Lather...Rinse...Repeat

...oh, and of course dry off in the 5 mins of sun we got today.

Cone-tasmic

I was wondering if the new growth on the weeping white pine would ever stop going skyward (ie not too much weeping going on)...well over the last couple days I have noticed about 50-60 little cones starting to form. I guess with all that weight, the weeping shall begin!

Family reunion

We had a nice time at the Street family reunion this past weekend. Michelle and Mike were great hosts and the weather was perfect. Good to see everybody again...now we just need to get Isaac some bubble-blowing lessons...other side buddy!

Visit to Hosta Choice Gardens

A local open garden tour last week reminded me how great Hosta's are....so with not much going on this weekend and a beautiful day for a drive, we took a short trip to Hosta Choice Gardens. Last year it was closed but this year it is back running under new management. Worth the trip if you are in the area.

School Fun Fair

Ben's school held a fun fair this past week; the whole school yard had different events happening.

Liv has her ticket.

Reluctantly becoming Spiderman


Presentation by Raptor Conservancy
Barn Owl


The End

Iris time

The irises are just starting to come out. Lots of buds this year. This is 'Orinoco Flow' just after the rain.

Swing into Spring

Conifer growth

Spring allium

Heeeeeere's Isaac!

This picture made me laugh...reminds me of Jack Nicholson in The Shining.

Potential

Japanese Maples

The recent string of nice days has pushed all the maple buds open.

'Emperor 1'

'Katsura'

'Inaba Shidare'

'Aka Kawa Hime'

'Purple Ghost'

'Shaina'

'Goshiki Kotohime'

'Skeeter's Broom'

Weeping Larch, Year 2

It is amazing how this tree comes back from what looks like a tangled bunch of dead wood. It is pretty cool as it starts to green from the bottom up.

New Bamboo

Well, overwintering the bamboo from last fall in a buried pot did not work...so that one is going back and I found a new one. This is Fargesia Rufa 'Green Panda'. It is a clumping bamboo that is non-invasive and cold hardy. I found it at one of the local garden centres that I usually go to - Gardenland. This is the first year that they have carried it. It is by Epic Perennials as part of their Impact line. Pretty good deal at 15$.

Enjoying the weekend

What a beautiful start to the weekend. Although, it is supposed to storm pretty good tonight. Ben, Olivia and Isaac spent all day out in the back; Isaac especially loves running around out there, but there is always time for a cookie!

New additions

The good weather the weekend got the garden juices flowing again. We took a trip to Whistling Gardens and picked up a few things. The owner is a great guy and when he is done his setup is going to be amazing. He has a lot of rare and hard to find conifers and japanese maples. We picked up Acer Palmatum 'Purple Ghost', Acer Palmatum 'Aka Kawa Hime' (dwarf Coral bark) and a young Weeping Norway Spruce.
They are all young specimens, but should grow pretty quickly from what I read.

Acer Palmatum 'Aka Kawa Hime'


Acer Palmatum 'Purple Ghost'


Picea Abies 'Pendula'

Goshiki Kotohime

On the way thru Niagara on the Lake to visit my folks on the weekend, we stopped at a nursery that I have been wanting to get to for a while. It is called Mori Gardens and it is one of the best that I have been to. They have a great selection of Japanese Maples and other rare plants.
I was on a limited budget and could only go with one this time, so I chose a small Goshiki Kotohime Japanese Maple. Should get about 4 ft x 4 ft and has some nice spring colouring on the leaves.
Definitely have to make it a routine to stop here on the way thru.

Tales from the Sugar Bush

Nina and her sisters took all the kids to one of the local maple syrup demos going on in the area. She said it was REALLY muddy but they all had a good time.

Spring flight

Looks like spring may actually be coming...lots of buds showing, and lots of birds in the yard; the red wing blackbirds are back too, forgot how much I like their song.

Two new coneflowers on the wishlist for 09

One of the better garden centres in the area posted their 09 online catalogue today and I found 2 new coneflower (echinacea) that I want to add to my collection. The first is called Hot Papaya and is a double orange flower, the other is Milk Shake which is a double creamy white flower. Both are pretty pricey right now...have to wait for year end sales I guess.

Milk Shake


Hot Papaya