Tag: Saskatchewan

Mock orange.

On By Sheryl @ Flowery ProseIn Botany, Flower, Gardening, Horticulture, Outdoors, Photography, Plant, Prairie23 Comments

The mock orange (Philadelphus lewisii cvs.) won’t bloom here for a while yet but I was going through some old photo files and I came across a series I took when my hubby and I visited the Patterson Garden Arboretum in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan in summer 2014.  I am more than a little enamoured with mock orange so I spent considerable time gawking at them and inhaling their magnificent fragrance while in the garden, despite the fact that the mosquitoes were eating us alive.  (Insect repellent apparently doesn’t work in Saskatchewan – their mosquitoes are even more ridiculously nasty than ours in Alberta. Then again, they had just come off of weeks of rain and flooding in some areas of the province and the hatches were massive).

These are all hardy mock orange, rated for zone 3.  Do you grow mock orange in your garden?

‘Jackii’

'Jackii' Mockorange 2

‘Marjorie’

'Marjorie' Mockorange 4

‘Snow Goose’

'Snow Goose' Mockorange 2

‘Waterton’

'Waterton' Mockorange 5

Flowery Friday: ‘Hazeldean’ rose.

On By Sheryl @ Flowery ProseIn Botany, Flower, Gardening, Horticulture, Outdoors, Photography, Plant44 Comments

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Ah…spring in Calgary!  I have no idea what coat I should wear when I go outside – in a five minute walk, it might pour rain or pelt icy snow or be so pleasantly warm you wonder why you put the coat on in the first place.  I love this crazy season!

The garden was partly buried in snow earlier this week and is now gloriously muddy, so I’m admiring from afar the progress of my slowly emerging perennials (all that fresh green!) and the blooms of tiny crocuses, squill, chionodoxa, snowdrops, and muscari.  Isn’t it amazing that the soil is still so cold and yet all this fantastic STUFF is going on?  Even if you’ve been gardening in northern climes for many years, sometimes you just have to pause a moment to take in the absolute wonder of it.  And how here, in the face of such marvels, I can’t even choose suitable outerwear.  😉

In lieu of photos of spring-flowering bulbs, I want to show off another rose I found while touring Patterson Garden Arboretum in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan last July.  I love this photo because it’s a teaser…I still have yet to see the open flowers of Rosa ‘Hazeldean’.  (If you’re curious, here’s a link to some images and a write-up of the breeding history of this hardy yellow beauty).

Have a wonderful weekend…and may you always have the right coat for the weather!  🙂

Flowery Friday: ‘Louis Riel’ rose.

On By Sheryl @ Flowery ProseIn Botany, Flower, Gardening, Horticulture, Outdoors, Photography, Plant38 Comments

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Rosa ‘Louis Riel’ – a real gem found at the Saskatoon Forestry Farm Park and Zoo (Saskatoon, Saskatchewan) in July of last year. Love the blue-green foliage and the pure white single flowers!  I’m not quite sure what the tag-along insect is on the uppermost bloom.

Sculpture Garden – University of Saskatchewan.

On By Sheryl @ Flowery ProseIn Outdoors, Photography25 Comments

A garden of a less “flowery” sort today…these photos were taken at the sculpture garden on the grounds of the University of Saskatchewan, which my hubby and I visited in July of last year.  Bill Epp, a visual arts professor at the University, started the garden back in 1993, and more works were added in 1997 and 2006.  These photos represent a smidgen of what is available to see.

I just had to include a photo of the “hand” – I actually found it a bit unnerving.  How do you feel about it (and the other works)?

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Saskatchewan snapshot: Sunset.

On By Sheryl @ Flowery ProseIn Outdoors, Photography25 Comments

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Photographed 11 July 2014.

The field featured is almost in Alberta – it’s actually in Saskatchewan, at a place called Alsask (fitting, if lacking originality).  I initially thought that Alsask was like Lloydminster and Cypress Hills, and was partly in Alberta and partly in Saskatchewan, but apparently, only the former village’s cemetery is in Alberta.  Alsask was the site of a military base between 1959 and 1987 but it no longer even holds status as a village; rather, it is considered a “special service area” incorporated within the nearby town of Milton.  I rather wish we had stopped to explore; according to Wikipedia, most of the original buildings are gone, but one of the military radar domes and an indoor swimming pool (used in the summer to this day!) are still there.

Forest fires were burning throughout Alberta and the Northwest Territories at the time, so the smoky air lent an eerie glow to the sun.   I just loved the way that power lines looked against the sky; there’s something vaguely alien about the landscape to me, it’s a bit like something out of a science fiction novel.

Speaking of novels, what is currently on your reading list?  Anything that stands out for you – fiction, non-fiction, poetry, whatever?  I’m dividing my time between several excellent cookbooks (including Karen Solomon’s Asian Pickles, and Small Adventures in Cooking by James Ramsden) and Kimberly Elkins’ debut novel, a fictionalized account of the life of Laura Bridgman called What is Visible?.  (I’m barely into it but it’s captivating so far). 

 

Hesitation.

On By Sheryl @ Flowery ProseIn Bird, Outdoors, Photography, Wildlife, Wildlife Photography43 Comments

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For a pelican, he sure looks a little hesitant about getting into the pool….

Photos taken 10 July 2014, on the South Saskatchewan River near the CPR Bridge, in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan – something I was more than a bit hesitant to cross over on. It would be an understatement to say I’m not good with either heights or bridges and this old pedestrian bridge adjacent to the rail bridge completely unnerved me. Built in 1909, it felt decidedly creaky to me, although everyone else seemed blissfully unaware that we were all going to fall off into the river below if, for a split second, I took my white-knuckled fingers off of the oh-too-short railing or stepped on the wrong wooden board.  😉

 

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Do you have any phobias or fears that make you hesitate?

From Patterson Garden, University of Saskatchewan.

On By Sheryl @ Flowery ProseIn Flower, Gardening, Horticulture, Outdoors, Photography, Plant, Tree35 Comments

My hubby and I spent a few days earlier this month in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, so I could attend some workshops during the University of Saskatchewan’s annual Hort Week.  I had such an amazing time and met so many nice people, plus I learned a lot about plant diseases, insect pests and controls, and Prairie-hardy trees and shrubs.   Over the next few posts, I’ll share some pics from the trip – this was our first time to Saskatoon and I was impressed with the beauty of this city on the South Saskatchewan River.

One of the stops we made was to tour the University’s Patterson Garden, a public arboretum.  We actually went there over two evenings because (a) it has so many trees and shrubs to explore and (b) the mosquitoes chased us out the first night!  The mozzies were INSANE while we were there – I’m not one of those people who are typically bothered by them, but I was practically eaten alive this trip.   One of the participants in the insect pests workshop worked for the City of Saskatoon and he said that according to tests they had done, the mosquito population hadn’t yet reached a record peak, but it was close.

Here is more information about Patterson Garden, from the U of S’s website:

The University’s Arboretum was established in 1966 and contains one of the most diverse collections of trees, shrubs, and vines in the Prairie Provinces. Species from northern regions of the world as well as historic cultivars developed by pioneer plant breeders are on display. All specimens are labeled with common and scientific names. An invaluable reference for horticulture and botany, the picturesque site is also used for photography, field trips, and strolls.

The Arboretum is located in zone 2b of the hardiness zones of Canada, experiencing a sunny continental climate with cold snowy winters and hot summers. Despite climatic extremes many woody plants thrive here, responding to well-defined seasons and long hours of summer sunshine.

Patterson Garden Arboretum is a garden attraction of Canada’s Garden Route. It is nearby to the campus area and is open to the public throughout the year, free of charge, from sunrise to sunset.

We came across this beautiful rose with fading flowers near the end of the second evening – it is not a named cultivar, at least not according to the plate, which read:  Rosa 73846001 (J5 Rose).   Most of the plants had their planting dates marked on the plates, but not this one, so I’m not sure how old it is.

Gorgeous!

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I hope you have a wonderful weekend!  What plans do you have (gardening or otherwise)?