Campanula rotundifolia

Seeds of the following native species have been added to the Shop. We can consider them ‘new’ since last time they were offered in 2016, and not from lack of trying. You can read more about each of them by clicking on the links provided.

Cornus canadensis, the lovely bunchberry; also read more about it Here

Aralia hispida – Britsly sarsaparilla, which is coming in full splendor in September when the fruits change color

Cornus canadensis fruits

Aralia hispida

Lobelia spicata, Pale- blue Lobelia – a choice, delicate species, that can be grown in a variety of situations. For a nice ‘native combo’ you can grow this Lobelia together with the Harebell and Solidago simplex var. ontarioense; they are often found growing close by.

Campanula rotundifolia, the ubiquitous Harebell, that has a place in any garden; the dainty flowers appear from early summer till fall and are better displayed in a rockery.
*The names harebell and witched thimble are said to come from a folk belief that witches used the plant to transform themselves into hares. If we are to believe more folklore, a superstition also says that the harebell flowers will ring to warn rabbits of foxes :)

Lobelia spicata (3)

I am happy that my message got through to more people, but I would like to emphasize once more that it is best to first hurry up with all the species from the moist-packed seeds category, peonies, Helleborus, Actaea, Aralia, Lilium, Cornus canadensis… it is still enough time for them to undergo the slightly warm/moist period (required for germination) before the winter arrives (the cold/moist stratification). You will hear me repeating this a few more times!

Speaking about the Moist packed seeds – this fall, both our native Jeffersonia diphylla and its Asian counterpart Jeffersonia dubia are on the Seeds List. Not easy to find to buy the plants, and expensive when it happens; plus they are very difficult to divide. On top of all this, the seeds are difficult to keep in moist storage (all good till now).

Jeffersonia dubia

Jeffersonia diphylla in April

More seeds to come….

Alvar is the name used for a distinctive habitat formed by a thin covering of soil or no soil at all, over a base of limestone or dolostone bedrock. These alvars support specialized species communities and are found only in the North America Great Lakes Basin, Estonia, Sweden, Ireland and UK. Ontario contains 75% of the alvars in North America.

Campanula rotundifolia and Packera paupercula

I find the extreme conditions in which plants can grow in the alvars, especially the open pavement and shoreline alvars, quite fascinating. Pools of water collect in slight depressions in the surface of the rock ‘pavement’ after rain and spring snow melt, and then small amounts of silt and sand accumulate and provide a habitat for plants to take root in the shallow holes, grikes and joint fractures shaped by water erosion. The reason I found the alvars and the plants growing there so fascinating is that they remind me of a rock garden situation, a really though one, with little soil and rooting space for the plants, high temperatures in the summer and more than this with high variation on the moisture levels throughout the seasons.

Many of the alvar plant species are perennials, of which some are more or less confined to this particular environment. For example species like Cirsium hillii, Solidago ptarmicoides and Astragalus neglectus have a high alvar confinement (above 70%), while others like Zigadenus elegans have a low<50 % alvar confinement. Besides knowing and protecting them, the ability to grow in such conditions it is a proof of their adaptability and more of them should be tested into cultivation.

The following images have been taken in the Bruce Peninsula area, in Ontario – it is a gallery that gradually it will be updated with more species.