June 2015

Gardening with Mark

In This Issue

Ride to Conquer Cancer

To Do List

Contest!

Products of the Month

Garden Days

Birding

Where is Mark

Mark's

Gardening Connections

Mark's Choice tools and accessories

Home Hardware

Golfgreen Fertilizer

Toronto Star

Ottawa Citizen

Canada AM

My Facebook Page

June is for Kids (in the garden)

I was the most surprised guy in town; the town of Wellesley, Ontario. (It is the place that made apple butter famous.) I was there last weekend for a 'fish fry', which might lead you to suspect that there is a large body of water nearby. Not so. But there must be a great fish monger as over 350 people showed up to sample the best fish I had tasted in some time. Plus a Wellesley baked potato (don't tell me if it was an import... please!) and all of the trimmings.

The surprise was the next morning, between breakfast with 20 of the local Home Hardware staff and my 'store appearance'.

I wandered down to a cool home in town with the most extraordinary garden at the invitation of the owner, Shauna Leis. I was invited to view the family garden, which is designed almost exclusively for kids. Check out these photos and you will see what I mean.

As I entered through the back, just beyond the garage, I was greeted by a fort, shaped like a pirate ship. A pirate ship! The kids, Erik (5 years old) and Megan (8 years old) designed it themselves, with some help from their Daddy, Kirk Bergey, no doubt. To suggest that this is the dream of any youngster might be an understatement. Here, on their own ship, they act out their fantasies with neighbours and friends through creative play.

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The ship was the beginning: just beyond it was a 'grotto' where hobbits live (they say) and when the hobbits don't inhabit the hobbit house, Megan and Erik do. The door is just over a meter high, so most adults are discouraged to climb in. Buried, as it is, under several feet of soil, the Hobbit house is cool in summer and fun year round.

Both Erik and Megan have their own veggie gardens. Erik's peas are WAY ahead of mine because he planted at precisely the right time - about 6 weeks ago.

The garden includes a fire pit, for marshmallow roasts (and sing-alongs), a nature trail (down to the river) and a 'flat' where everyone in the family plays soccer and badminton in the summer and hockey on the home-made rink in the winter.

Managed Disrepair

To suggest that Erik and Megan are lucky is to discount the contribution that they both make to designing their outdoor 'nature/garden' space and the time that they take to maintain it in a special state of managed disrepair (my word). You see, if you want the fox to trot through your garden, the rabbits to munch on your dandelions and the frogs to jump into the puddles, you have to know one thing about Mother Nature - a 'perfect' environment doesn't work so well. It has to be just a bit messy; intentionally messy.

Anyone who has read the book 'Last Child in the Woods' by Richard Louv, knows the term 'nature deficit disorder'. This is what happens when children grow up without a connection to the natural world around them.

When square walls, electrical outlets and (dare I say it) computers dominate a child's life they become disconnected from nature. Chances are, if a child is not introduced to the wonders of nature they won't likely discover it as they mature into adults. Worms are 'icky', bugs are 'bad' and dirt is, well, dirty. Kids that make their own mud pies and watch the chrysalis from a caterpillar blossom into a monarch butterfly know differently.

Kids who know nature, enjoy a form of wealth that travels with them for the rest of their lives. It is a different form of wealth: one that has nothing to do with money.

It is my opinion that we are reversing that curve as more parents engage their children in outdoor play. The local park, conservation area, lakes, rivers and indeed -the backyard garden - provide a host of opportunities for us to enlighten and engage young people in an experience that cannot be replicated indoors.

The rewards, short and long term, are enormous.

I hope you enjoy the pictures and this story about Megan and Erik.

Ride to Conquer Cancer

I am on the home stretch and SO excited to be riding with two of my kids in the Ride to Conquer Cancer in support of the Princess Margaret Cancer Centre.

The big event (200 km in two days: Toronto to Niagara) is only a couple of weeks away and I would be delighted if you would sponsor me. Should you choose to do so, I will send you a copy of my book 'Lawn and Garden Secrets' for a minimum $25 donation. Make it $50 or more and I will send you 4 packets of Mark's Choice garden seeds. Please let Brenda know if you would like my 'thank you' gifts at [email protected].

My good friend Bryce Hunter died of brain cancer one year ago. He was treated at Princess Margaret. I remember him telling me how impressed he was by the care that he received there.

My own Dad passed away after a fight with pancreatic cancer.

And I am a 'cancer survivor', having experienced prostate surgery 2 years ago this month.

I believe in this cause and thank you in advance (or again, if you have already donated) for your generosity.

Click here to sponsor.

To Do in the garden in June

As I write this, much of central Canada is in the midst of a drought. Odd, really. May is supposed to be a wet month.

I am watering to beat the band (using some fabulous Mark's Choice lawn and garden sprinklers).

Everything that I have planted this past month gets regular, if not, daily attention. As your garden requires water consider this:

- Use water from a rain barrel to water your containers: it is oxygen-charged and always warm. Plants love it.

- Water infrequently: rather than watering each day for a short while, apply lots of water less frequently and let the soil become dry about 3 cm below the surface between applications. Your plants will perform better, you will use less water and you will do less work.

- Weed. Hoe them down while they are young and save yourself a tonne of work this summer when the pigweed and thistles become 'trees'. uggh.

- Mulch. Reduce up to 90% of weeding and 70% of watering by spreading a 6 to 8 cm layer of natural cedar or pine bark mulch over the soil. I do this around roses, perennials, young shrubs and trees. It works like magic and maximizes my 'hammock' time.

- Plant. There was a time when almost all planting took place in April and May. With the containerization of plants we now plant all summer long. The selection at your favourite local retailer is still impressive, but wears down as each day passes in June. The earlier you get out there, the better.

- Fertilize your lawn with the new Golfgreen Iron Plus... truly the most sophisticated lawn fertilizer on the Canadian market. I received an e mail from one happy customer who told me that her lawn never looked more green and that she was not renewing the contract with her lawn maintenance company. An exclusive formula to Home Hardware. Watch the video
- June is 'rose month', 'peony month' and 'iris month'. Choose your favourite and plant many. Water in well and use quality soil and the new Bio Max cattle/steer manure (which is certified by the Composting Council of Canada).

- If your cedars look hungry (and many do after a severe winter) fertilize with Plant Prod Smartcote Evergreen & Shrub fertilizer. It lasts the entire season and provides a dilute form of fertilizer every time you water or it rains. Like magic.

- Enjoy some 'hammock time' as you have earned it.

- Check out my weekly newspaper column on my website. Or buy the Toronto Star on Saturday (Homes and Condos section) or one of the 24 papers that I syndicate my column to.

- Contest! See below. Brenda keeps coming up with great ways to give away cool prizes. She is special.

- I have a weekly blog at www.markcullen.com that is worth a look too.... Let me know what you think.

- Look over my events for June. I am in the west and looking forward to meeting you at these Home Hardware events. Introduce yourself! See you in British Columbia and Alberta. See details below.

- Do a rain dance. I would be eternally grateful.

Keep your knees dirty,

Mark

Merchant of Beauty

www.markcullen.com

10,000 gardening questions. answered.

Contest!

We're giving away 4 pairs of tickets to Through the Garden Gate.

This is one of Canada's largest private garden tours. On Saturday, June 13 and Sunday, June 14: 19 residential gardens in Lawrence Park will open their gates.

For more info visit www.torontobotanicalgarden.ca.

I had the privilege of attending a sneak preview of this fantastic garden tour. If you would like a chance to win a pair of tickets, identify the plant in this photo.

Email your answer to [email protected].

I will randomly select the winners from the correct answers.

Deadline to enter: June 5, 2015

Products of the Month

Stainless Steel Hose Hanger

Simple, effective, space saving, and very well built. It works like a charm when mounted on a screw or over your outdoor faucet. Stainless steel construction for extra long-life. I just may leave mine outdoors all winter. Watch the video.

Home Hardware # 5042-057

Giant Tomato Cage

Our tomato supports are really tomato castles that have very little in common with the flimsy wire cages of the past. They are solid and stable, and will double your tomato crop by getting all of the plant off the ground, right to the end of the season and long after the traditional cages have fallen over under the weight of the plant.

The Mark's Choice tomato castles stack for easy storage and are rust proof. Strong, stable, and long lasting - they're an investment, not just another purchase.

Home Hardware # 5093-491

Garden Days, June 19 to 21, 2015

An initiative of the Canadian Garden Council, is Canada's coast-to-coast, three-day celebration of the role of gardens in our communities and in our lives.

It's an opportunity for Canadians to shop at local garden centres, visit favourite public gardens, travel to a garden destination, and enjoy home gardening.

Whatever you decide to do, we invite you to register your activity on www.gardendays.ca. It's as simple as clicking on 'Register Your Acitivity' button and inputting your Garden Days activity information.

Enter the 'Canada's Garden Street' Contest

If you live on Canada's prettiest Garden Street - we want to know all about it. Click on the 'Garden Street Contest' button and tell us how gardens, be they public or private, contribute to the quality of life on your street and in your neighbourhood.

You could win $1,000 worth of Mark's Choice Lawn and Garden Products from Home Hardware and of course the 'bragging rights' for your street to be named Canada's Garden Street for 2015.

Birding, Birding, and More Birding

The Great Canadian Birdathon is over. This annual event that takes place for the month of May gets birders from all walks of life into the streets, yards, parks, and forests to count birds. All the while raising funds for a number of great Bird Studies Canada initiatives.

The counting of birds may be over but the fundraising certainly is not. Bird Studies Canada is about half way to their goal of $200,000. Consider making a pledge to the birds by sponsoring friend and fellow birder, Steven Price. You can visit his personal page here.

Did you miss the Birdathon this year? Not to worry! Your chance to get out and spot the birds is not confined to the month of May. Bird Studies Canada has numerous resources to help you get started if you're a birding newbie. And, of course, many Volunteer Programs if you want to be more proactive about it.

Where is Mark this month?

June 2 - Invermere Home Hardware, BC. Ladies Night. 7-9pm.

June 3 - B & M Home Hardware Building Centre, Olds, AB. Ladies' night. 6:30-9pm.

June 4 -Three Hills Home Hardware Building Centre, AB. 1-3pm.

June 6 - Lamont Home Hardware, AB. 10am-noon.

Top Reasons Toronto Gardeners Should Check Out Their Library

Toronto Public Library has launched its "100 Reasons to Check Out TPL" campaign (#TPL100) to share its diverse services with Torontonians. The campaign encourages residents to obtain and use their own library card to avail themselves of countless programs and materials including those related to gardening. The Reasons include some especially for gardeners, such as:

The Ask an Expert Master Gardeners Workshop Series: Trained horticulturalists lead sessions on container garden, community gardens, organic gardening, small-space garden design and more.

Seed Library Workshop and Exchange: Gardeners can borrow and exchange seeds, and children learn to plant seeds and understand the importance of seed preservation through this Toronto Public Library partner program at the North York Central and Yorkville libraries, May 30 and June 13.

100 in 1 Day: Gardening. A day to beautify Fairview Library Gardens. People are asked to bring shovels, spades and/or gloves, if they can, and participate in the fun on Saturday, June 06, 2015 at the Fairview Library.