A noun. A verb. A blog.
Finding hidden gardens is always a sneaky treat. Sometimes they arrive all by themselves, or with help from humans, in tucked away places, like Toronto’s famous back alleys. These alleyways, constructed in many Toronto neighbourhoods to facilitate access to garages, usually extend the length of a block. There is something so timeless about walking down […]
Little did I think that when I dropped by The Stop Community Food Centre Green Barn at the Wychwood Barns on Thursday that Jamie Oliver would be hot on my heels. Sure enough, the super chef, food activist and all round cute guy visited The Stop the very next morning. Ah, my almost-brush-with-greatness. In the […]
With all the jackhammers and construction barriers at Nathan Phillips Square now, you might have missed seeing the new City Hall Podium Green Roof – especially as there’s no signage at the bottom of the ramp to direct you up to the podium for a visit. Too bad. Because the green roof is worth the […]
Toronto gardeners (or those who know and love them) need to go further for a great little gift or stocking stuffer than The Toronto Gardener’s Journal now updated for 2011. I first wrote about this information-packed gardening journal back in 2009. Besides the timely tips for each week beside your journal entries, the book is […]
Well grown vegetables can be highly ornamental As Sonia Day writes in the Toronto Star, a Toronto family has been ordered by the City to replace their front yard vegetable garden… with sod. Yep, sod. It’s a bit of a shock, with all this talk of food security. The garden clashes with a transportation by-law, […]
Taro plant with rescued and repurposed piece of decorative concrete. Vivian saves architectural pieces from demolition giving new life to old beautiful objects. As you approach Vivian Reiss’s Victorian house in Yorkville you know it’s no ordinary dwelling, but a house and garden space created by a gardener of unusual and vivid passions. There was […]
Through the Garden Gate is the major garden tour that’s an annual fundraiser for the Toronto Botanical Garden. Today, I attended a press preview. It was hot, it was bright (the worst kind of day for taking garden pictures), but it was oh, so worth it. I’m not saying this because it’s on my home […]
Mother’s Day weekend is proving to be windy and cold. Hope you weren’t fooled by the recent Floridian weather into planting too soon. Tomatoes, peppers and eggplants are among those pre-started plants that must be protected, especially overnight, when temps dip to near zero, as they could tonight and tomorrow. Certain vegetable seeds, including beans, […]
Because the trip took me through St. James Park beside the cathedral, I’m glad I decided to walk to the subway from my meeting yesterday, despite my inappropriate shoes. I won’t dwell on how I suffered. Instead, I’ll wax mildly poetic about Fritillaria imperialis, the crown imperial fritillaria. What an exotic bulb this is, with […]
When our youngest daughter was in 6th grade, she had to write a two-page short story. At page five, she was still writing, so I asked her why. “I can’t help it,” she exclaimed. “Things just keep happening!!” Things just keep happening on the garden calendar, too. Sunday, May 2nd is no exception, and one […]
Toronto’s Open Gardens 2010 program begins this Sunday afternoon in Parkdale with a chance to see the wonderful garden of gifted plantsman and all-round exemplary gardener Barry Parker. Don’t be put off by a little rain. Sarah and I visited Barry’s garden last October in the rain, which gave the plants an extra level of […]
Parents of high school students likely know that to graduate in Ontario kids need to complete 40 hours of volunteer time. Some do more. If yours are still looking for ways to contribute their time, read on. From April 18 to May 7, 2010, Change the World: Ontario Youth Volunteer Challenge hopes to get 10,000 students […]