Canada post strike

I would have like to get back to the routine of packing seeds, but thanks to the on-going Canada Post strike, this is not possible. Unfortunately, other shipping options I looked at are not doable due to the low weight/letter size packages the seeds are being shipped in.

For those who have placed orders – thank you very much! unless you choose the refund option, the orders will be shipped as soon as possible. I recommend to not place new orders at this time. Even after the services resume there will be delays and backlogs from the mail they have on-hold.

We have to ‘thank’ Canada Post workers for choosing this time of year on purpose to make their demands (some of which I find outrageous).
I hope the strike doesn’t last long, although this might be a good occasion for the Corporation to really do the necessary and long overdue changes, so we do not have to go through another strike in a year or two.

Trying to get back to the routine garden-wise, I finished arranging my bunch of potted plants and seedlings for the winter: mesh anti-critters over the small seedlings and other materials are ready (fleece and tarp) for when the cold arrives.
I hope everyone else is almost ready with the winter preparations!

There will be new seeds on offer when we can get back to business.
A package with gifts arrived before the strike with Astragalus missouriensis and Hedysarum boreale wild collected seeds.

And I still have late collections to sort through, like the single flower Dahlia shown in the featured image for good cheer.

I grew this single-flowered Dahlia with burgundy foliage (probably of ‘Bishop of Canterbury’ heritage?) from a few gifted seeds many years ago. It has since become a garden staple (in the ground or containers) with golden, orange and deep red flowers swarmed by pollinators from June until late fall!

Thanks to a long and warm autumn I also collected Tricyrtis hirta seeds a couple of days ago. Toad lilies are great plants for late summer-fall flowering and with the garden centers offerings not very great we can use the seeds.