I Love New Plants

There is something about seeing a new plant bloom that really thrills me. I anticipate blooms like a child wringing their hands before Christmas gift-opening. I stalk the plant frequently, carefully checking for signs of imminent blooms. It need not be an exotic or fancy plant either. This year, I even got excited about some annuals (poppies, phacelia, and candytuft) which I direct seeded in a neglected area rather than throw away the odd assortment of free "bonus" packages of seeds I'd amassed.
Tradescantia "Little Doll", a new plant purchased for me last year by resident-lawnmower-man.

This gorgeous annual is the 24-inch tall Lavatera "Silver Cup".

I planted a few Lavatera in my yard and one over at my sister-in-law's place. She has been so gracious in letting me have full access to her yard's dirt, a very positive personal characteristic. I plan to keep on taking advantage of this trait by planting even more exciting new annuals over there next year. In contrast, my mother likes to stick with the "tried and true". Geraniums or bust, her motto could be (though this year I may have convinced her to try a few new ones). I'm addicted to new plants and this will keep my nose in the seed catalogs all winter.
Lilies are in full bloom in the perennial beds:

Look at this, my Okanagan relatives. I grew cherries! We planted these three years ago and this is their first fruiting year. They are tart cherries called "SK Carmine Jewel". They apparently have just as much sugar in them as sweet cherries, but more citric acid, which makes them a bit tart compared to the sweet ones. I bought the young trees from DNA gardens in Alberta, which has a really great selection of novelty fruiting trees and shrubs. The tree itself is darling, a perfect little ball of dark glossy leaves on a short single trunk.

A group of lilies, including the hideous orange one that mysteriously trespassed on my garden this year. I have tied a string around its stem to identify the offender, which must be dug out and given away.

I've got Subarctic Cherries!

Who says you can't grow cherries in subarctic Canada? My "Carmine Jewel" tart cherries (the cherry PR people think "tart" sounds better than "sour") finally bloomed for the first time since they were planted.

We planted four of these trees three years ago and trained them to grow a single main stem with a nice ball of branches on top. This tree gets the most sun and it has the most blooms on it. I hope it will be pollinated by the other cherry-related trees in the yard. I want some nice cherries to eat this summer!

The many forest fires in northern Saskatchewan are still burning and we've had several days of poor visibility in town due to moderate smoke in the air. There's no danger for our town, but bush camps and cabins are at risk of fires. Here's one of the water-bomber planes that flies frequently over our house. Its base is at the La Ronge airport.

Tulips. Yes, we still have them!

A nice clump of wild orchids in the forest behind our property.

This blue flower is Clematis macropetala, a hardy clematis I started from seed. It is growing up a cedar shrub which had a dead spot on one side. The clematis quite likes this location, since its roots are shaded by the shrub.

Close-up of the Clematis macropetala "Markham's Blue". I think that most of the fancy clematis types are not hardy here. I don't prune this clematis at all, but I may need to soon, just prevent it from getting too large. It's begun to reach its tentacles beyond the cedar, leaving vines waving about in the air.

Pink Potentilla and Columbines

The columbines are blooming now and I'm braving the blowing fluff from the cottonwood trees to take photograph them. Sneeze, sneeze, sniff...I started several of these Potentilla x "Helen Jane" two years ago. They have an intense raspberry-pink flower. In good soil and full sun, the largest plant has gotten about 90 cm wide by 50 cm tall. It is not a compact plant, being rather open, but not quite "sprawling".

This is the neighbour's dock across the street. I'm assuming the grandkid's bicycles are destined for a splash in Lac La Ronge. Here are the three sandcherries we planted two years ago. My grand plan is to facilitate cross-pollination between all the cherry trees/shrubs in the yard: Nanking cherry (Prunus tomentosa), Pincherry (Prunus pensylvanica) , "Carmine Jewel" dwarf sour cherry and sandcherry (Prunus x cistena). The dwarf sour cherry apparently can self-pollinate, but I understand that the other trees all have better yields when cross-pollinated. I'm not sure if the Nanking cherries are going to make it this year though, as they haven't leafed out yet! Good grief!