Seeds

In this part of the country, it's time to start seeds. Actually, I started last week with the geraniums and portulaca and petunias, because they need a good eight week start. I'm not quite sure why because the geraniums popped immediately, but I'm not complaining.

When the seed package talks about last frost date, you can never be sure when that is. A lot of people who fast to planting after victoria day weekend. Which is a great idea. BUT. It depends what you're planting.

If the snow is off the ground, maybe beginning of May, you can plant your peas, beans, onions, leeks and some lettuce. If they're calling for frost, you can just throw a sheet over all of it.

As for tomatoes, you can probably do it mid-May. As for delicate stuff like melons and zucchinis and herbs, you need to wait until the end of May. Unless you have a ridiculously hot backyard like I do.

So start your tomatoes, broccoli, cauliflower, onions (if you do seeds instead of bulbs - I personally prefer plants) and whatnot in your little greenhouse inside. And take care of them!

Tree Cutting By-laws

"Ottawa tree bylaw targets clear cutting
Wednesday Jun 03, 2009
By
The Ottawa Citizen
A proposed bylaw would require Ottawa residents to get a permit and pay a $50 fee at city hall to cut down a large tree.
The new law, to be discussed by city councillors next week, would also require owners of large pieces of land planned for development to prepare tree-conservation reports before permits are granted for tree-cutting.

The report released by the city Tuesday says clear cutting of trees has become a significant problem in Ottawa. It notes the widely reported cutting of trees in a natural environment area near Kizell Pond in Kanata in 2002, but says “several other forested areas have been cleared of trees in anticipation of future development.”
These areas include:
— seven hectares of highly ranked urban natural area in the east end, cut down in 2008 when the city was negotiating acquisition;
— two hectares of forest removed to develop a golf driving range; and
— trees removed from a buffer along a creek within an urban natural area.
The proposed bylaw outlines two procedures for controlling tree cutting.
The first would be aimed primarily at development properties.
In the case of trees 10 centimetres in diameter or greater on lots larger than one hectare in the urban area, a landowner would have to get a tree conservation report by someone with expertise in trees.
That report would have to be approved by the city before the tree-cutting began. If a tree was destroyed before approval of the report, the owner or contractor could be prosecuted. The fee for that tree permit would be $100, though it would often be part of a development application fee.
The tree-bylaw report says the city expects trees will continue to be removed by developers, but the bylaw will give staff the ability to assess conservation opportunities and make recommendations for retaining certain trees. Currently there is a requirement for a tree plan, but it lacks clear guidelines.
The second procedure would apply mostly to very old trees on established properties. It would cover trees of 70 centimetres in diameter or more, described as “distinctive trees” on properties of one hectare or less, which would include most residential lots in Ottawa’s urban area. The owner would apply, with a short report attached by an arborist, and pay a $50 fee intended to cover costs of having foresters inspect sites and scrutinize applications.
Grounds for cutting down a large tree would include the following: removing a dead, diseased or severely injured tree; removing trees likely to cause damage to a building; remediating contaminated soil; when removal is part of an approved development plan; or when landowners have a good replanting plan.
Exemptions include tree orchards, cemeteries, golf courses, farms and any situation where there is an immediate threat to public safety. People who defy the bylaw would be liable to fines of between $500 and $100,000.
The city says the conservation of trees is especially important given the fact that 25 per cent of the city’s urban forest is ash trees, which are threatened by the emerald ash borer.
Somerset Councillor Diane Holmes, city council’s strongest supporter of tree conservation, said she was pleased with the proposed bylaw. “It’s a reasonable bylaw. It’s a good start,” Holmes said, adding that house builders were not alarmed by the proposed law."

So what does all this mean? It means that hubby and I have extra work to do. For all of our future customers with trees over 70cm in diameter, they need a permit filled out and signed by an arborist. Then they have to pay 50$ to have someone from the City come out and look at their tree and see if they agree or not. Which I think is ridiculous because we all know how slow the city is at doing anything. I can see our months of July and August being quite bare in work activity. And my husband is not an arborist. Which means he would have to hire someone with a certificate of arboriculture.
Which is great delight means he has to hire...me.
:)
And now I look back, realizing with great satisfaction that eleven years ago, I did not waste an education at Kemptville College, as it was indeed, the worst year of my life.

The Veggie Garden

Ah, June brings warm weather (ish), which brings many vegetables. I usually start my seeds (bought from Vesey's and the local garden center) at the beginning of March in my little plastic greenhouse in the sunroom. Come May, I dance around impatiently waiting to plant them outside. This year I planted them during the long weekend (which was early this year for some reason) and kept them safe during frost warning nights with an old sheet. As I usually overdo it and plant way too many tomato seeds (90 last year, but only 60 this year) I managed to lose some due to frost anyway and actually had to go buy ten from the garden center (you never can be too sure) and plant them. What you are looking at is: the front box is beans, the left front box is peas, as is the one behind it, the front right box is tomatoes and a ton of radish seeds mixed with carrots (I have yet to see carrot leaves), behind that, more beans, and to the right in the long boxes are 4 different kinds of onions (red, sweet, multipliers (green) and leeks) and another box of tomatoes and tomatillos.

Here, you can see some fabulous bamboo 'fencing' I put up for my peas and beans. I purchased some 4' bamboo in a package ($2.49 from Home Depot) and a ball of jute. I grabbed my trusty hammer and lightly tapped each end into the ground as far as it could go. Because of my huge Chinese Elm in the back left corner, they only went down about 5" before they hit roots.

Then, I crossed the tops in a 'V' and gently laid a thinner bamboo pole and using the jute, wrapped it tightly, adding many knots and winding around the whole thing in many different, creative ways.

Then I tied more jute around each pole and stretched it across to another pole. This makes little 'stairs' for the pea plants to climb. And of course I gently guide them to go the right way and not strangle each other.

My tomato plants were given special attention this year. I always have problems with cutworms. Cutworms are gross little worms that hide in your soil and in the middle of the night, they chop down your plants, right at the base by the soil, leaving your poor plant just lying there, decapitated. And the only way to get rid of these little buggers is to dig up around the soil of the next plant beside the decapitated one, pull it out and kill it. Yech. I know that copper wire mesh keeps away snails and slugs, so I thought I'd try it on the cutworms instead of surrounding each individual plant with a can. I don't eat canned foods, so I don't have cans. Especially not 60 cans.

Sadly, I cannot grow broccoli, cauliflower, (too much work), cucumbers (they just don't grow!), or peppers (they make me very ill). But I have lots of advice on them, so if you have any, just ask!

Emerald Ash Borer

The City of Ottawa has an abundance of ash trees planted throughout the area. It's a hardy tree, does well with little water and doesn't need a lot of maintenance. Because of this, it's popular in subdivisions (ie Barrhaven) and downtown Ottawa, along with Linden and Ivory Silk Lilac trees. However, as time has proven again and again, the planting of one main tree in an area will result in infestation of pests and pathogens (ie Dutch Elm Disease).

The white ash (Fraxinus america) is the most common.

"The emerald ash borer, Agrilus planipennis, a wood-boring beetle accidentally introduced to North America from eastern Asia with ash wood products circa 1998, has killed millions of trees in the Midwestern US and adjacent Ontario, and some isolated smaller areas on eastern North America. It threatens some 7 billion ash trees in North America. The public is being cautioned not to transport unfinished wood products, such as firewood, to slow the spread of this insect pest." (Wikipedia)

In its larva form, it feeds in an S-shaped pattern just underneath the bark. The feeding damages the tree (xylem and phloem), interrupting any proper growth and nutrients it needs. Once the larvae has finished feeding, they mature into beetles, then chewing their way out of the tree through D-shaped exit holes.
You can tell if your tree is infested by looking for obvious loss of leaves and dead branches in the UPPER part of the tree, unusually thin tree crowns (sparse 'Charlie Brown' look) and branch/leaf growth in the lower part of the stems not seen before (severe suckering). Look for bark splitting, S-shaped grooves beneath the bark and the D-shaped exit holes are 3.5-4mm wide.

The borer spreads by flying short distances, which isn't that big of a deal. However, due to transportation of infected ash wood/boards, it has spread. The City of Ottawa asks the public not to move firewood or other wood materials. To reduce the risk of spread, burn firewood locally, and buy your ash locally. There is a pesticide which was developed by the Canadian Forest Service but it must be injected by a professional. You can reach BioForest at 1-888-236-7378 or at http://www.bioforest.ca/

If you suspect your tree is infected, contact the Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) toll free: 1-866-463-6017 or e-mail at 311@ottawa.ca

Hope you learned lots.

Gardening barefoot

Be wary.


You don't know what's lurking in your backyard. You can see your yard clearly from your kitchen window, but do you really see your backyard?


Wearing shoes, take a walk-about. Look very closely. See any left over screws or nails from your husband (or yourself) having done some woodwork? See any doggie-doo from your faithful companion? See any racoon/cat/skunk/large bird poop? How about weeds?
Keeping your big backyard in a state of 'not needing shoes' is a daunting but rewarding task. Allot yourself some time before you get to the nitty-gritty of cleaning your backyard.
At the moment I have doggie-doo, some rusty screws, cat poop (I have yet to shoot the little bugger), raspberry branches that I haven't picked up yet and wood pieces.


And a very, naughty, weed.

This thistle seems to enjoy my backyard. I find myself digging one out every second day or so. Wearing shoes. And thick leather gloves. And weilding a trowel to dig out the last of its root. And it has a big root system. Not a tap root like dandelions, but spread out. And into the trailer it goes, to be dumped with the rest of my clippings at the yard waste center.

My big backyard is free again.

The beginning...

Welcome to the beginning.

Why 'Barefoot in the Garden'? Because I adore gardening barefoot. I love the feeling of the lush grass tickling my toes, the cedar mulch gently prickling my heels and the cool hardness of compacted earth.

This is a blog to talk about my gardens. Or your gardens. I love gardening, always have, and have an extensive background in the matter. I am no longer a practicing landscaper, but I help out my husband with the tree work. If you want to ask a question, simply post a comment or email the link I've provided. I'll do my best to answer it.

My home is near-ish but not quite near Ottawa, Ontario. My front yard faces NorthWest so I get a nice zone 4.5. In the backyard, it faces SouthEast and it's fenced so it's usually pretty hot back there. I can achieve zone 6 status. Which means a wide variety of species. I have a dry, sandy garden and I have a wet, mucky garden.

I hope you enjoy the blogs.