Spring Lake Effects

Lake Ontario was a dreamy scene on the weekend.  We could not differentiate between the water and the sky, with clouds blurring the horizon.  The boats all seemed the same size whether far or close - there was no depth of field.  I think of this moisture in the air as a Spring Lake Effect.  What happens is that there is constant circulation of off-shore breezes between Lake Ontario and the Niagara Escarpment.  They moderate seasonal temperatures.  In spring this means they slow down spring warming, holding back the development of fruit buds until the danger of late spring frosts has passed. The VQA site says "these lake effects vary considerably with distance from the lakeshore and topography, giving rise to remarkable flavour distinctions between grapes of lakeshore sub-appellations nd those from further inland."

Private Open to the Public

I made a special trip to Toronto yesterday to see the well-known garden of Marion Jarvie.  She describes herself as a 'Plantswoman'.  When you walk through the garden of thousands of plants you experience a connoisseur of plants.  She travels to England and Europe regularly for visits to hybridizers and growers and to make plant selections. Marion has Open Days throughout the garden season, and this past weekend was her first opening. Her garden a private garden open to the public by permission.  This is one of those surprise gardens for those who aren't avid gardeners.  I will be including this garden in 'Great Public Gardens in Your Own Backyard.' It is a presentation that covers public and private gardens open to the public within 150 km of the GTA. This garden is a special one though - it is richly planted with only the most interesting and often rare plants.  It is a botanical garden experience of distinction. Her website is marionjarvie.ca  and she offers workshops and presentations.  Plants are for sale during the open garden days, and I was able to purchase a few bulbs of the red flower you see below - a corydalis.  The little purple flowering plant below the corydalis is hepatica, and the final border plants are early crocus.

Living Sculptures

This may look like an empty, barren field in the early spring.  It is bare now.  More than 10,000 willows have been harvested.  They will be shipped all over in the form of  willow whips and rods, and will be used in basket weaving.  I visited Lakeshore Willows yesterday, and saw the crop just before it goes out. There are many varieties and colours of willows, and you can get a sense below of the variations and the sheer number of single stems ready to go out. The goal of the afternoon was to weave these stems in a pot to make the shape of a trunk.  There's a mature one, about 4 years old, in the garden at Lakeshore Willow.  Beside it is a woven willow sphere.  As Spring arrives, the top will sprout leaves that are trimmed into a sphere to form a topiary. You can find out more about it at www.lakeshorewillows.com.  Workshops in willow weaving of fences, baskets, and events that Lene is involved in.

Primula Power Grimsby's wonderful garden centre/nursery is Cole's - it is located just up the street from me.  And aren't I so lucky that they have a love of primulas.  I went in last week just before Easter and found a poly house full of primulas and smelling of spring.   There are always new hybrids of everything these days.  This beautiful blue/purple primula with the delicate lines is the most recent novelty that catches one's eye.

Easter is Chocolate and Eggs

Marilyn's Photo of the Week

Easter Day - Chocolate and Eggs Today is a celebration of chocolate.  I turn to the Guinness World records: The largest chocolate Easter egg 34 ft in height made by Tosca in Italy in 2011.  It weighed 7,200 kg. and had a circumference of 64 ft. The largest chocolate rabbit weighed 3,850 kg (8,488 lb) and was made by Brazilian company Senac-RS, for the city of Gramado's annual "Chocofest" in April 2014. The most expensive chocolate egg (non-jewelled) sold at auction for £7,000 ($11,107) and was created by William Curley, Amy Rose Curley, Alistair Birt, Sarah Frankland, Melissa Paul, Rhiann Mead (all UK) and Suzue Curley (Japan).  The largest Easter egg hunt consisted of 501,000 eggs that were searched for by 9,753 children accompanied by their parents at the Cypress Gardens Adventure Park in Winter Haven, Florida, USA, in 2007. Similarly, the most entrants in an egg hunt competition is a whopping 12,773 and was achieved by The Fabergé Big Egg Hunt, as part of World Record London, in London, last year.  This in from Deb Osborne: Q What happens when you pour hot water in a rabbit hole? A  Hot cross bunnies Have a good Easter Day.