Year of the Tomato

The American National Garden Bureau has declared 2011 the Year of the Tomato.   I hope 2011 proves to be a better year for growing tomatoes than 2010.  If you recall, last year many gardeners experienced the Late Tomato Blight that destroyed many tomato gardens almost overnight.  We had cool, moist, windy weather mid to late summer and this provided perfect conditions for the fungal pathogen, Phytophthera, to spread rapidly infesting the foliage and ultimately the fruit.  If you had a problem last year and you are planning to grow tomatoes again this year, it is very important to properly clean and remove any overwintering residue that might be harboring the fungus. This disease is not usually a problem in our northern climate as the conditions must be perfect and the fungus present for it to take hold, so don't be afraid to try your luck at another crop of tomatoes.  Tomatoes are generally easy to grow and there is nothing like a fresh, ripe tomato off the vine.  For more information about growing tomatoes, go to http://www.ngb.org/ and click on the 'Year of the ...' tab.

Planning for Spring

Even though there is still alot of snow on the ground and the temperatures are still below average, now is a good time to start planning for spring.  If you have a vegetable garden, start thinking about what vegetables you might want to grow and how much.  Take a visit to a garden centre and check out their seeds on display.  Every year there are new and exciting varieties to try.  Some might include the Dwarf French Bean 'Amethyst', Picasso Spinach, Watermelon Radish, Nandor Carrot, Salad Mixed Radish, Spacemaster Cucumber and Healthkick Roma tomato.  It is not too early to pick out your seeds.

If you have containers to fill, don't restrict yourself to just 'flowering annuals'.  Colourful annuals are beautiful but also explore other plant material, such as tropical plants, grasses, succulents, perennials, shrubs, evergreens and small trees.  Of course, the size of the container, as well as exposure, will determine what size of plant or number of plants you can put in the container.  Also note that most perennials will not overwinter in containers in our northerrn climate, but perform well during our growing season.  If you do some research now, then you will be ready when it is time to garden.  After all we have to make the most of our short season.

Last Call

If you need to prune your Elm trees, you have until April 1st to do so or wait until October.  It is important to comply with the Provincial pruning ban during this time because the elm bark beetle, responsible for spreading the deadly fungus, becomes active.  If a cut is made at this time, the beetles become attracted to the scent of a fresh wound and ultimately infect a healthy tree.  Once a tree has been infected, it will die within one year.  This disease has wiped out many of the Elms in most Canadian cities but Alberta and British Columbia are the only two Provinces which still have beautiful healthy Elms.  We need to keep Alberta and B.C. free from Dutch Elm Disease!

National Tree Day

I am pleased to announce that Canada now has one day each year to celebrate and recognize its trees.  Our members of parliament recently voted in favor to set aside each Wednesday of National Forest Week to be  National Tree Day.  This is a move in the right direction to help Canadians learn and understand how important our trees are for our health, economy and environment especially in our ever increasing urban communities.  So mark September 21st, 2011 as our first National Tree Day and get involved.