Get out your calendars, gardeners, and let’s mark down two upcoming dates: Saturday, March 14 is the date of the Prairie Sun Seed Festival, hosted by the Assiniboine Food Security Alliance. The event begins at 12:30 and goes till 4:00 p.m. at Yorkdale Central School. This is a great event with a variety of booths and displays, as well as interesting speakers including our group’s own Glen Tymiak speaking about “Gardening 101”. I know Glen will have great advice for any gardener, novice or not! That’s Saturday, March 14.
Then on Wednesday, March 18, at 7:00 p.m. at SIGN on North Street, join us for the next meeting of the Yorkton and District Horticultural Society. Our special guest speaker will be our own Frank Woloschuk who will be telling us “The Secrets To Large Container Planting” and also “What’s New At The Greenhouses for 2015”. Frank is a wonderful gardener, and makes magic with his stunning container plantings, so I know we will be in for a treat! We’ll get lots of inspiration for the year ahead. That date again, Wednesday, March 18.
I’d like to tell you about some very lovely garden ideas that I read about recently. If you and I could take a road trip right now, I wish we could go to the the Sicilian town of Caltagirone. As Sophia from “The Golden Girls” used to say, “Picture it: Sicily 2015”. Let’s imagine our trip: after we enjoyed a yummy meal of pasta at an outdoor café, we’d start walking to the 142 step staircase of La Scala di Santa Maria Del Monte. No, we’re not trying to wear off that pasta climbing the stairs! What we want to see is the interesting ceramic tiles of the steps, each one different from the last. (In fact, the entire town is known for its beautiful ceramics; let’s buy something special as a souvenir to take home!)
And guess what is on each of these steps? Beautiful potted plants! The village arranges potted plants in intricate patterns on these 142 steps, and during the Flower Festival of Caltagirone, La Scala Infiorata, visitors from all over come to see what beautiful designs the local gardeners have created. All this happens from May 8 to June 2, in honor of Our Lady of Conadomini, the protector of Caltagirone. (Just as a note, if we could come back on July 24 and 25, we would see the same steps decorated with handmade lanterns, creating stunning patterns of light!) Just because the stairs are decorated doesn’t mean we can’t use them: we can walk up and down and see what plants are being used.
How can we take that information from Italy and use it here? Well, for one thing, it gives us an interesting idea for potted plants on our own steps, even if there are just a few. We can try to create a pattern incorporating color and/or texture.
Imagine it for a minute: three cobalt blue flower pots planted full of frilly red petunias, and arranged in a staggered pattern on three steps. Wouldn’t that be visually striking? Or how about three clay planters, one planted with dark green parsley, the next planted with medium green basil, and the top one planted with soft gray-green sage. The gradation from light to dark in the foliage would be beautiful! Gardening ideas are everywhere! .
The Yorkton and District Horticultural Society sends a message of sympathy to the family of Diann Putland of Churchbridge. Diann was a knowledgeable, gardener, remembered especially for her stunning lilies; she even developed and registered her own varieties. Our prayers are with her family in their loss.
