eyre (small, demure and mauve) than with the unpredictable female I now have.
On second thoughts, it was hankering after Jane Eyre, wasn t it, that got Mr. Rochester into all that trouble -bigamy, arson and goodness knows what else.
Clorinda might do rather well on an espalier. . .
WzSpecializes in dried and silk flower arrangements.
Arrangements for sale in The Trellis Shop
Located amidst the beauty of Edwards Gardens. Aplace to meet old friends, or make new ones.
Catering services for all occasions.
Open 7 days a week
All year round
Adjacent to the Civic Garden Centre 444-8237
MOBY DAFF My Search cont. from September Trellis
the Great White Trumpet
by Kenneith E. Weir
In January things suddenly improved. By the same post I received a letter from Dublin and one from Mississippi. Rosemary Brown of The Irish Times very kindly sent me the addresses of three Ulster breeders and an invitation to visit her family in County Wicklow. And Lesley Anderson, the executive director of the American Daffodil Society, wrote me a charming letter from Hernando, Mississippi and enclosed an application form. Before long I had catalogues from England, Ireland, and the United States. Three of them offered bulbs of Empress of Ireland for approximately $4. a piece. At last! Now the problem was to get them into the country. This requires an Import Permit from Agriculture Canada for each supplier and a set of labels for the outside of the parcels. The dealer must enclose a Phytosanitary Certificate from his local agricultural authority. These are the proper channels. Permit in hand I boarded a charter flight for Belfast to investigate the world of Irish daffodils and to find out why they are so hard to find in Ontario.
This was the first question I put to Crosbie Cochrane, the Chief Horticultural officer for Northern Ireland jn his office on the outskirts of Belfast. Mr. Cochrane is a tall, handsome man, urbane & articulate, a former lecturer at Greenmount Agricultural College, where the famous rose breeder Sam McGredy III was one of his students. Why, I asked him, if Irish bulbs are the best in the world, are we offered only Dutch ones? Why, in a country like Northern Ireland with so many economic problems &high unemployment, is this resource not exploited more fully? Here is the gist of his reply.
First of all, the daffodil world is not one world but three: garden, show, and commerce. In the garden world little people like you and me buy bulbs of consistently good quality at a very reasonable price. We often plant them in unsuitable situations without much preparation, and we get far better results than we deserve. The commercial world is based in Holland & England although Virginia, Oregon, and British Columbia have had commercial scale ventures, too. However, although the English have a greater acreage of daffodils than anyone else, it is the Dutch that flood the North American market with bulbs. The third narcissus world belongs to the true fanatics, the hybridizers and the show people. They organize, enter, & attend shows, form societies, publish journals, and produce year by year an endless stream of beautiful varieties. They may be found everywhere, even in the Soviet Union, but mainly in English-speaking countries like England, America, Australia, and New Zealand. However, the greatest concentration is in Northern Ireland, where the Guy Wilson-Empress of Ireland tradition is carried on by Rathowen, Carncairn, and Ballydorn, and by Tom Bloomer, who used Empress ofIreland to produce his own superb white trumpets White Star and Silent Valley, the first named for the shipping line that built Titanic and the second for the reservoir in the Mourne Mountains that supplies Belfast with its water.
Are Irish breeders in competition with the Dutch? Not really. The Dutch have a multi-million dollar enterprise of national importance aimed mainly at producing healthy and colorful garden varieties of reliable habit at a reasonable price for the world market. They are still selling bulbs that were cont.
MOBY DAFF
My Search for the Great White Trumpet
introduced many years ago: King Alfred (1899), Mount Hood (1937), Golden Harvest (1920). Fortissimo, advertised by both Cruickshanks and Gardenimport as a new introduction , was registered in 1964. The Ulster breeders, on the other hand, are gifted amateurs for whom daffodils are an obsessive hobby. Even the best-known breeders have other jobs: Kate Reade is a farmer but she also paints and rides to hounds; Frank Harrison was a lawyer and a judge before he retired, and he was knighted for his work in redrawing the electoral boundaries of Northern Ireland; Brian Duncan manages a creamery in County Tyrone. They breed mainly for show, and if they reckoned their time at even the minimum wage, they would probably not cover expenses. With them even outstanding varieties become obsolete very quickly. For example, Arbar, introduced in 1948, Award of Merit 1949, First Class Certificate 1961, is no longer in commerce.
Do Irish raisers sell bulbs to the Dutch? Yes, they do, but it takes 20 years or more to make a new variety commercially feasible by increase. Here are a few varieties that have gone that route, as well as the ones mentioned earlier: Salome, Armada, Foresight, Spellbinder, another Wilson flower of noble carriage and the almost magical quality of changing colour day by day. It is well named.
Are the new varieties better than the old? They are. Not perhaps significantly so to indiscriminate eye, but the relentless search for improved substance, posture, smoothness, colour, endurance, increase, sun-fastness, and so on has paid off.
Did I finally find the Empress of Ireland? Yes, I did. I brought back two bulbs along with about 50 other Irish varieties. =~ The long search is over; the story has just begun.
Bulk Ennombre third troisieme class classe S 12139
TORONTO
CIVIC
GARDEN CENTRE
Board of Directors:
b4y f * President -
* 1st Vice-President
* 2nd Vice-President
* Treasurer
* Executive Committee
Mr. Brian Bixley
Mrs. Sue Macaulay
Mr. Charles Coffey
Mr. Charles Coffey
For 1986: Mr. Art Drysdale, Mr. Albert Fisher, Mrs. Hazel Lyonde, Mr. David Tomlinson, Mr. Harold Wakefield, Mrs. Joyce Dossal, Mrs. Marian Lawson
For 1986 & 1987: Mr. William Aimers, *Mrs. Camilla Dalglish, Mrs. Susan Macaulay, Mr. Andrew Osyany, Mrs. June Punnett, *Mr. Bob Saunders, Mr. Peter Thomas
For 1986, 1987 & 1988: Mr. Brian Bixley, Mr. Charles Coffey, Mr. Mark Cullen *Mr. Peter Hand, Mrs. Margaret Killey, Mrs. Susan McCoy, Mr. Phillip S. Tingley, Mr. Robert G;. Bundy
Receipts issued for tax deductions for all but the basic annual $10. members fee (Charitable Registration No.(0228114-56-13)
THE CIVIC GARDEN CENTRE, 777 LAWRENCE
AVENUE EAST (at Leslie), Don Mills, Ontario M3C 1P2
Name
Other Categories by annual subscription:
Sustaining Member
Contributing Member
$35.00 or more s
$50.00 or more ee
Supporting Member $100.00 or more
Donation to the Civic Garden Centre
I wish to become a member of the Civic Garden Centre in the category marked. Renewal [ ]
Enclosed is my cheque for §..................made out to the Civic Garden Centre. Please send my Trellis Newsletter to the following:
At the Civic Garden Centre you'll be among friends, people who share the same interests you do in gardening & horticultural things.
As a member, you enjoy free borrowing privileges from our Hort. Library's 5,000 books.
On regular priced merchandise over $2. you save 10% in our Shop.
You earn a discounted registration fee when enrolling in our classes.
Trellis newsletter will be mailed to you 10 times per year.
The Basic membership fee alone cannot meet our total operating costs. If you share our commitment to promoting horticulture, we ask you to consider other membership categories, which include tax deductible donations.
