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On fertilizing your vegetable garden
New gardeners and even some veteran gardeners add far more garden fertilizer than their vegetables need, maybe causing plants to struggle.
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Photo:
Owen Clarkin, Swamp White Oak
By Owen Clarkin, Ottawa Field Naturalist Club. All photos courtesy of Owen.
One particularly interesting story from this summer is a population of apparently wild Swamp White Oaks discovered this summer (by Clayton Shearer) near Oak Valley (south of Winchester), including this magnificent roadside specimen:
Swamp White Oaks have been found along an at least 11.5 km stretch of the South Nation River so far centred approximately at the appropriately-named Oak Valley.
What is likely the largest living Rock Elm in the world is easily visible in Merrickville: this tree is approximately 92′ tall by 3.5′ avg diameter and appears to be a wild origin forest tree that predates the town itself.
An extensive population of Red Spruce and Acadian-type forest was discovered over the last few years, mainly existing on sandy soils, semi-continuously from Ottawa to the eastern edge of the province at Voyageur Provincial Park. Much of this area was unfortunately hard hit by the May 21 derecho event (we’re happy we mostly documented this forest before May!), and some of the notable mature trees have been lost. Some roadside trees are still standing and easily accessible, such as these:
For interesting forbs/shrubs, the Constance Bay sand hills (can park e.g. here: https://goo.gl/maps/zzxT7mz7HLay6GgPA ) offer an impressive diversity of locally rare/disjunct plants, such as Butterfly Milkweed, Hairy Puccoon, New Jersey Teas (both species), Sweetfern, Fragrant Sumac, American Hazelnut, etc.
There’s also some interesting plants in eastern Ontario from an eastern perspective for the province such as Rhodora, Greater Purple Fringed Orchid, Canada Lily, and maybe (unconfirmed but strongly suspected) Canada Serviceberry.
New gardeners and even some veteran gardeners add far more garden fertilizer than their vegetables need, maybe causing plants to struggle.
Explore the vibrant colors and various shapes of daylilies while learning about harvesting fresh produce from the garden. Discover the joy of making plum jam and growing delicious potatoes. Dive into the world of Rudbeckia laciniata hortensia and its benefits for your garden. Happy gardening!
Feed them 1 pound of 10-10-10 per 100 sq ft. of garden s Reward yourself with luscious blackberries – plant a Blackberry bush! Perfect for limited space, 1 bush can produce 20 white flowers and a large crop of juicy, sweet-tasting blackberries in zones 5-8 with bright sun and well-drained soil. Care & feeding instructions included.
The Canada anemone flower is an easy to maintain, dependable and hardy perennial ground cover that produces lovely white buttercup flowers.
Protect your family and pets from dangerous plants. Learn the names of poisonous plants and take necessary safety steps to prevent accidental poisoning.
Chamomile tea and green tea are among the 7 teas and herbs that reduce anxiety and improve sleep which we discuss here.
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