Am I Blue?
July 16, 2010 – 10:57 pmYou bet. And sweet. Harvest started.
And while we are talking colour, ever seen a blue tomato?
Balcony Garden – Blooming this Week
July 12, 2010 – 10:10 am
Potentilla shrubs are native to Alberta and the common yellow-flowering variety is considered by some to be a ‘gas station’ shrub, because they are tough, drought-tolerant, can survive in poor soil and be completed neglected for a while before they final succumb.
But take this much maligned shrub and shrink it down to an alpine variety and you get a pretty rock cinquefoil with a white flower that looks right at home nestled up to some rocks in a trough.
Potentilla rupestris nana is in bloom on the balcony right now. It will grow to be about 10cm (4 inches) high and wide. I really like the dark green foliage and although the first blooms on this young plant are going to be short-lived, the bold yellow centre is quite lovely. I have grown the yellow-flowering variety, and the spectacular red- flowering Potentilla atrosanguinea. Common indeed, but a balcony gardener favourite.
Sweet Snacks
July 8, 2010 – 10:10 am
Bringing in the harvest is always an exciting time, but I have to admit, there’s a certain amount of produce that doesn’t ever make it to the apartment. One of the true pleasures of gardening is being able to sample and enjoy fruit and vegetables warmed by the sun. Now these strawberries are pretty sweet and loaded with seeds. Needless to say, they are best eaten early in the morning when puttering around the garden.
Not only is the fruit ready now, but the happy plant is setting more flowers. This plant could be moved into a sunnier location – ideally strawberries should be getting 6+ hours of sunlight each day. But it is producing a good quantity of runners and because it’s tucked in between the troughs the neighbourhood birds have yet to discover that I’ve serving breakfast snacks of the balcony if they wanted to indulge.
Unfortunately I haven’t had any luck wintering over a strawberry plant. I always intend to take it downstairs and tuck it into the bigger planters around our building, but each fall, I never quite get that done before things start to freeze up.
I’ve also got a small blueberry bush that has set fruit. First time trial for me. It’s a Duke Blueberry that is supposed to be cold hardy and resistant to frost damage. But it’s definitely an annual on the balcony. I can only hope the rock-hard green berries eventually turn the right colour. Agriculture Alberta says that ‘blueberries should be grown in full sun, like acidic soil and need a good supply of water during fruit production. Good snow cover and constant cold are essential for the winter survival of the blueberry. Two cultivars from Minnesota, Northblue and Northern Country, are worthy of trial in gardens with acid soils.’
You’ll be the first to know if the blueberries ripen.
Room For One More
July 4, 2010 – 11:10 am
One of the big advantages of having a balcony garden in a challenging growing zone is that every year can be a new layout, with new plant combinations and new containers. Most gardeners know that they can always find a place for another plant, but on a balcony, that certainty is often tested. After almost ten years, I’ve gotten to know how much I need to buy to either replace or add to the plant portfolio. And it took a few years to figure that out, after having moved from tending my large perennial garden in the inner city.
I try to be really deliberate about adding new containers now but I still buy a plant or two too many each year. But guess what? There is always room for one more. Here’s a selected 2010 plant list.
Perennials and Alpines | Androsace sempervivoides, Ptilotrichum spinosum, Athyrium Branford Beauty Fern, Lewisia cotyledon v. purdyi, Clematis alpina, Stolwijk Gold, Clematis v. macropetala, Acantholimon ulcinum ssp. Ulcinum v. purpureum, Paraquilegia microphylla, Cystopteris Fragilis, fern, Saxifrage purpurascens, Saxifraga x urbium Elliot’s Variety, Saxifrage crustata, Saxifraga minutifolia, Erigeron linearis, Potentilla rupestris nana, Hepatica nobilis, Aquilegia bertolonii, Chamaecyparis pisifeera ‘Aurea Compacta, Sempervivum, Maihuenia patagonica, Agave utahensis v kaibabensis, Agave parryi v couesii, Sasa tsuboiana, spreading groundcover bamboo
Edibles | Duke Blueberries, Strawberries, Tumbling Tom and Sun Gold tomatoes, Mentha spicata, spearmint, Mentha suaveolens, apple mint, Carrots, Mixed Spicy Greens, Beans, Garden Salsa Peppers, Arugula, Rosemary, Apple Mint, Spearmint
In the Ponds | Myriophyllum ‘brasilliensis, Red Stemmed Parrot Feather, Caltha palustris , Marsh Marigold, Hydrocharis morsus-ranae, Frog Bit, Azolla caroliniana, Fairy Moss
Balcony Garden – Blooming this Week
June 28, 2010 – 10:10 am
As you know, I’m not a big fan of annuals, but every year I get sucked into buying a few. It’s either the colour, or a memory connected to a plant. I was so close to not buying any but succumbed when I saw these two plants together.
Calibrachoa Superbells Tickled Pink and Hypoestes phyllostachya happen to share the same pink base colour. So you just can’t go wrong partnering these two together. The calibrachoa is really easy to grow and will probably take over the polka-dotted plant by mid-summer – just how I planned it because the decorative foliage doesn’t like the hot sun. Hypoestes phyllostachya also likes a bit if humidity. Sorry about that, shade is going to be the only thing I can provide, although I have the annual containers tucked close to the ponds.
The pink calibrachoa is settling in and starting to bloom profusely this week – and with a little bit of attention, those blooms will continue to frost. That’s another good reason to by annuals.
Balcony Garden – Blooming this Week
June 21, 2010 – 10:10 am
I have two pepper plants in bloom this week and they are also starting to produce fruit. Variety is Garden Salsa. Erin in Iowa is also growing the same variety on her balcony. Maturity is 73 days and the slim shaped peppers should measure about 23 cm (9 inches) when fully grown.
This is the first year for this pepper on the balcony and so far, so good. These plants have been in and out of the apartment for the last month as evening temps have dropped, but lucky for me they didn’t drop their flowers. This pepper is a relatively short plant and could be easily tucked into a mixed container planting.
Spring Tour
June 17, 2010 – 10:10 amIt’s been a cold, wet spring. The tomatoes have suffered, and I replaced the ones that are in this video. I mean, when you have short growing season, sometime you just have to admit that the gamble of pushing the growing envelop, even on a protected, south facing balcony didn’t pay off. So from Sun Golds to Tumblers the vegetable garden evolves.
The only other thing that the cold weather has impacted is the ponds. Experience tells me that no matter how tempting the water plants are at the warm, totally protected nursery, it’s best just to leave them there.
Fish on the other hand are a different matter. Pond comets can take the cold. I was disappointed to learn that our local, downtown pet store had closed. So a forced trip to the burbs to find comets is at hand this week. Haven’t had fish on the balcony for a couple of years. They are pretty easy to look after, will nibble of floating pond plants and are good alone for the weekend if you go away. The perfect pet for some.
Foliage Follow-up
June 16, 2010 – 7:15 amThere is only so much space on a balcony. Sometimes it’s challenging to inter-plant vegetables into mixed container plantings. Herbs seem to be easier. But when you have a close-up look at vegetable, fruit and herb foliage, you can see the possibilities. Nice textures, variegated colours and a wide variety of textures, shapes and sizes. So many choices.
Balcony Garden – Blooming this Week
June 14, 2010 – 10:10 am
What’s notable about the saxifrage that is in flower right now on the balcony is the amount of flowers that it has set this year. Now this plant, which was planted three years ago as a single plant has grown to a mound that measures about 30.5 cm (12 inches) in diameter. It has been blooming for the last two weeks and has at least 2 or 3 more weeks of bloom left. The thing that I like is that the flower stalks that are 38-51 cm (15-20 inches) high and are thick and tough, so they take the wind.
A great pick for a balcony garden.
Balcony Garden – Blooming this Week
June 8, 2010 – 8:00 am
Caltha palustris, Marsh marigold is in flower in the pond this week. This is one of the first pond plants to bloom. The stems, which are a beautiful dark purple at their base are about 30.5 cm (12 inches) tall and the single flowers are about 2.5 cm (1 inch) across. This one takes full sun but will also be happy in partial shade. It’s in bloom right now at Reader Rock Garden where it grows in the dappled shade beside the little stream that runs through the property. So it is hardy in Zone 3. It’s still to cold out for most of the pond plants you can buy here at the greenhouse – but this one is a great choice to get the ponds going.
Marsh marigold is found across Canada. In the Rockies, this plant flowers beside mountain streams and swampy areas. Elk feed on leaves (as well as the occasional moose I bet) , but just because they do doesn’t mean you should. This plant will make you sick. I’ve read the if you boil the leaves, stem and flowers, you can get rid of the poison. But I’ll admit this is one dare I’m not taking – I’ll just enjoy the flowers.