@OIPC1 Garden Savers.

Speaking of wild ginger (Asarum canadense), the Ontario Invasive Plant Council (OIPC) has produced a series of videos about garden invaders and garden savers, including wild ginger.

Garden invaders are invasive species that are sold to gardeners as plants that will quickly fill in garden areas and flourish in our local gardens. The reason they fill in garden areas so quickly is because they have various invasive tendencies. They grow aggressively, take up resources quickly, and usually have a growth form that enables them to spread. This spreading quickly leads to  their escaping from our gardens and their takeover of native ecosystems, parks, and green spaces. They flourish in this environment because so few insects interact with them. They aren't a food source, they're biodiversity black holes and they're creating a break in the food chain.

These are the plants that we need to stop planting in the city. They include English ivy, goutweed, periwinkle, autumn olive, and many ornamental grasses to name a few.

Garden savers are native plants that we can plant instead of these typical garden invaders that are commonly sold in big box nurseries. They contribute to ecosystem function, local biodiversity, and provide habitat connectivity. They grow slowly because they put energy into deep root systems that improve soil conditions, help water infiltrate into the ground water system, and reduce erosion. They return organic material to the soil and they interact with native soil fungi and provide food and shelter for native beneficial insect population.

There are many sources of garden savers in the city, and in nearby rural areas. You just need to know where to look. The North American Native Plant Society has a list of commercial growers throughout North America who are ethically producing true local, native plants in their respective regions.

Wild ginger is a true garden saver. And it's one of the species that I am going to try to grow indoors this year. Here is the OIPC's wild ginger video presented by Colleen Cirillo, the original Healthy Yards coordinator:

#nativeplants as #houseplants

I'm part of the Eco Team at my work office. Each office in my organization has an Eco Team and we have guidelines that have been developed at the corporate level. We coordinate many different projects both outside and inside the office to create a more sustainable and healthy workplace.

I'm a member of the outdoor committee. Currently we're planning activities that we would like to work on at the office this year. We're lucky that our office is in the middle of a park and we have quite a bit of land to work with. Our main outdoor asset is a large vegetable garden plot that staff can use all season long. We're also talking about setting up an outdoor lunch or meeting space, coordinating workshops with the education committee so staff can learn more about gardening, and talking to our property managers about changing some of the outdoor maintenance practices, reducing the amount of salt used in the winter, reducing mowing, and using native plants in the flower gardens.

The indoor committee is currently working on an initiative to bring more houseplants (officeplants) into the office. Last week, I assisted one of the indoor committee members with a survey of all of current officeplants. This was a plant ID challenge because most of the plants are non-native species from tropical regions. We figured them all out and we have quite a few different species. They can all be propagated easily by taking clippings and encouraging them to root. We also found many pots of dry soil and dead plants. We're going to have to incorporate a watering schedule for some cubicles and help people learn how to take care of our new officeplants.

In my cubicle, I am going to plant an aloe vera plant. They have very useful antiseptic properties. My greatest work health and safety hazard is exposure to sharp paper edges, so the aloe vera might come in useful. I avoid paper cuts these days by avoiding printing all together. Lately I've been thinking about each piece of paper as a slice of a tree and that makes me not want to waste them at all. Also, I just had the two giant filing cabinets removed from my office and I intend to stop putting paper in storage. Files can be saved electronically just as easily and they are much easier to search. 

Other than the aloe vera, I am going to plant entirely native plants in my cubicle. I've been trying to do some research about using native plants as houseplants, but I haven't found many good sources of information. I've decided that I will choose plants that generally grow in forest areas. They require less direct sunlight. Maybe only indirect sunlight. A lot of them require moist soils, which might be a challenge at times, but I have been using upside down thin necked glass bottles of water to keep my balcony plants watered over long weekends in the summer and that has worked fine. I also usually plant native plants in native soils where their roots can interact with soil fungi. I think this is pretty important for native forest plants. I"m going to try planting some in a soilless potting mix, but I might also try some in some native soil mixed with something organic to reduce soil compaction in the pot.

The first two species I'm  going to start with are wild ginger and bloodroot. These are two of my favourite species. I also want to try a fern and maybe a grass or a sedge. I'm going to order all of these from the North American Native Plant Society annual plant sale. Members of NANPS can pre-order plants. Also, they'll be started and well-established. Giving them a better chance of survival in captivity. We'll see how this officeplant experiment goes.

The Urban Gardeners Republic @UrbGardenersRep

I've been following this great group via Twitter and Facebook for the past few weeks. The group is instagram-based, but I am not instagram connected. I don't think I'm missing anything, though.

They fill up my news feeds with inspiring, bright green garden photos, project ideas, and all sorts of awesome things that I really like. Mainly about food plants, but there have been a few native plants that I've noticed in there too.

New winter growth: #tenmetrediet

So, I've managed to protect my two fruit-bearing shrubs over the winter months. I feel like this has been a huge accomplishment considering my balcony was closed for the majority of the growing season last year, I purchased these two scrawny little sale plants at the end of the season, and I moved them from sunny Chatham, Ontario to the frigid north. It's stressful moving this many degrees of latitude. Trust me, I've been there.

First off, my blueberry plant.There are new leaves at the tip of each branch.

There are also many new axillary buds. I don't know much about the growth form of a blueberry bush, so I'm not quite sure how it will flower yet. Along with these little buds there are many new branches growing from the base. I forgot to take a good picture, but I'll try to remember to post one on the next sunny day.

Second, my lime tree. This little guy has already produced fruit twice! And now there are many new white flowers. Unfortunately, there aren't many pollinators inside at the moment. I noticed today that the flowers have bloomed. We'll see if any new little limes appear.

So far I have eaten one mini lime, two full-sized limes, and there are three more on the shrub. I'm just leaving them there until I want to eat them. They are ripe, but they change and grow very, very slowly. I think they should be fine for a while longer.

I have to say that I am pretty chuffed with my ability to produce citrus fruit on a balcony in Scarborough, Ontario. I think 2014 is going to be a big year for me in the field of urban agriculture because these little green gems are pretty inspiring.

@NatureCanada and how to be a #goodneighbour in your #naturehood

Just another great take on creating a healthy yard. Nature Canada has seven good ideas for helping species at risk in our own backyards. Hint: plant as many native plants as possibly you can.

#volunteer with @tnanps

I put my orange butterfly milkweed photo to good use: