Help ensure a healthy and pain free gardening season, especially in the early spring when you first start to tinker, by following these simple tips.

Over the passed year I have talked about garden design, garden care, garden planning, etc.  So I am not going to dwell on these issues at this time unless someone makes a request for such information.   But I will share with you three plants that I will be trying in my garden this year.  They are relatively new, in the last couple of years, so they should be available at local garden centres, but I will share with you, where I purchase them, when I find them.  It's still a bit early to go shopping.  Maybe the end of April???  One can hope!!!!

I have had in my garden for over 12 years, a Yellow  Fumewort - Corydalis  lutea.  It self seeds and I have pockets of plants that come up here and there.  If they are in a spot where I do not want them, I pull them out.  I do not find the plant invasive,  but it does travel around the garden, which I do not mind.  

So there is a new fumewort, called 'Berry Exciting'; it's latin name being Corydalis 'Berry Exciting'. It has bold. brilliant gold fern like foliage that really shows up in the shade.  The attractive wine-purple fragrant blooms flower from May into early summer with some repeat bloom in the fall.  It is a vigorous grower with more heat tolerance than other fumeworts.  It grows about a foot tall and a foot and one half in spread.  It takes full to part shade and will grow in most average soils,  It is hardy in zone 5, where we are in Oshawa.  And  it could be used in the border, in containers, as edging, in the woodland and as a specimen.  I will plant this in the garden, but I want to try it in a large pot with some other flowers, to see how well it does.

Another plant that I wish to try this year is Crimson Ruby Japanese Barberry Shrub.  It glows a beautiful burgundy red all summer long and deepens its color in full hot sun.  After the season is over, it will go dormant till spring.  In spring yellow flowers emerge along with the appearance of the red leaves. The yellow flowers will then produce  bright red fruit.  In the fall the leaves turn to an orange -scarlet color making this a shrub with 3 seasons of color variation. Crimson Ruby grows 2 feet tall and 2 feet wide and is cold hardy to zone 4.  And it is tolerant of most soils, as long as it is not too wet.    It does have small thorns, so wear gloves when planting it.  Dogs, cats and other pets do not bother with it.    And  deer, rabbits and moose don't bother it, if that is a problem for you in your garden..

Barberries are available in other colors and sizes;  they are fairly tough shrubs to use as a specimen, or to plant in groups or to even use them to plant a hedge.

There is a series of roses called "Knockout Roses".  The Knockout Rose that I am familiar with is a hot purple-rose color.  They thrive in tough places with not too much care.  But if you water and fertilize , they will certainly perform for you, from early summer into late fall.  But now there is a whole lineup of "Knockout Roses"  that are available in various colors and sizes.  These roses are hardy.  They come back every year.  Disease and bugs do not seem to bother them.  So I am going to try one of the lower growing ground cover types.  All I have to do is find them!!

So what could you be doing in the garden this month???

1.  Dig up, divide and replant perennials.

2.  Deadhead daffodils after flowering.

3.  As soon as soil is workable, dig over the vegetable garden in preparation for spring planting.

Charlie