Though the Yorkton and District Horticultural Society are not having any meetings at this time, you can still keep up with the group by visiting us at www.yorktonhort.ca . We recently had a Zoom meeting, just to keep in touch and “talk gardening”. Thank you to John, our webmaster, who kindly also organizes our online meetings and thank you to everyone who took part, it was great to see you!
The next University of Saskatchewan online gardening session is on March 9, and the topic is “Gardening For Fragrance”. Lyndon Penner will be the instructor for this two hour class, and it sounds very interesting! The description on the website says “The scented garden has intrigued gardeners and garden visitors for centuries. In this class we will look at some of the most deliciously scented flowers and foliage that can be added to your yard to create a fragrant and deliciously perfumed atmosphere.” It seems like a long time ago, but remember how fragrance abounds in our gardens, from the time we are inhaling the aroma of a newly-tilled garden, to the burst of floral delights over the spring and summer, the first peonies, the apple blossoms, or the smell of tomato plants on a hot summer day…we could go on and on, couldn’t we! And this class will tell us specifically what to grow to being even more fragrance to our gardens! If you would like to register for the fragrance class, visit gardening@usask.ca
I know we are all starting to think about this year’s garden. So since we’re talking fragrance, let’s talk about plants that have the aroma without the flowers: herbs. The beauty of planting herbs for fragrance is that many of them do so well in containers, and with plants for fragrance, we want them to be where we are! What better way to do that than by planting some aromatic beauties in containers!
Containers are a great way to have a collection of similar plants, like herbs. Containers are so convenient because we can easily move them around, and they make an attractive display if we choose them carefully, having planters of varying colors, sizes and heights. The only criteria are that the containers have drainage.
Most containers do well with a soil-less mix, which gives good drainage and aeration. Soil from the garden is too heavy: “too heavy” in the sense that it does not provide the good drainage of a soil-less mix, and may contain more clay or sand; and “too heavy” in the sense that because it contains more clay or sand, it weighs more! And a larger container full of that kind of soil can be very difficult to move around the patio!
The beauty of having herbs in containers, and having them right where we are, is that it is easy to enjoy their delicious scents, and it is easy to use the plants themselves for culinary or fragrance purposes. Let’s look at a few popular examples. The sage family is wonderfully fragrant. Rosemary is another favorite, enjoying full sun and is drought tolerant. Lavender’s aromatic leaves are lovely to dry and scent our linens.
All these herbs have attractive leaves, which make them beautiful to look at even if they don’t have significant blooms.
So we can start thinking containers, start thinking fragrance, and start thinking of a new and interesting way to grow herbs! It’s not too early to think about it! In about twelve weeks or so we’ll be out there, eagerly planting!
Thank you to our friends at Yorkton This Week for their great work! Let’s pray for health for all, and bright times to come! Have a great week!
