Gardeners, I have a couple events to tell you about: Yorkton Seedy Saturday (formerly the Prairie Sun Seed Festival) is happening on Saturday, March 11 beginning at 12:30 p.m. at Dr. Brass School in Yorkton. There will be displays, booths, and presentations with many new gardening ideas for us to learn about! That’s Saturday, March 11.
And if you are interested in going on a one-day bus trip to Saskatoon on Saturday, March 25 to visit Gardenscape, here is your chance! If you have ever been to Gardenscape, you know how exciting it is to see all those amazing garden ideas after a long cold winter; and if you have never been there, you will be astounded at the many fascinating things for gardens, yards and patios. The website describes it like this: “Be the first to buy the newest gardening and plant products of the season. Saskatchewan Blue Cross Gardenscape continues to attract exhibitors from all across western Canada located in 4 halls of the Trade and Convention Centre. Patrons will find a full range of products and services from industry experts for garden life and outdoor living.” See more information by logging on to www.gardenscapeshow.ca it will be a fun day, so if you would like to be part of this road trip, call Liz at (306) 782-2830.
Did you get a catalogue from T & T Seeds in Winnipeg? (If not, you still can, log on to www.ttseeds.com to request one!). It’s a great catalogue, full of lush, glossy pictures of flowers and vegetables that make me want to order one of everything! T & T also states that “T&T Seeds does NOT sell any GMO products.”.
I’ll tell you about some things that look very interesting. Right on the first page there is a snow pea, “Snow Pea Purple” that is described as “dwarf sized plants with delicate purple flowers. The compact yet productive plants are beautiful in any garden space, from containers to standard rows. Early maturing, bright green, shiny pods are flat and crunchy.” Doesn’t that sound great? Imagine stepping out on your back step and picking a handful of fresh snow peas for a stir-fry! Yummy!
There is also a kale called “Prizm” that likes to grow in containers. The catalogue says “Their easy-to-maintain, almost stemless stalks are quick to re-leaf so harvest early and often for a continual supply throughout the season.” I love kale; it’s one of those veggies that Mom grew in her garden long, long before it achieved rock-star status in the gardening world. Lightly steamed with a pat of butter and squirt of lemon, it is delicious! And it sounds like this variety would be excellent raw, as well.
And I have to tell you about a cucumber called “The Parisian Gherkin”, a new kind of mini cuke that can grow in the garden or staked in a container. The catalogue says that it is easy to grow and disease resistant; and from the picture it is cute as a button and looks so appetizing! See what I mean, there are so many wonderful things to try!
Let’s flip ahead to the flowers: one described as “eye-catching drama” is celosia “Dracula”. This is a novelty celosia with one big flower on each plant. It is a very deep red, and would look stunning in a border. Celosia was one of my first “grown up” gardening plants as a child; luckily that year conditions were right to make it grow well, and I remember I was absolutely tickled pink when my celosia produced the brightly-colored cockscombs! And you know, it is still just as exciting!
Think about the bus trip, and call Liz if you’d like to come along. Have a good week!
