Organic Gardening News

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Mother's Day is just around the corner, so my mom and I teamed up to create the ultimate Mother's Day gift guide for you and the mother-figures in your life!

The world's first bioluminescent plant is finally affordable! Snatch yours up before they sell out.

Flowers, stunning outdoor containers and hanging baskets, richly perfumed flowering shrubs and fragrant herb gardens all make wonderful gifts for Mother’s Day, not only because of their beauty, but also by their connection to nature.

One of the most satisfying pastimes in our gardens and patios is watching pollinators like bees and butterflies coming to our plants for nectar and pollen, so selecting baskets and containers that attract pollinators creates added value and enjoyment.

Lavender has become so popular for those two reasons; both their beautiful perfume and the fact that they attract a wide range of pollinators. The hardy angustifolia lavenders are the best for our garden beds. But in containers on the deck or patio, the newer Spanish varieties, like Anouk, although not as winter hardy, will bloom all summer long and are a constant attractor. It’s nice to see them grown as a standard or small tree form that is very attractive, especially when underplanted with complementary annuals like lantanas, petunias, Angelonia, heliotrope and zinnias or perennials like nepeta, or beautiful, long-blooming Agastache or hyssop. All of these broaden the scope of pollinator attraction and add greater texture to your plantings.

They are not in bloom just yet, but the many new varieties of non-invasive and highly perfumed buddleias are very attractive patio plants and draw so many pollinators, including our local butterfly species. It’s a pleasure to enjoy their constant perfume and fascinating to see the beneficial insects buddleias sustain. Some of the best new varieties are Proven Winner’s Pugster, Miss, and Lo & Behold series, and the great new Darwin Chrysalis series which has a wide range of colours. All are very compact, ideal in containers and beautifully perfumed.

Attracting hummingbirds to our gardens and patios has become a huge event. There are many plants that help attract them: The narrow-tubed fuchsias, and perennial and annual blue salvias are good, but the best attractor is the hardy annual cuphea. This so-called cigar plant, with its long, narrow, orange tubes of nectar is the No. 1 hummingbird magnet, with Proven Winner’s variety called c. Vermillionaire being the most effective. I like to use them in hanging baskets, as well as in containers on the deck, for a constant attraction and food source.

Shallow bird baths are a great gift for year-round enjoyment. They provide an important water source for both birds and pollinators. It’s nice to watch these garden visitors, but it’s important to keep the water shallow, and a little muddy for the safety of small species.

If Mom has a primarily sunny deck or patio, one of the most welcome gifts is a reasonably good-sized container with a small tree that will live year-round. They not only help cool patios and decks in the summer heat but can also provide much needed screening and privacy.

Japanese maples, contorted willows, especially the red or yellow-barked varieties, styrax or Japanese snowballs, and sourwood or oxydendrums, make ideal patio trees. If you’re underplanting with pollinator plants, you’ll be surprised at what you attract to your garden. Hummingbirds love blue salvias and the Rockin’ series of blue, purple and fuchsia salvias from Proven Winners are some of the best for them. In the mixed planters in front of our office it’s great to see hummingbirds drinking nectar from the salvia, while others sit and wait in the curly willow trees.

Beautifully scented lilacs, which bloom around Mother’s Day, make a wonderful gift, but it’s both Proven Winner’s Bloomerang varieties and the new Flowerfesta series that bloom a second time in August for a much-anticipated return of perfume. They come in both tree and shrub forms so they can adapt to different locations.

With our ongoing food security issues, patio food gardens, which require minimal care, have become far more appreciated. Tumbler and Tumbling Tom basket tomatoes are still the very best for a constant supply of cherry tomatoes all summer long. Peppers are some of the easiest to grow in containers, and if you put some sweet Bell types in at least a twelve-inch container, you can enjoy red, yellow, orange, green and purple peppers throughout the summer.

Cucumbers have come a long way in their patio versatility. I love the new Mini-Me miniature Burpless varieties because they produce so many four-inch long miniature cukes in a matter of 45 days after setting out. Use a sturdy trellis for the vines to grow on, and the bigger the trellis, the more fruit you will harvest.

Hanging basket strawberries have also become increasingly popular because the newer everbearing varieties like Berries Hill Montana are huge, succulent, and will produce well into September.

Containerized herb gardens are a wonderful source of texture, fragrance and culinary variety to have handy on the patio. Be sure to use the most popular herbs like rosemary, chives, sage, thyme, dill and fun mints like Mojito. The strong citrus essence of lemon verbena is perfect when added to summer drinks and smaller bay trees provide a constant source of fresh leaves to enhance so many soup and stew recipes. Wait until we get quite warm weather before setting basil outside: it’s the heat lover of all herbs.

Although not super-hardy for winter, miniature roses, especially pretty when grouped with several colours planted together in larger pots, will bloom all summer and well into fall.

For sun-drenched summer patios, today’s hot new plants are the mandevillas. Coming in a range of colour from pinks, reds, whites and now yellows, they are one of the few plants that thrive in summer heat, and bloom until October. They are available now in shrub forms as well as trailing hanging basket types which can double as fast spreading vines. All of them flower heavily and add wonderful tropical accents to our patios and gardens.

The added value of attracting nature to our decks, gardens and patios is something Moms really appreciate and it’s the perfect connection to Mother Nature, too.

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Weekly roundup of three properties that recently sold in Metro Vancouver.

947 22nd St., West Vancouver

Type: Three-bedroom, three-bathroom detached

Size: 3,395 square feet

B.C. Assessment: $3,572,000

Listed for: $3,698,000

Sold for: $3,474,900

Sold on: Jan. 19

Days on market in this listing: 85

Listing agent: John Jennings at Royal LePage Sussex – John Jennings

Buyers agent: Holly Calderwood PREC at Royal LePage Sussex

The big sell: This West Vancouver home charms not just on the inside but on the outside too where thoughtfully landscaped gardens provide a lush and extremely private oasis with paved walkways, vegetable and herb gardens, and patios for relaxing or entertaining. The property was built in 1998 in Dundarave, incorporating many natural elements such as a stone-clad exterior and wood accents throughout the interior including exposed beams, hardwood floors, and wood-trim windows. Overheight ceilings and clerestory windows flood the home with natural light complemented by a neutral colour palette that enhances the feeling of space. The layout is divided between two levels with vaulted ceilings supporting chandelier lighting, polished concrete floors, a roll top bathtub, three fireplaces, and an outdoor stone-surround terrace reminiscent of an Italian villa.

5411 McColl Cres., Richmond

Type: Four-bedroom, two-bathroom detached

Size: 2,251 square feet

B.C. Assessment: $1,345,000

Listed for: $1,299,900

Sold for: $1,287,000

Sold on: Feb. 4

Days on market in this listing: Eight

Listing agent: Shafik Ladha PREC and Winnie Chen at ReMax Westcoast

Buyers agent: A.J. Schianni at Sutton Group Seafair Realty

The big sell: One of the advantages of this four-bedroom family home in Richmond’s Hamilton district is that it backs onto greenbelt as well as having a sizeable deck and garden to the rear from which to relax and enjoy it. The house itself was built in the early 1990s with more than 2,200 square feet of living space divided between two levels. The majority of the layout is on the main floor where there are three bedrooms on one side of the house including a primary bedroom equipped with an ensuite and walk-in closet, and an open plan living and dining room, a family room, and an updated kitchen with granite countertops and stainless-steel appliances on the other side. The upper level has a 24-foot-long recreation room that doubles as a fourth bedroom. Laminate flooring has been installed, as well as heat pumps, an upgraded roof and hot water tank, and a new EV outlet for added convenience.

32 – 2325 Ranger Ln., Port Coquitlam

Type: Three-bedroom, three-bathroom townhouse

Size: 1,450 square feet

B.C. Assessment: $952,000

Listed for: $929,900

Sold for: $905,000

Sold on: Feb. 11

Days on market in this listing: 10

Listing agent: Rod Bahari PREC at Sutton Group – West Coast Realty

Buyers agent: Sasha Hahn PREC at eXp Realty

The big sell: Mosaic built their riverfront master-planned Fremont community near the Traboulay PoCo Trail, Dominion Park, Fremont Village, and transit routes, as well as providing residents with the River Club, a resort-style facility with amenities that include an outdoor swimming pool, fitness centre, lounge, and children’s play area. This particular unit resides in Fremont Blue (the other buildings that make up the development are also named after colours) and enjoys an end-unit position. The three-level interior has nine-foot-high ceilings, a modern kitchen with quartz counters, and generous cabinet and preparation space, two bedrooms upstairs served by two bathrooms, a lower level with a third bedroom and full bathroom, and a fully-fenced yard mainly laid to grass. It comes with a single garage plus an open parking space, and a monthly maintenance fee of $415.80.

These transactions were compiled by Nicola Way of BestHomesBC.com.

Realtors – send your recent sales to nicola@besthomesbc.com

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