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December 19, 2022 In Newsletter Articles, Newsletters, Uncategorized

Peonies Still Have a Place in My Garden

Early-blooming peony, name not remembered.

By Lenore Linton, Master Gardener

When we moved to our current house on July first 1962 the 75 foot lot was not a blank slate. In the centre was a fifty year old house surrounded with garden most of which was bare beds of cultivated soil with gravel paths in between. The previous owner had used these beds to grow and breed prize gladioli. There were however, some permanent plantings such as raspberries, rhubarb, an arbour of wild Manitoba grapes and a cultivar of an Isabelle Preston lilac. The arbour of wild grapes and the lilac still grace our garden today.READ MORE

December 19, 2022 In Newsletter Articles, Newsletters, Uncategorized

Interview with Board Member Diane Daignault

Interview with board member Diane Daignault

Newsletter (NL) How long have you been gardening?
Diane Daignault (DD) When I was a young child I remember picking peas in the garden with my mother and father. I should say I remember sitting in the pea patch eating the peas. My parents had two very large gardens when I was growing up. One was dedicated for potatoes only and I recall helping my father plant and harvest the potatoes. We had enough potatoes to sustain us for the whole winter, there were a lot of potatoes! I can still recall the smell of the earthiness and the feel of the soil and how much I enjoyed digging in the soil and being in the garden with my parents.READ MORE

October 31, 2022 In Newsletter Articles, Newsletters

Strengthening Community Climate Resilience: Citizens Play a Crucial Role

 

Strengthening Community Climate Resilience: Citizens play a crucial role in caring for both public and private trees

By Colleen Zacharias, Master Gardener

What can people do to support trees on their private properties but also newly planted trees in front of their properties? Learning the reasons to care about trees is the first step towards actively caring for trees. Let’s begin with the example of newly planted trees on residential boulevards.READ MORE

October 30, 2022 In Newsletter Articles, Newsletters

Interview with Board Member Linda Dietrick

 

 

Interview with Board Member Linda Dietrick

Newsletter (NL) How long have you been gardening?
Linda Dietrick (LD) I didn’t have my own garden until well into my thirties, when I married my husband and moved into his little North End bungalow. But I’m almost 71 now, so it’s been rather a long time!

NL: What kind of a garden do you have?
LD: For the last 20 years, I’ve gardened on a medium-sized property in leafy River Heights, but I’d still call the garden small, urban, and mixed. Like many gardeners, I love trying out interesting new perennials, annuals, and shrubs. The challenge I set myself is to provide a good home for hundreds of plants while creating and working within a satisfying design and a healthy ecosystem. By that I mean an intentional landscape with structure, colour, texture, and so on from early spring until snowfall, but also a place where birds, bees, butterflies and other beneficial creatures can share our space with us.READ MORE

October 30, 2022 In Newsletter Articles, Newsletters

Northern Pin Oak – Shooting for the Sky

By Rick Durand

Rick Durand spent most of his life in Manitoba but moved to West Kelowna, B.C. in 2013 to work for Bylands Nurseries. He continues to work on developing new prairie hardy trees, shrubs, roses and perennials. Rick Durand developed and leads the largest Dutch elm disease research program in CanadaREAD MORE

October 25, 2022 In Newsletter Articles, Newsletters

My Mysterious Agave.

By Marilyn N. Dudek, Master Gardener

How does one become attracted to growing an Agave for a houseplant? Or the many other tender Echeveria that take up residence in my home for the winter and summer outdoors? Is it the structural simplicity and perfection of their Fibonacci sequence of leaves?

August 2009

My agave journey began when our son and his family lived, for 15 years, in Scottsdale, Arizona. My husband and I spent our winters in Arizona, which introduced us to the beauty of the desert and to the many plant varieties of this beautiful area. Many agave plant varieties grow in abundance in the surrounding Sonoran desert, side by side with the stately Saguaro.

Agave are popularly known as ‘century plants’, referring to their longevity, although grown in nature not 100 years but closer to 30, or for producing tequila. The ‘century plant’ refers to Agave americana while the tequila references Agave tequilana ‘Weber Azul’. There are a number of subspecies, varieties and cultivars in the Agave plant kingdom. Many agaves are used ornamentally, in home and commercial desert landscapes, throughout the world.READ MORE

October 25, 2022 In Newsletter Articles, Newsletters

Sturgeon Creek Greenway Trail – A Volunteer Project

Helianthus pauciflorus, Rudbeckia hirta and Agastache foeniculum

Sturgeon Creek Greenway Trail – A Volunteer Project
Progress report since November 2021

By Diane Daignault, Master Gardner

Since spring 2022, our project members, Nancy Edwards, Janet Epp, Brenda Evans, Sharon Moffat, Joelle Potrebka, Virginia Stephenson, Diane Wall, Fran Wershler, Lisa Wong, and myself have been making positive strides on the project. The group has gathered at the project numerous times this summer to do maintenance on the site as well as planting and watering.READ MORE

October 7, 2022 In Uncategorized

Our Members Presenting in the Community

Growing a Tea Garden – Florence Carey
Winnipeg Public Library
October 28/22 – 12 – 1:00pm

If you like herbal teas, did you know that you can grow plants in your garden to make tea? This presentation with Master Gardener Florence Carey will cover common plants for the Manitoba tea garden, as well as how to grow, harvest, store, and enjoy them in tea.

Sun Mapping – Virginia Stephenson, Master Gardener
Charleswood Garden Club
November 9, 2022 – 7pm
Guests Welcome!

All About Succulents – Marilyn Dudek
Winnipeg Public Library Online Presentation
November 15/22 – 12 to 1pm

Master Gardener Marilyn Dudek will share her tips on succulents, and how to overwinter both tender outdoor succulents and succulent houseplants. Learn about keeping them healthy, and rejuvenating and …

 

October 1, 2022 In Uncategorized

Growing Prairie-Hardy Fruit

Join the Manitoba Master Gardener Association for this Zoom presentation with University of Saskatchewan fruit breeder Bob Bors and horticulturalist Sara Williams for an illustrated talk on hardy fruits that you can grow in your own garden. Learn about the latest introductions for the northern prairies like sour cherries and haskaps, as well as apples, pears, plums, saskatoons, raspberries, strawberries, and hazelnuts. The presentation will cover the selection, planting, and care of these fruits with the smaller home garden in mind. Register: www.mgmanitoba.com

 

 

September 12, 2022 In Newsletter Articles, Newsletters

Master Gardeners in Action – Secret Garden Project

Front: Wendy Bridgen MG, Agnes Tamoto MG, Igor Kaftan MG, Anne Marie Bell MG Back: Donna Gillis Intern, Bev Coutts MG, Ricardo, St. Andrew’s volunteer, Gosia Barrette Intern, Sharyn Wood Intern

Master Gardeners in Action – Secret Garden Project
St. Andrew’ s Rectory National Heritage Centre, 374 River Road, St. Andrew’s, Manitoba

By Agnes Tamoto, Master Gardener

On the grounds of the St. Andrew’s Heritage Centre there is a charming little secret garden. This garden was established sometime in the 1980’s. It was during that decade that Parks Canada took ownership of the St Andrew’s site and renovated the rectory. The ministers of St. Andrew’s Church continued to reside on the upper level of the rectory and used the garden as their own private space until 2010. The rectory houses a museum with recently updated exhibits as well as a small gift shop. The St. Andrew’s Rectory staff organize many events including children centred activities and garden related workshops.READ MORE