Thank you to everyone who donated plants to, helped set up, worked at, or purchased plants at the Yorkton and District Horticultural Society Spring Plant Sale last week! It’s always a great sale with many lovely plants to add to your garden collection! Thank you to everyone who helped in any way to make it all happen!
As you know, the Yorkton and District Horticultural Society is planning a bus trip to Dauphin on Saturday, June 4, where we’ll visit gardens and greenhouses. At this point in time I am not sure if any seats are still available on the bus, but if you are interested to join us, please call Liz at (306) 782-2830 and she can tell you is there is still room.
And for hort club members, just a reminder that our wind-up pot-luck supper is happening on Wednesday, June 15 at 6:00 p.m.. This gathering is for members only (and significant other) so for complete details please call Liz at (306) 782-2830. Hope you’ll be able to be at this fun event before we begin our summer break!
I think that is all the housekeeping we have to deal with this time! So let’s make a cup of tea and sit down together for a moment or two. Do you go on a “garden tour” every day? Early morning is a wonderful time to take a stroll through the garden and see what is new. These past weeks have been filled with miracles like the apple tree blooming; hostas unfurling (makes me think of our Toby!); perennials popping up, and seeds sprouting, hurray!
One pretty sight I was able to enjoy on my “tour” recently was our white bleeding heart. We planted this little shrub in a corner that is often overlooked, but upon exploration, I was delighted to see a beautiful, arching stem of delicate white hearts in the morning sunshine.
Bleeding hearts are a classic, traditional shrub: almost every auntie had a bleeding heart in her garden, and I forever connect the plant with well-kept, much-loved gardens that had multitudinous flowers and vegetables tended with love by their doting caretakers. But I didn’t know any actual practical information about the bleeding heart, so time for some homework!
Bleeding heart is a perennial shrub that is very forgiving: it likes light shade, but will be happy to grow in full shade or full sun. It likes evenly moist soil (not wet), and if the soil becomes very dry, the plant might die back, but will come back again the following spring. If we are able to provide the plant with constant moisture, it will reward us by giving us blooms until mid-summer or slightly later.
My research told me that there could be a few problems that “may occur” with bleeding heart, such as mildew, wilt, or problems with slugs. But it sounds like these problems happen only occasionally, so we shouldn’t let them discourage us from this beautiful plant.
There are several types of bleeding heart: “spectabilis”, or the common bleeding heart, has a mound-like shape that is about 18 inches across. It will give us flowers in late spring and early summer, and likes light shade the best. “Formosa” or the western bleeding heart, grows low to the ground, perhaps eighteen inches high, but has a more spreading habit, up to thirty six inches across. This type of bleeding heart is more drought tolerant and can flower all summer. The “eximia” or fringed bleeding heart is more free-form and grows to about two feet in height, blooms in the spring, but doesn’t care for the summer heat and will stop blooming as the temperatures rise.
Bleeding hearts range in color from delicate pinks to white to the most familiar strawberry –and-cream red and white hearts. Whichever you choose, they will add a touch of classical elegance to your garden. Keep them in mind to plant next spring!
Good luck with the rest of your planting; have a great week and be sure to wear a hat!
