Fall in the Gardens
The gardening calendar is certainly a continual one as we all know. Although it is not official, fall is now on our minds. Autumn at the Gardens at HCP holds some special moments. A great variety of community education classes (Kombucha Making, Hopi Style Wicker Tray Workshop and Herbs for Immune Health to name a few), our Golden Spruce planting, the changing colours of the leaves with some surprising blooms peaking out of the greenery, the joy of fall weddings, and our staff, students and volunteers busy in the gardens.
Our Head Gardener, Linda Petite has some great tips for you. “Fall is for planting: the soil is still warm and shorter days and mild temperatures mean less transplant shock on plants. The inevitable fall rains will start and keep plants well watered so that they form an established root system before winter freeze-up. It’s that time again to shop for your spring blooming bulbs like Tulips, Narcissus and Allium-shop early for best selection!
Did you know that the traditional day to plant your Garlic is the Autumn Solstice (September 22 this year). Easy to grow and ready to harvest next July.” The Gardens at HCP has our annual Fall Plant Sale coming up on September 30th from 9 am – 4 pm to help support your dirty gardening habit and find those final gems. All prices on plants are 25% off with further reductions on plants in our bargain bin. We have bunches of sunflowers grown in the Gardens for you to take come.
As summer winds down, the Pacific Horticulture College full-time students are heading off to their first week of work experience at various employers in the region. They are also starting to work on their big residential design projects, which is a main focus in the program for the next two months. The PHC part-time students are working hard on Level 4 Plant ID and Softscape Maintenance in their evening classes. PHC staff are preparing for the big 30th anniversary event on September 17th from 1 to 4 pm, as well as the 2018 program info session on September 25th from 6 to 7 pm. Lots of exciting happenings at PHC!
Gardening is such a great way to get your mind off the stresses of life, a couple of HCP staff members like to listen to podcasts while they are out the in Garden. A couple horticulture podcasts we recommend are ‘The History of Roses‘ from the ‘Stuff you Missed in History Class and ‘How Stupid is our Obsession with Lawns‘. You can also download them on ITunes or another podcast app.
Come down to the Gardens at HCP for a slower slice of life and inspiration for your garden. We look forward to seeing you.
