By Marjorie Vendrig, Master Gardener

We are into the dog days of summer, too hot to do much actual gardening, but a good time to enjoy the garden.

As you wander through your garden, remember to stop and smell the roses, take note of what brings a smile to your face.  Where have you found success in the garden? What have you enjoyed?  

So far, so good in my garden!  Spring was slow to come but the cool and wet weather allowed spring flowering bulbs and shrubs to hold onto their petals for an extended period. Often, there is a hot spell that puts a too quick end to those blossoms that took months to arrive. This year was different with daffodils, tulips, and alliums lasting for weeks and weeks. From the early forsythias, the magnolias, to the treasured native serviceberry, lilacs, and all that follows, it was a spectacular show of spring flowers.

Sicilian Honey garlic (Allium siculum) is one of my favourite bulbs. I planted several in fall 2024 but was disappointed when only small flowers with weak stems emerged in their first season. Somewhat discouraged, but still enamoured with the flower, I planted a few more bulbs in the fall of 2025. This spring all of the bulbs put on a good show. Those in the second year had stronger, sturdier stems with bigger flowers and the first year bulbs were equally pleasing.  I also splurged on some less common bulbs: hair allium (Allium vineale ‘Hair’) – weird, disheveled, and late flowering; Schubertii allium (Allium shubertii) – perfect for dried flower interest long after the flowers have faded, and a couple of Red Mohican allium (Allium amethystinum) – big and bold.

There were a few days of hot weather when the peonies opened up but the heat didn’t last and they didn’t get flattened by a hard, strong rainstorm. Coral Charm is my current favourite peony, I wait every spring for it to bloom and when it does, I stop by and admire it several times a day. I’ve got mine planted beside Sun King Golden Spikenard (Aralia cordata ‘Sun King’), a perfect contrast that makes each more special.  Another favourite is the classic Sarah Bernhardt, I can’t help but stick my nose into the luscious soft petals when they appear. And of course, the Itoh peonies!

A few years ago I was inspired by a clematis grower who claimed there was always room for more clematis anywhere in the garden, especially at the base of trees where they could scramble up and around the trunk and in through the branches. I found a few clematis at an end of season sale – sadly, all unnamed – and planted them as suggested, at the base of a few trees. The tree flowers first, then gets decorated once again when it’s time for the clematis to bloom. This worked particularly well with a lilac coloured clematis that wound its way up through the purple red leaves of a crabapple (Malus ‘Thunderchild’). Blossoms face downward, they nod happily  amongst the small purple crab apples. It’s an exquisite combination. A native clematis, Virgin’s Bower (Clematis virginiana) is fragrant, quick growing and perfect to scramble up the leafless branches of a  suffering Kousa dogwood (Cornus kousa; the tree lost a large limb in the ice storm, then suffered through the cold winter. There’s new growth at the base and on one of the limbs; for now, the clematis has a built in trellis until I decide whether the tree will remain.)

Ninebark (Physocarpus opulifolius ‘Amber Jubilee’) has been a thing of beauty since it first started to leaf out. The leaves emerge bright green, with a tinge of amber, then shifting to orange and gold before the small white blossoms appear on previous years’ growth. The blossoms turn red and all the while there is a happy crowd of pollinators buzzing around. Equally appealing and another native, is the serviceberry (Amelanchier canadensis) . Early in July it was a great source of food for birds, there are none left for us, but we admire it daily since it first showed its welcome white blossoms in early spring. It will bring another flush of colour in the fall.

The show is not over, the daylilies are here, dahlias are just beginning to bud out and they will take centre-stage right through October or until a very hard frost. Amongst them and scattered throughout the garden, are the nodding stems of Verbena (Verbena bonariensis ). These are an annual but self-seed from one year to the next. I take care not to disturb the soil where they were planted the previous year and then transplant the seedlings throughout the garden once the stems and stalks of the tulips and daffodils are ready to be cleared away. Enjoy it all!

A few suggestions for reading in the garden:

The Gardener’s Guide to Native Plants of the Southern Great Lakes Regions by Rick Gray and Shawn Booth

The Garden Against Time: In Search of a Common Paradise by Olivia Laing

RHS The Creative Gardener: Inspiration and Advice to Create the Space You Want by Adam Frost