Page 5 - index

All across Canada and the USA we have more problems showing up; we are losing
the honey bees at a great rate. (Read more about this on page 23.)

I mentioned last editorial about having a special eye catcher. I am told there are 3
types of plants: thrillers, spillers, and fllers. Well the nursery gave me thrillers for spillers
and fllers for thrillers so I got the most ridiculous looking planter you ever saw. Thrillers
upright medium to high height, Fillers low plants to fll in empty spaces, spillers plants
that normally grow down such as hanging baskets.

The summer is supposed to be for holidays I am told, so I took a couple of day
trips. The frst being in mid July to Chuck Chapman’s gardens. Chuck told me upon
arrival if I wanted to talk to him I would have to follow him around the gardens. He
was busy dead heading and cauterizing the cut. Being nosey like I am I had to ask why?
His reply was to help protect those precious seed pods from possible disease or insects.
Made sense to me but the felds looked like someone had covered it with plastic bag ties.
There had to be thousands; well maybe not thousands but at least 500. The recording of
all these pollinating crosses alone, never mind the work performed to get so many seed
pods seems daunting. Later on will be the collecting of the seed, labeling them, and then
starting the prep work to be ready for planting. I don’t know when he actually plants them
in the gardens but that is also a big job, with all the recording and the long wait to see
last year’s hard work. After reading all the articles we have published and watching these
people work, I have changed my mind about what a bulb, rhizome is worth! No limit for
the time and effort it took to get it to market for our pleasure. I am “el cheap O” but I did
pay $100.00 for a yellow peony.

The other trip I took was to the Laking Gardens at the Burlington Royal Botanical
Gardens. I was curious to see what was happening after the 2 season closure and all the
talk of what they were going to do, after all the removal and regardening was completed.
It has been turned over to one man to get it back to Dr Laking days. I must say with very
little help, he is coming along nicely. The beds have been laid out 18 feet wide by 36 feet
long. Each bed is then divided out in equal squares for each cultivar. So far the Spuria’s
and Species have completed one bed. The SDB’s have completed another bed and at the
time of this printing I suspect the Siberians are completed with the balance of the beds
for TB’s in decades. The walkways between beds are close to 8 feet and the main isle 10
feet. The grounds have been resoded and look just like the old gardens. I did not get the
gardeners name but he is doing a great job. He has been there for over 30 years and has
seen all the changes and is the one who has to do the work. With no complaints either. A
real gentleman to talk to.
Ed Jowett

A Little Humor
Take my advice’ I don’t use it anyway.
Laugh at your own problems, everyone else does.
A closed mouth gathers no foot.

Canadian Iris Society Newsletter 3