At some point, garden life calls to many of us. Even if you’ve never nurtured a plant before, planting something and keeping it alive offers a fun, low-cost, and highly rewarding experience. Whether you opt for a few potted plants on a patio or balcony, join a community garden, dedicate part of your yard to flowers, herbs, trees, or vegetables, install raised beds, or set aside a corner of your property to attract pollinators, it’s exciting to consider the possibilities!
The Benefits of Gardening
Stress Release
Nature has a calming effect, and gardening helps you stay grounded in the present moment, freeing your mind from worries about the past or future. For example, the repetitive task of weeding allows your brain to focus, turning the activity into a form of mindful meditation. Meditation doesn’t always involve sitting in solitude on a mountain—it can be as simple as engaging in repetitive tasks like planting or weeding. This process reduces stress and anxiety, ultimately leading to greater happiness.
Boosting Happiness
Speaking of happiness, research shows that certain bacteria in the soil get under fingernails and also get inhaled while you garden. This bacteria can boost your healthy gut flora and release happiness chemicals like serotonin. A healthy gut flora supports a strong immune system, making that dirt-under-the-nails gardener’s manicure well worth it.
Strength & Flexibility
At the start of each gardening season, you might hear from fellow gardeners about their sore muscles—backs, hands, shoulders, hips, and so on. The physical demands of gardening can be challenging at first, but over time, they help build muscle strength and improve flexibility.
If you find working in the garden too strenuous, try kneeling on a soft pad or using a small stool to sit on. Consider using a shovel or rake to assist you in moving up and down to your knees or the stool. Opt for smaller pots and smaller bags of soil and mulch - they’re easier to carry.
Growing Food & Healthy Eating
Anyone who’s tasted fresh, homegrown vegetables knows just how delicious they can be. Growing your own produce also encourages you to eat more fruits and vegetables, which naturally leads to better health. The fibre in these foods supports the healthy gut flora mentioned earlier, too!
The Perks of Being Outdoors
All the benefits of gardening—stress relief, happiness, strength, flexibility, and healthy eating contribute to your overall physical and mental well-being. But there’s more.
While outdoors, you absorb vitamin D from the sun, which boosts calcium levels in your body, promoting strong bones and a robust immune system.
Being outside and working in the garden also improves your sleep. After a day of gardening, you’re likely to feel pleasantly tired, helping you fall asleep faster and enjoy a deeper rest. Good quality sleep is essential for overall health, just as important as diet and exercise.
Finally, spending time outdoors encourages deeper breathing, which increases oxygen levels in your blood and boosts serotonin. Deep breathing also aids digestion and helps clear stagnant air from your lungs. Try stepping outside and taking a nice, deep breath. It just feels good, doesn’t it?
While your initial goals for gardening may include harvesting delicious vegetables or creating beautiful bouquets, you’ll also be improving your health in ways you might not have expected!
It’s the question we probably hear the most when it comes to flower gardens…”What can I buy that will flower all season long?” While some annuals bloom for a very long time, no plant will bloom from early Spring to late Fall, and no vegetable plant will produce for that duration either. The solution? Succession Planting! It’s a simple strategy that maximizes the time your garden is blooming or producing vegetables.
What is Succession Planting?
Plant early (earlier than you think) and plant things in succession that thrive in the current weather conditions - right up until there is a hard frost. Simply plan to plant another crop or flower once one is harvested or finished blooming. Many gardeners here in southern Ontario wait until the May 24th weekend to plant everything - all at once. Succession gardening staggers planting times so there is a continuous harvest of vegetables or an everchanging series of blooming flowers. While it takes a little more planning, the results are worth it.
A Succession of Blooms
The best way to ensure a parade of colour in your garden is to choose a variety of annuals, perennials, and biennials that bloom at different times. There is a notion that a garden can only have annual flowers or just perennials, but the best results come from a mix of both. You’re allowed to mix them together! Most annuals bloom during the heat of the summer, but perennial flowers can extend the season for you by blooming in early spring or in the fall. A list of perennial bloom times can be found in this Landscape Ontario article to help you choose your plants.
Some flowering plants, like pansies, love cooler weather and are easy to purchase in the spring. A little planning and planting in the fall will provide a flush of colour from Spring bulbs like Daffodils, Crocus, and Hyacinth. Spring bulbs look great alongside early-blooming shrubs or trees like Canada Serviceberry and Forsythia.
April or early May is also an excellent time to directly sow annual flowers like sunflowers, nasturtium, borage, and herbs like cilantro and dill to give them a head start.
Cool Weather Veggies
It’s surprising how many vegetables thrive in cool weather and withstand light frost. Keep tender plants indoors until the third week of April and slowly harden them off, but get outdoors any time in April and begin directly sowing fast-growing cool crops like leafy greens, root vegetables, and some herbs.
Lettuce planted in late spring will tend to “bolt” and taste bitter once hotter temperatures arrive. Lettuce loves cooler conditions. So you don’t have to wait until May 24th to sow lettuce and other vegetables. Which Vegetables? We have a list of examples for you in our article: Starting Seeds Indoors and Cold Weather Crops. Starting early means you can harvest a whole crop of vegetables before you plant heat-loving crops like peppers and tomatoes.
Sow All Season
If you’ve ever been overwhelmed by planting too much of one crop at once, you will love succession gardening. While you may be able to freeze a batch of 2,000 string beans from the entire packet of seeds you planted in one go, sometimes stretching out the harvest is nice. Plant smaller batches of beans, peas, and herbs like cilantro, dill, and basil every three weeks to ensure continuous summer harvests. This approach is also known as interval gardening.
Sow cool-weather crops like leaf lettuce, Swiss Chard, and Radishes in April or early May and again in September.
Continuous Harvest
Once your early Spring vegetables like lettuce, peas and radishes have been harvested, it’s time to sow your second crop of cool-weather veggies for harvesting in the Fall. Do you know veggies like parsnips, Brussels sprouts, peas, and kale have more flavour after a mild frost?! A mild winter this year meant we were still harvesting some Brussels sprouts in December.
Double Up
Another tip is to plant things that grow well together. For example, plant seeds for a root crop like carrots below your tomato plants, peas or bush beans in the vegetable garden. The carrot crop will be next after the tomatoes, peas or beans are done for the season. There are many combinations like this - tomatoes and basil, kale and dill, lettuce and beets, broccoli and borage, just to name a few. Doing this helps to increase the production of your plot of land and keeps the soil covered, which is always better for soil health.
One final strategy for flower succession planting is to use containers. Consider placing a well-positioned pot of annual blooms beside perennial plants resting after flowering.
Once you get started, researching companion plant combinations like these can be a fun game. These combinations will extend the time you can enjoy lots of colourful blooms and increase the amount of vegetables a garden can produce!
Come along on a little journey with me and imagine this… It’s Springtime. The sun shines, and the air finally feels warmer after a long, grey winter. You take a little trip to your favourite garden centre and find that special plant you’ve been reading about and hoping for. Of course, you buy the plant, take it home, and proudly place it on your sunny patio on this beautiful day. Two more sunny days go by, and the plant does not look good at all. It seems to be dying, so you give it lots of water, but that makes no difference. It is in fact dying. So disappointing! How could this be happening?
In our excitement to get outdoors and plant flowers, or add greenery, we forget that the plants we’ve been growing indoors or inside a greenhouse, aren’t used to the elements in the great outdoors. They’ve been sheltered indoors, out of the wind and direct sun, and watered and fertilized regularly with the utmost attention. They’ve been pampered in a plant spa and are quite literally hothouse flowers! Being plunked outside afterwards is the equivalent of us going outside in a bathing suit with no sunblock on for the first sunny, warm days of Spring, exposing our lily-white skin that’s been covered up by a parka all winter long!
Red, sunburned skin is not a great image, but hopefully, this comparison helps to explain the importance of transitioning or hardening off plants. Much like us, indoor plants need to be gradually exposed to the elements and given protection in the process.
The same will be true if you have planted seeds indoors or purchased greenhouse-grown seedlings. Seedlings grown in a greenhouse, a sunny window, or under grow lights in your home need up to 14 days to acclimate to being moved from their cozy indoor space to the great outdoors.
What is Hardening Off?
Hardening off ensures that you will not lose another plant or seedling! It’s a sensible process for all the plants you’re moving from indoors to outdoors. By helping plants or seedlings to gradually toughen to withstand the elements, you prevent transplant shock, which can cause your plants to be stunted or, worse, die.
To ensure success, the process of hardening off takes up to 14 days, so you will want to begin two weeks before transplanting plants and seedlings into your garden. Houseplants may only need 7 to 10 days, but tender, tiny seedlings need the full two weeks to strengthen and get used to their new environments.
When to Harden Off
Cold-weather plants like lettuce, kale, pansies, violas, dianthus, and potted or forced spring bulbs can be hardened off once daytime temperatures consistently reach 5 Celsius, usually in April in southern Ontario.
Perennial plants, tropical houseplants, and heat-loving seedlings like most annual flowers, tomatoes, peppers, and basil should wait until temperatures are around 7-10 Celsius to begin hardening off. For vegetables and annual flowers, start hardening off around May 10 here in Norfolk County if your target is planting seedlings around May 24th.
Successfully Hardening Off Your Seedlings and Plants
Days 1 and 2
Begin on a day that is optimally warm (At least 5 Celsius for cold-weather-tolerant plants, 7 Celsius for heat-loving plants, or 15 Celsius for tropical houseplants) and place your plants or seedlings outside in full shade and protected from the wind.
If you don't have a wind-sheltered area in the shade, putting your plants in an open cardboard box is a good way to protect them from the wind at this stage.
Leave them in this protected area for 1-2 hours before returning them indoors.
Days 3 to 5
Each day, gradually increase the length of time your plants are outside and begin to place them in an area where they will get dappled shade and some wind.
Pay close attention to watering while you’re hardening off your plants as they will require more frequent watering.
Days 6 to 10
On day 6, start to increase your plant’s exposure to direct sunlight by placing them in the morning sun, which is less intense than the afternoon sun.
Begin to leave them outside overnight from this point on unless the temperature is expected to drop below 7 Celcius.
Days 10 to 14
After 10 days of acclimation, it is safe to move houseplants that require more sun to a location that meets their needs.
After 14 days of acclimation, it’s safe to transplant seedlings to their place in the garden or to large pots if you’re growing in containers.
As soon as your plants are transplanted, be sure to water them well! This will help them transition and eliminate air pockets in the soil that can harm the roots.
If the temperature drops and a fluke, unexpected freeze is forecasted after you’ve planted everything, cover your plants with row cover, cloches (you can use plastic water jugs with the bottom cut out, just leave the screw cap off to act as a vent), or cardboard boxes to protect them.
To summarize, when Spring arrives, protect your skin with sunblock, and harden off your plants before you move them outdoors!
Whether you’re just starting to explore the world of unusual plants, or you’re already an avid collector, there are a wide array of weird and wonderful houseplants to satisfy your quest for something a little different.
Tropical plants and houseplants come in every shape, size, texture, and colour imaginable, plus some you would never have imagined!
Exotic houseplants often have striking appearances which make them valuable as eye-catching focal points in your decor. The range of distinctive features can also make them a natural choice to express your personality and style.
Like your more common houseplants, unusual varieties can also contribute to indoor air quality, as well as the overall benefits to your well-being that come with having living plants in the home.
The unique characteristics of rare or unusual houseplants often have interesting backgrounds. Learning about their natural habitats and origins only makes them more intriguing!
Here are some wild and wonderful houseplants that will add interesting foliage, blooms, or both to your home right now!
Pitcher Plant
A rare and exotic group of tropical plants with pitcher-shaped leaves that are carnivorous. That’s right, they eat insects to obtain the nutrients they need! This means that with most varieties you do not have to fertilize them. Most are happy catching a bug or two for food.
Keep this plant from drying out completely between waterings by temporarily placing it in a water-filled tray to absorb moisture through the roots. Remove the pot from the tray once it’s saturated, and allow the excess water to drain away. Pitcher plants prefer pure, mineral-free water like rainwater. No tap water for these precious prima donnas!
One Pitcher Plant variety that we love is Miranda (aka Nepenthes x Miranda). From tropical Malaysia, it is a very large pitcher plant with attractive spotted pitchers that can be over 18” wide when fully mature. Because of its size, it is quite effective at catching larger insects like wasps. It’s easy to grow, either in a sunny window or outdoors (only in the summer) and is heat tolerant but not drought tolerant.
ZZ Plants
Native to East Africa, Zamioculcas zamiifolia is also known as the houseplant ZZ, or Zanzibar Gem. While the name is complicated, this plant is not fussy at all, making it great for beginners! ZZ will thrive in almost any lighting conditions except direct sunlight, plus it is drought tolerant so you can allow it to dry out between waterings.
The biggest attraction to the Zanzibar Gem though is its thick, dark green and glossy leaves that almost look fake! If that sounds intriguing, hang on. There’s more!
Black Raven ZZ is a new variation with stunningly dramatic black-toned leaves. Unique to be sure, but luckily with the same low care requirements!
Cactus
There are so many weird and wonderful varieties of cacti that come in all shapes and sizes! These sun-loving plants require little care, but here are a couple of tips that will keep them looking sharp. (Ouch!).
- Give their pot a little turn each day so that your plant is eventually exposed to light on all sides. This saves you from having a lopsided cactus.
- Water is essential but monitor how often your cacti need it. In the winter, when they’re dormant, they will need less water. Let the soil dry out completely between waterings. Using room-temperature rainwater is ideal. Tap water contains minerals which can disrupt the flow of nutrients to the cactus. Water it well, then allow the excess moisture to drain away rather than pool under the plant. Cacti don’t necessarily need fertilizer, but they do welcome a feeding during their summer growing season. We can help you choose a fertilizer that’s been specially formulated for cactus to ensure the proper nutrient ratio.
A few varieties of cacti that we love are:
- Monkey Tail (Hildewintera colademonosis)
- Boobie (Myrtillocactus Geometrizans Fukurokuryuzinboku)
- Spiral (Cereus forbesii Spiralis)
With their evocative names and exotic shapes, cacti are so much fun to grow! And don’t be surprised if the kids want to have a few to call their own.
Stop by Eising Greenhouses and see what we have in store. While you’re here, say hello to Courtney who is always happy to talk about unusual houseplants!
Father's Day is conveniently held right at the start of summer, so that gives you all sorts of options for a creative gift that he can enjoy right away. This year, treat Dad by giving him a chance to relax in a gorgeous yard—instead of toiling away at it himself!—by hiring our pro landscapers to do the work for him.
Our many different landscaping services are varied and customizable, so you can call up our team to help you find the best plan for backyard landscaping that Dad will absolutely love. Or, if Dad likes to have some creative control over projects, we can collaborate with him to develop a design plan that suits his ideal vision. This will certainly be a Father's Day to remember, with a gorgeous new yard that Papa Bear can enjoy for many years to come. Here are some of the services we can provide to make it all happen:
Trees and Shrubs
At Eising, our landscaping pros know a thing or two about planting new trees and shrubs. Instead of fumbling through planting them yourself, which might not guarantee the best results, hire our experts to do it for you!
There are so many awesome benefits to planting trees and shrubs in the yard—Dad will definitely be on board! Sure, they're beautiful to look at, and they provide some nice shade to lounge around in, but they also increase your home's value significantly! You could even opt for some trees or shrubs to grow Dad's favourite fruit, like peaches or raspberries, so he'll have a steady supply of summer snacks year after year. Plant two trees spaced eight feet apart, and in a few years, you can get him a Father's Day hammock! There, now you've got two Father's Day gift ideas covered!
Perennials and Grasses
If you want some consistent, reliable plants and flowers to add some beauty to the yard, and you aren't too concerned with switching up the scenery every year, then consider planting some perennials and ornamental grasses. Talk to our experts, and we can help pick an assortment of spring, summer, and fall-blooming perennial plants, so there's never a shortage of colour throughout the season.
Ornamental grasses are such an underrated landscaping staple, adding height, texture and movement to the garden. Plus, Dad will appreciate having some grass in the yard that he doesn't have to cut! We can help you pick out the best varieties for your landscape style and colour palette, and help you find the best places to plant them to create a balanced, aesthetically-pleasing design.
Tropicals and Annuals
Spice things up with some exotic plants, vibrant colours, and tons of variety by opting for sun-loving tropicals and annual plants to enjoy for the summer. Dad will be totally floored when he sees that his old yard has been transformed into a lush, tropical oasis. Who needs a vacation when you've got the perfect getaway right at home?
Whether you think hanging baskets and container arrangements will do the trick, or you'd prefer a fully-loaded garden bed, we can help you choose stunning assortments of flowers that can thrive throughout our Southern Ontario summers. Even if your yard doesn't get much sunshine, we can still make some magic happen! Plenty of rainforest-dwelling tropical plants prefer the shade and will be right at home in your yard underneath a canopy of tree foliage.
Small Space Design
Don't have a ton of space? No problemo! Our creative team is great at making the most out of small spaces. We strategically place plants throughout the yard in a stylish and functional way, so Dad will have plenty of room to stretch out on his favourite lounger. A smaller space can feel much bigger with a layout that sections the yard into different living areas and draws the eye to unique focal points throughout the space. A small patio set is always inviting and will get plenty of use, so it's a pretty smart use for the space you have!
Develop Design Ideas With On-Site Consultation
If Dad's a take-charge guy who likes to take the lead, let him have some input on the landscape design by setting up an on-site consultation with our landscaping pros! We can work together to create the best possible design by combining Dad's big ideas and the most practical, cost-efficient ways to make them happen. That way, you'll be sure that he absolutely loves the final product.
The cost of a professional landscaping consultation with our team is $150 plus taxes, which we’re happy to apply to a gift card—perfect for surprising him on Father’s Day! To purchase a gift card or get more information about our landscaping services, give us a call and we'll be happy to help. Or, you can gift Dad some gorgeous new perennials with our brand new online store! We have delivery and curbside pick-up options available, so getting everything you need for the garden is easier than ever before.
By now, if you've been caring diligently for your seedlings, they're likely bursting out of your starter trays or pots! You've watched them grow up, and now it's time for them to graduate into the garden. But you may be wondering how to take the next steps. How do I transplant, and when? Answering these questions is key to success at this pivotal moment.
Transplanting Overview
Transplant timing hinges upon our last frost date, which is May 19 in Simcoe. Frost-hardy veggies can be transplanted before then, but tender plants should wait a little longer. Sometimes seedlings can outgrow their trays before their graduation time. Don't worry, that means they're growing well! The solution is simply to move them into a bigger pot.
How to Repot
Your young ones are ready for a larger home when their roots have filled their containers and their leaves are crowding out their neighbours. The new pot should be twice as large as the old one.
Begin by watering the seedlings. The damp soil will adhere to the roots and keep them from drying out. Don't tug on the stems. Instead, use a butter knife to carefully lift them from the container or squeeze them out from the base. If a few are intertwined, gently tease them apart. With a pencil or your finger, dig a hole into their new pot or plug tray. Place the seedling, firm the soil around it, and water them all once you finish. The roomier pot will give them a chance to stretch their legs before their big move.
When to Transplant into the Garden
Historic weather averages tell us when to take the next step. Often, we need to adapt to unusual weather or unique conditions each year, but here is a general guide for our climate.
April 15 - 25
Frost hardy: asparagus, broccoli, Brussels sprouts, cabbage, lettuce, onions, radishes, peas, spinach, parsnips, early potatoes.
April 25 - May 10
Semi-frost hardy: beets, carrots, cauliflower, celery, late potatoes, early sweet corn.
May 15 - 25
Semi-frost tender: snap beans, sweet corn, tomatoes.
May 25 - June 5
Frost tender: cucumbers, eggplant, melons, peppers, pumpkins, squash.
Hardening Off
You can gradually expose seedlings to the outdoors in the week ahead of their move. While not absolutely necessary, your veggies, especially the tender crops like tomatoes, will be strengthened by the gradual transition.
Begin by setting them in a shady spot away from the wind for a few hours each day. Slowly increase their exposure to sunlight and breeze until they spend a whole day and night outside. Make sure to keep them well-watered, as their small pots can quickly desiccate. When the time comes to graduate, they'll be ready to brave the elements.
How to Transplant into the Garden
Follow these steps for transplanting success:
- First, make sure you've loosened and enriched the soil with compost or another organic fertilizer.
- Choose a warm overcast day and plant in the morning or evening.
- Water the seedlings to hydrate their roots.
- Determine the correct garden spacing in advance.
- Gently squeeze the tray around each plug to remove them. Only remove each seedling just before moving to minimize the roots' exposure to air.
- Using a trowel or your fingers, make a hole and drop the seedling into it, firming up the soil around it as you plant. Leggier seedlings can be planted a little deeper as long as you don't bury the first leaves.
- Water the newly planted area immediately after finishing.
- They will likely need to be watered daily for a few weeks afterwards. Check the soil moisture and water as needed to prevent them from drying out.
There are a few more tricks for particular plants like tomatoes and cucumbers. But in general, these are the basics for transitioning your veggies into the ground. If you haven't started your seedlings, check out our selection of starter plants in our online catalogue. If you need more advice, our garden centre would be happy to share more tips for success!