Pine Ridge Garden Club

HELEN NICOlAOU, Special to The Standard

In anticipation of spring, as always, we all look forward to an outing to the local garden centres to pick out the perfect plants to transform our yards into our own oasis. Getting out daily into the yard and tending to the weeding, admiring the flowers or finding the first signs of produce in the vegetable garden certainly is very satisfying.

Our annual fundraiser plant sale was a Virtual one this year. Many thanks to our club members for their generous donations of seedlings and perennials. Organizers overcame challenges head-on to make the first-time online orders and curbside pickup a great success. It was a wonderful day to be able to see our gardening friends during the contact free pickup.

With no access in 2020, this year’s spring cleanup at the Scugog Museum was the next task on our list. The museum gates were open to our club members by appointment, allowing us to work on the historic flower and herb gardens. The Lee house is now planted with annuals, and the overgrown herb garden is manicured and back to order.

On Saturday, July 10th, I had the pleasure of enjoying the 25th Annual Uxbridge self-guided tour of private gardens. Eight gardens were featured within Historic Uxbridge and throughout the countryside of Uxbridge Township.

Wonderful gardens ranged from making the most in a small space to an expansive wooded hillside property with winding trails. It was a gorgeous day to spend out and about, seeing a little bit of heaven so close to home.

Patrick Mills is this year’s 2021 Bursary recipient who graduated from Port Perry High School with Honors and is attending Trent University this fall in the Science Program.

As a beekeeper, my first line of defence at the sight of visible plant damage is to handpick the bugs. I rarely use any sprays, even when labelled “organic,” as they may be harmful to pollinators. Please read the label and or check the “Pollinator Safe 101” website for the best info on safe products and application times.

Our next Virtual Meeting will be Tuesday, August 3rd at 7:30 p.m. with guest speaker Micol Marotti. The Topic will be “Flower Food” – How to Grow and Cook with Edible Flowers.

For more information, go to PineRidgeGardenClub.com.

According to research gardening helps to improve energy levels and also speeds up the healing process, whether it’s the heart or the body.

https://pineridgegardenclub.com/

#column #Pineridgegardenclub