Questions and Answers for the Maritimes by  Brian Minter

Frequently asked questions for the Canadian Maritimes Region:

1. How can I get an earlier yield from my vegetable garden? Raised beds of at least 12 to 16 inches (30 to 40cm), located in very protected areas out of the wind, will make a significant difference in the starting time of many vegetables. Make sure the soil is well drained to get any excess moisture away quickly. Use row covers to protect the plants from early frost. Radishes, lettuce, Swiss chard, peas, broad beans and Spanish onions are some of the best varieties to start early.
2. How can I enjoy spring bulbs without all the ugly leaves to deal with later on? Companion planting is really the key. The earliest bulbs, like snowdrops, crocus, and scillas, can easily be naturalized and planted among early perennials, like arabis, aubrieta and a ground cover like thyme. Daffodils and narcissus should be planted with day lilies – the leaves are so similar, and it will make these spots in your garden provide colour over a longer period. Tulips, combined with hostas in sun or shade, are quite spectacular. One of the best combinations is pretty, late flowering alliums with ornamental grasses. These are just a few ideas to minimize the after-flowering downtime of spring bulbs and to create some great combinations.
3. Bulbs bloom for such a short period of time. Is there a way to make that show last longer? There’s a wonderful trick that will keep your neighbours wondering how your bulbs bloom so long. For daffodils, plant very early, early, mid-season, and late varieties altogether in the planting hole. You will enjoy yellow daffodils for at least five to six weeks. The same is true of tulips. Try using single early, single late, Triumph, Darwin hybrids and Darwin tulips in the same planting areas for a wonderful, long season of continuous colour. It is something you may wish to try with all your bulb plantings.
4. What are some of the best plants to tolerate salt spray? For ground covers, try arctostaphylos uva-ursi (zone 3), genista (zone 5) and sedums (zone 4). For shade, try junipers (zone 4), laurels (zone 4) yews (zone 4), Rhus ‘Tiger Eyes’ (zone 4), most pines (zone 4) For flowering shrubs, try Calluna vulgaris (zone 4), Erica (zone 4) and rugosa roses ( zone 3)
5. Are there longer flowering varieties of perennials that will provide more colour in my garden? Over the past few years, there has been some amazing developments in long blooming perennials. Coreopsis is one of the longest blooming families and C. ‘Zagreb’, ‘Moonlight’, ‘American Dream’ and ‘Heaven’s Gate’ are just a few. Shasta daisies, now called leucanthemums, have a more compact and long blooming variety called, ‘Snow Lady’. Rudbeckias are standard, mid-season through fall, perennials - ‘Goldsturm’ is one of the best - but the dainty ‘Triloba’ is amazing. Geraniums, too, are now blooming all season with the introduction of ‘Rozanne’. Many daylilies (hemerocallis) are now repeat and extended bloomers. H. ‘Stella d’Oro’ is one of the best repeat boomers, and the double H. ‘Mary Brown’ blooms over an extended period through July and August. These are the best and just a few of the newer perennials that will provide easy care colour over a long period.
6. How do I keep my lawn in great shape? To keep your lawn in great shape, start in spring, while the turf is still soft, by aerating and adding a 3/8 inch layer of coarse sand to keep the aeration holes open and percolating. As soon as the lawn shows signs of new growth, apply a high nitrogen, slow release fertilizer to both tone it up and achieve good healthy growth. If the lawn is a little thin, overseed with perennial rye grass at the rate of five pounds per 1000 square feet. It’s a good idea to check the pH level with inexpensive pH testers found at gardens stores to see if the acidity and alkalinity range is between five and eight on the pH scale. If it’s below five, add a quality fast lime, and if it’s above eight, use a sulphate fertilizer to help drop the pH into the correct range. This will ensure optimum growing conditions for your lawn grasses. Mowing at least once a week with well sharpened blades on a quality mower will maintain a great lawn, especially if you mow in opposite angles and directions each time. Keep weeds to a minimum with constant attention, digging out the weeds as they appear, or by using an organic chemical control as a spot treatment. When you water over the hot summer months, try to water thoroughly and deeply at least once a week. When the deep green colour of the lawn begins to change to a lighter green, apply the correct amount of slow release lawn fertilizer or an organic counterpart. In late autumn, depending upon the severity of the cold winter winds, you many wish to apply a winterizing fertilizer with high phosphorus and potash to harden the grasses off for winter.
7. Can I enjoy herbs out in my garden all winter long? Depending on your hardiness zone, you certainly may enjoy hardy perennial herbs. Always choose the most protected, sunniest location you have and make sure you have good drainage. Chives (zone 3), horseradish (zone 3), marjoram (zone 4), most mints (zone 5) oregano (zone 5), parsley (zone 6), sage (zone 5), winter savory (zone 8), sorrel (zone 4) and most thymes (zone 5) can provide a great winter herb selection. Use row covers in extreme cold with no snow protection to keep them green and usable. Many other herbs, like African basil, coriander and rosemary, can be grown indoors for use all winter long.
8. Are there some hardy flowering plants with colourful foliage that I can enjoy in my garden? Today there are some amazing new flowering shrubs that not only provide colour during their flowering period but also have great foliage colour. For black foliage, sambucus ‘Black Beauty’ (zone 4) and the new S. nigra ‘Black Lace’ (zone 4), physocarpus ‘Diablo’ (zone 3), weigela ‘Wine and Roses’ (zone 5) and ‘Midnight and Wine’ (zone 5), all add nice texture to our landscapes. The new smoke tree, Cotinus ‘Golden Spirit’ (zone 5) and the sumac, Rhus ‘Tiger Eyes’ provide a rich golden lift to your garden all summer long. For a rich variegated foliage to add sparks of colour, Cornus elegantissima, Weigela ‘Nana’ (zone 4) and Salix integra and S. Hakuro Nishiki (zone 4) are great garden shrubs.
9. What are some of the best annuals for hot, sunny locations? For hot sun, the new award winning zinnia ‘Profusion’ series are truly amazing. Not only are they drought tolerant, but they also spread like a carpet and tolerate a wide range of hot, windy weather. The new gazanias from seed are also amazing. The silver leafed ‘Kiss’ series and the compact ‘Daybreak’ series are simply outstanding. New groundcover petunia varieties are making a huge impact for massive displays. The ‘Waves’, Easy Waves’, ‘Tidal Waves’, ‘Avalanche’ and ‘Ramblin’ series are quite spectacular. The ‘Farinacea’ salvias, including ‘Blue Victoria’, the bicolour ‘ Strata’ and the new ‘Evolution’ add a great touch of blue to hot spots. Vinca major is probably one of the most overlooked heat and drought tolerant annuals. The new large flowering varieties look like impatiens and create a great display. Ornamental sweet potato vines in black, hot lime and chocolate, are quite dramatic for solid yet colourful ground covers.
10. For a different look, what are some of the newer container or garden focal points? Most of the exciting new focal points are considered tender and can tolerate no more than about eight degrees Celsius of frost. Coryaline ‘Indivisa’, the new dracaena palms like ‘Red Star’ - a red dwarf, ‘Purple Tower’ – a huge rich burgundy and ‘Torbay Sunrise’ – a gold and green variegated plant, are all fabulous accents. The phormiums (New Zealand flax) are also wonderful to use as focal points in garden beds or containers. Canna lilies too are making a comeback, especially some of the hot new varieties like the yellow striped ‘Bengal Tiger’ , the red striped ‘Tropicana’ and the almost black ‘Australia’. Going tropical is very ‘in’ today with a wide range of bananas, hedychium (flowering ginger) and the colocasias with their huge green striped or black leaves.