Landscape- NBCC Woodstock: A nice note....

Thursday, July 31, 2008

A nice note....

I just wanted to take a few minutes to let you know how much I appreciate the job that you and your students have done on our grounds. The landscaping is absolutely beautiful. Now that everything is starting to grow and flower, you can really appreciate the effort that you have put into it.

Thank you for making our College such a beautiful place to work!
From Eloise Wright- Purchasing

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Congradulations grads!

It was a star-studded night with awards, smiles, good-byes (for now) and wishes for the future. Congradulations, Terry for your great win- they sure kept that one a surprize! Time to ask for a raise? I hope everyone enjoys their jobs this summer and I hope they extend into next year. Some of you have already 'hopped that log'! Don't be strangers and if you feel like a visit and would like to chat with the new recruits, don't hesitate to contact me- you know where to find me....thanks for the memories, Landscape Class of 2008!(Todd sent his regards too) Check out this website for the latest on Hort East- November, 2008 in Halifax, N. S. http://www.horteast.ns.ca/

10 best Crabapple Trees- insect and disease resistant cultivars

'Centurion'- oval form- 7.5 x 7 m. rose red flowers, glossy red fruit that lasts, Z 5.
'Weeping Candied Apple'- 4.5 x.4 m. pink flowers, persistant, red furit, red-tinged leaves- Z 5b.
'Molten Lava'- weeping- 4.5 x 6 m., white flowers, persistant, red fruit, yellow fall colour- Z 4.
'Madonna'- weeping form, 6 x 3 m, double white flowers, yellow fruit.
'Sugar Tyme'- oval form, 4.5 x 4 m; white flowers, red fruit, persistant- Z 4.
'Prairiefire'- oval form, 6 x 6, dark pink flowers, dark red fruit, attractive bark- Z 4
'Indian Summer'- oval form- 6 x 5.5 m., rose pink flowers, persistant, red fruit and red fall foliage.
'Thunderchild'- spreading form- 6x6 m
'Dolgo'- spreading form- 9 x 10 m.- white flowers, purple fruit that is good for jelly- Z 2b
'Harvest Gold'- Columnar form- 9 x 4 m. pink flowers and yellow fruit that last until midwinter.

'Crabby' Crabs- ones to avoid- steer clear of these- highly susceptible to insects and disease

Top Ten Gardens We Want to Visit- Graduating Class of 2008

These are the gardens the students chose out of the book called '1001 Gardens You Must See Before You Die' by Rae Spencer-Jones. When they visit them, I hope they send pictures and thoughts to this blog!

Ryan B.- Edwards Gardens in Toronto, Ontario, Canada has 35 acres with a continental cool summer climate. It is famous for its rhododendrons, perennials and roses, an arboretum and a large rockery and natural garden.

Craig S.- Queen Victoria Park- Niagara Parks Commission, Niagara Falls, Ontario, Canada. This garden has 200 acres and sits beside the roaring falls. It is known for its daffodils, magnolias and tulips and roses and carpet bedding displays.

Ryan E.- Walt Disney World Resort- 4,000 acre Theme Park- Zone 9b, Lake Buena Vista, Florida, U.S. These gardens were inspired by the formal gardens of Europe. It is one of the largest gardens of the world. '350 horticultural professionals tend the 3 million bedding plants and thousands of trees and roses and over 200 pieces of topiary.' You can also have a 'Behind the Scenes Tour' where you can explore the horticultural facilities.

Terry H.- Sizergh Castle, Cumbria, England-16 acres, temperate climate- 14th century castle and gardens- known for its ponds, borders, lawns, a kitchen garden and a huge rock garden.

Nicole B.- Chatsworth, Derbyshire, England- 100 acres- temperate climate, Serpentine Walk, a 1698 greenhouse, pond, stone wall and an Emperor Fountain, rare wildflowers and grasses.

Tyler L.- Kromeriz Castle- Czech Republic- 32 acres- 17th century Italian baroque landscape, temperate climate. It features an 800 foot long ornamental gallery- now used as a viewing point. It also has parterres, a terrace garden and flower gardens. It was placed on the UNESCO World Heritage List in 1998.

Sarah Y.- Isola Del Garda- in Lombardia Italy. Fifteen acres on an island with a Meditteranean climate featuring mutlilayered formal gardens, parterres, roses and a 'fantastic grove of swamp cypresses.'

Lindsay S.- Les Jardins de La Momounia, Morocco- 20 acres with a Mediterranean climate. It features ancient olive trees, roses, palm trees and a walled garden clothed in bouganvillea. It was also used as a film set for one of Alfred Hitchcock's movies.

Richard G.- Adelaide Botanic Gardens- South Australia, Australia- 101 acres with a Mediterranean climate. Avenues of plane trees, a palm house, a rose garden, and an ultramodern Bicentennial Conservatory which houses the garden's collection of lowland tropical rainforest plants.

Top 15 Best Books- couldn't keep it to 10!

Any or all of Lois Hole's books- Perennial Favourites or Rose favourites
'Weeds of the Woods'- by Glen Blouin- dogeared!
'Newcomb's Wildflower Guide' by Lawrence Newcomb- dogeared!
'A Field Guide to Wildflowers' of Northeastern North America- a Peterson Field Guide series- Dogeared!
"Healthy Soil (Best of Fine Gardening)"- by Fine Gardening editors
Common-Sense Pest Control: Least-Toxic Solutions for Your Home, Garden, Pets and Community by William Olkowski
'Great Gardens in Small Spaces'- by Karen Dardick-published by Rizzoli publications
'How to get your lawn and garden off drugs'- by Carole Rubin
'The Ornamental Vegetable Garden' by Diana Anthony-published by Warwick Publishing
'101 Townhouse Garden Designs' by Joel M. Lerner- published by HP Books
'Herb Garden Design' by Faith H. Swanson and Virginia B. Rady- dogeared!
'Lawns for Canada' by Don Williamson- Lone Pine Publishing
'Natural Insect and Disease Control'- edited by Barbara Ellis and Fern Bradley- Rodale Garden Books- Dogeared!
'Trees in Canada' by John Farrar- published by Fitzhenry and Whiteside Ltd. and the Canadian Forest Service of Natural Resources Canada.- dogeared!
'The Heirloom Garden' by Jo Ann Gardner- Storey Communications, Inc.- dogeared!

Top 10 Best Organic Sprays for your Garden

Anti-transpirants are effective in preventing disease like powdery mildew and black spot on trees, shrubs and perennials.
Safer's Insecticidal Soap- a soap high in fatty acid content that kills insects. Not harmful to plants or mammals. Also formulations available with fungicidal properties.
Soap drenches- soap and water solutions used to flush chinch bugs, cutworms and other bugs to the soil surface. Also used as an organic pesticide applied directly to plants in a water solution. Can be made from a mild pH-balanced soap such as Ivory or Basic H or Mr. Clean
BT- Bacillus thuringiensis- microbial biological control of caterpillars- cabbage loopers, codling moth larvae, diamondback moths, gypsy moth larvae, spruce budworms, also blackfly larvae, mosquito larvae, also elm leaf beetles. Selective- will not harm majority of beneficial insects- however will harm butterfly larvae. Many types of BT on market.
All Purpose Insect Pest Spray- any leaf-eating insect. Chop, grind or liquefy 1 garlic bulb and 1 small onion. Add 1 tsp. of powdered cayenne pepper and mix with 1 quart of water. Steep one hour, strain and add 1 T. of liquid dish soap and mix well. Use in one week and keep in the refrigerator.
For a whole plant spray to treat scale, dilute 1-2 cups of isopropyl alcohol with 1 quart of water- don't spray in the sunshine!
Garlic oil- use it to control aphids, cabbageworms, leafhoppers, larval mosquitos, squashbugs and whiteflies. Soak 3 oz. of finely minced garlic cloves in 2 tsp. of mneral oil for at least 24 hours. Add one pt. of water that has 1/4 oz of liquid dish soap mixed with it. 1-2 T. with one pint of water will make a spray.
Neem- extracted from seeds of the Neem tree- makes plant unpalateable to insects- almost nontoxic to mammals and beneficial insects and is biodegradable.
Agricultural Lime- controls a wide variety of insects- dust onto wet plant leaves and again after a rain.
Baking Soda- good for preventing black spot, and powdery mildew- 1 tsp. of baking soda in 1 qu. of warm water- add 1 tsp. of liquid dish soap- tried and true!
If all else fails, either strip the leaves off and/or cut the plant down to 3-4". Believe me, this is a last resort, but if you have a beloved plant and you want to save it- go ahead. I have saved many plants this way. If it is rootbound, repot it. You have just given it a new lease on life- minus the bad bugs.

Landscape- NBCC Woodstock

Thursday, July 31, 2008

A nice note....

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NBCC Woodstock Campus Site

Some food for thought

Top Ten Gardens to Visit by rosaceae

Blog Archive

Followers

Congradulations grads!

About Me

Some Industry Websites

10 best Crabapple Trees- insect and disease resistant cultivars

'Crabby' Crabs- ones to avoid- steer clear of these- highly susceptible to insects and disease

Top Ten Gardens We Want to Visit- Graduating Class of 2008

Neat Websites to Visit

Top 15 Best Books- couldn't keep it to 10!

Top 10 Best Organic Sprays for your Garden

The Gardener