"Do we by any chance knowledge of a beverage called May Queen? Its foundation is any good, dry champagne, to which is added liqueur brandy, armagnac, kummel, yellow chartreuse and old stout, to taste." A potent potion recommended Lord Ickenham, 'Uncle Fred in the Springtime' of P. G. Wodehouse fame. On second thoughts, perhaps a nice Chablais would be safer, sitting out admiring a new gardening season. As Cass Warner Sperling and Cork Millner proclaimed: "You're as welcome as the flowers in May/And I love you in the same old way."
Diversion No. 1
Implementing a new residential wood ash recycling program to restore calcium levels in Muskoka, Ontario's forest soils and lakes could help restore the area's dwindling supply of crayfish and maple sap, according to new research co-led by York University and published in the journal Facets.
What you choose for an annual flower display will last through to Thanksgiving, perhaps even Halloween. An example for full sun might be an edging of scented purple alyssum, backed by yellow dwarf marigolds with red geraniums bringing up the rear. In shade, scented white alyssum, backed by alternating triples of multiflowered begonias interspersed with dusty miller or single caladiums. No need to crowd plantings--space a trowel's length apart. Keep watered and apply liquid fertilizer every month.
Diversion No. 2
Facebook has been accused of using the Chelsea Flower Show to improve its 'tarnished reputation.' Professor Stefan Buczacki, the former host of Gardener's Question Time, has accused Facebook of using the Chelsea Flower Show to improve its reputation. Facebook says its £75,000 coastal-themed landscape garden will highlight how social media in "powerful force for positive change in the real world," reported The Daily Telegraph, while Business Insider reveals that New Zealand's privacy commissioner lashes out at Facebook, calling those behind the company 'morally bankrupt pathological liars.'
Create container plantings to flank the front door also brighten the patio or deck. Since these will be nearer to eye level, install plants closer together, perhaps four inches apart. You'll require a centrepiece, perhaps an ornamental grass, surrounded by geraniums, silver dusty miller, purple oxalis and trailing vinca. Use odd numbers in groupings of three, five or more. Discourage thieves by placing a 25-kilgram bag of gravel, sand or marble chips before topping with soil and planting.
Diversion No. 3
Kale is now one of the most pesticide-contaminated vegetables, warned ScienceAlert. In less than a decade, kale has gone from a garnish on salad bars to a staple item in salads, smoothies and side dishes across the US. It's been turned i.to chips, crushed into powder and added to popular items like popcorn and soda. It's also one of the most pesticide-contaminated vegetables in the US, according to the non-profit Environmental Working Group (EWG) which lists kale amongst its "Dirty Dozen" guide to the most contaminated food products.
Famed Chelsea Flower Show bumbles on. Once described by retired director Stephen Bennet as, "An uncomfortable, dangerously overcrowded, barely profitable, four-day jamboree." Today it is more of a display by the 'Fab Four.' That is the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge and sometime challengers the Duke and Duchess of Sussex. This year the former has designed a 'woodland paradise,' the latter an edible fruit garden for Zimbabwe. Neither of which will likely be of use elsewhere--if visitors survive an increasingly risky city.
Diversion No. 4
The MasterCleanser or "Lemonade Diet" involves consuming only salt water, laxatives, and tons of lemon water with cayenne pepper and maple syrup for 10 days or more; Beyoncé reportedly is a fan. Business Insider looks at 'Fad Diets' while questioning their scientific support. For those that like to howl at the moon, the werewolf diet follows a fasting regime tied to lunar cycles. It calls for 24 hours of fasting during the full moon or new moon. Madonna and Demi Moore reported fans.
Mother's Day is the 12th May--and you'd better not forget it. As Ogden Nash once observed: "For instance, Mother's Day (formerly 2nd May) comes in very handy/For those who support themselves by the sale of flowers and candy." But Brit cartoonist's Giles beloved grandmother hurled pots and bouquets aside, complaining, "Damn flowers--never a bottle of Scotch." Then again you might want to check out plants for city gardens oft confined spaces at vinelandnurseries.com, at the very least always a fascinating browse.
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Gifts from the Garden Month
Wes Porter is a horticultural consultant and writer based in Toronto. Wes has over 40 years of experience in both temperate and tropical horticulture from three continents.
