Blog

Garden Tips: June 2020

“Summer, the period where it is too warm to do what was too cold to do in Winter”-Mark Twain Plant your brassicas (kale, cabbage, cauliflower, broccoli) deeper, just below first leaves for stronger plants and stronger roots. The same can be done with tomato plants,...

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What a beauty!!

This morning on my windy walk on the Delta dyke (112th) as a wandered out to the water across the swampy shore I spotted a beautiful  painted caterpillar on a plant, it was the Black Swallowtail caterpillar! It's caterpillar is light brownish and white when young and ...

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salmonberry

Yesterday May 21, 2014, I tasted my first two ripe salmonberries of the season, right here in Joe Brown Park. now the treasure hunt will begin, on the way to and from school or dog walks!!  Salmon berries also come in yellow , orange and red. They are cousins  of the...

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Have you started your seeds yet?

If you are new at this, a good way to use up those plastic salad containers from Costco is to use them for your seeds. Fill one third of the way up with STERILIZED soil (prevents die off), spray to dampen, sprinkle seeds, cover with a thin dry layer of soil and, do...

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Elderberry Flowers

This is a close up of the  edible and aromatic elderberry flower.  The blooms are almost done for Spring! The heavy scent hangs in the air on a still morning.  Elderberries grow almost everywhere, from Joe Brown Park to Mud Bay dyke. In shady areas of the park the...

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Mushrooms

October and November are generally the best months for finding different mushroom species, especially after a rain shower. Some of the local mushrooms that can be observed and eaten are: “the chanterelle, boletes, oysters mushrooms, shaggy manes and puffballs”. More...

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the galls among us…

This morning on Mud Bay Dyke, my nose caught the sweet fragrance of wild roses in bloom , then,  as I am walking along with my four footed hairy partner, my eyes caught some red, small and furry balls on these rose bushes...Camera ready and shoot. The cutest little...

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Welcome the Monarch Butterflies to your garden!!!

While you are buying your bedding plants in the coming days or weeks, make sure to look for Milkweed plants, if you want to attract these gorgeous creatures!! Milkweed is becoming harder and harder to find, because these plants are not welcomed by farmers in their...

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Nature Nuts at Crescent Park

Definite visible signs of Spring in the last day of Winter!! We enjoyed a great walk along the outer trails of the park and cut across through the open soccer field towards the pond below. Everywhere were Indian plum in bloom and greening up with bright leaves. Their...

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Nature Nuts at “North 40”

This Friday was a very mild but overcast day at North 40, a dog off leash area, North of Churchill and 72nd street, is a little jewel of a walk in Ladner.  Formerly used as a military airfield and communications station located beside Boundary Bay. After its closure...

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