By Christiane Kamerman, Co-Owner, Dig This Nanaimo

Spring has sprung and I can’t wait to spend all my spare time outdoors. We moved this winter and I am starting over, planning and designing our yard. I love the trend of outdoor living – exterior design is a love of mine – so I’m ready to create a room that is beyond compare, an oasis, my own “heaven on earth”. With no budget, of course!

I’ve decided to start with containers. Container gardening is a great way to build a garden in a hurry. If there is a bare spot on the deck, at the door, on the wall, in the window, on the fence or anywhere in the garden, a container may be the answer. The best part of container gardening is the flexibility. When I moved in January so did my containers. Now I just need to lay out a plan and move my containers into place.

The greatest thing about my containers is that I can change my mind about where to put a plant any time of year.  This makes trial and error easier when you are first learning where your sunny spots are - you can move your plants if they do not like the spot you have chosen.

You can also use containers to create instant results. Tall bamboo or potted trees can be used for shade or a much needed privacy wall, while the shorter plants can be mixed and matched to make little garden beds within a container or in separate layered containers. If you need a splash of colour, move a brightly planted container into place and replace it with another when the blooms have faded.

The most effective container plantings can be made by grouping different sizes of containers together. The pots don’t need to match, as long as the colours are complementary. Don’t be afraid to raise some up on plant stands, blocks or overturned pots. A little height can make a big difference.

The colour and style of a container gives a garden room character. You can see from the photo, my deck is still bare and therefore, undefined stylewise.  I'm thinking about planting up bamboo in three large Asian style containers and placing them along the outer edge of my deck to create an Asian theme. I can add a potted Japanese maple and a water bowl with a beautiful water iris, a bamboo spitter and goldfish. To the side of the water bowl I could place a bamboo chair, side table and a few smaller containers to finish it off. This type of peaceful Asian garden could be created on a balcony or small deck or any corner of your garden.

Even on a tight budget, I can still use containers to make my new garden exciting and stylish. By changing the style of furniture or ornaments or the colour of pots, I can create many different styles. With a metal bistro set and some gorgeous blue pots, I have French Country. A vinyl “wicker” glider bench surrounded by pots and hanging baskets brings back memories of Grandma’s porch. Don’t be afraid to work with what you have on hand: I have often painted my old plastic pots or terra cotta pots to change a colour theme or change my garden’s look completely just like my living room in my house.

Gardening in containers couldn’t be easier. All I need now is to place my furniture and start moving my potted gardens around until my little heaven on earth is found. It is all in a day's work.

The secret to lush, abundant containers is consistent watering and feeding.

Check your containers regularly for moisture using a moisture meter or your finger.  At this time of year, you won't need to water often, but come summer, you may need to water every day.  Add Soil Moist crystals to your potting mix to retain moisture and cut down on watering chores.  If you're going to be away, insert a Direct Root plant spike into the soil - Direct Root will do your watering for you.

Be sure to mix a balanced fertilizer into your growing medium before you plant.  Slow release container or hanging basket fertilizer is great, but do have a look at our piece on organic fertilizers later in this newsletter.

Be creative! You can use anything that will hold soil as a container: old boots, rubber trugs, olive oil containers or other found pieces. Just be sure to punch drainage holes in the bottom before planting.

You can grow just about anything in containers. Besides the usual bedding plants, consider bulbs, vegetables, perennials and small shrubs or trees.

Don’t  use garden soil – it  is far too heavy. Use a growing medium specially designed for containers. It will be lightweight and moisture retaining, and keep your plants happy. Top the planted with screened compost for extra nutrients and moisture retention.

For more ideas, talk to our staff or pick up one of the many books on container gardening that we carry.

At Dig This, we think "Why wait until the end of the summer to get great savings?  Let's kick off the season with a sale and you can start enjoying your garden with the first nice warm day!"

Save 20% on all garden furniture (except Adirondack Chairs) until April 9th.  Then, sit back and relax.  The warm days of summer aren't far away.

We've just received some great new hardwood furniture made of Yellow Balau - an incredibly durable, sustainably-harvested hardwood - and Wittex - a synthetic wicker that really stands up to our wet weather.  Come check out our dining sets, recliners and garden benches.

And don't forget - they are 20% off until April 9th.

By Heather Hughes, Dig This Broadmead

If you want to be inspired and learn from the work of others, there’s nothing like a visit to a well-designed garden. So, if you and a friend are looking for a fun-filled excursion, try one of these locations.

Starting in Victoria you can visit the Horticulture Center of the Pacific (now called Glendale Gardens) check their web site for hours and location. www.hcp.bc.ca

Another worthwhile destination is Government House, their grounds are open each day and are cared for by a team of volunteers as well as full-time professionals. http://www.ltgov.bc.ca/gardens/default.htm

The Abkhazi Garden is an exquisite heritage home and garden created by Prince and Princess Abkhazi after they settled in Victoria in 1946. The garden, now owned and protected by The Land Conservancy, is blessed with dramatic glaciated rocky slopes, magnificent native Garry oaks and gorgeous vistas. The garden is designed to make the most of these remarkable features and it is the Abkhazis’ response to their landscape that qualifies it as a stunning example of West Coast design. . http://www.conservancy.bc.ca/content.asp?sectionack=abkhazi

If you are driving north on the island make sure you stop in at the Milner Gardens at Qualicum. These magnificent gardens, once part of a private home, are managed by the horticulture students from Malaspina College and a host of volunteers. www.milnergardens.org

If you are over on the mainland, then a visit to the Van Dusen Botanical Gardens is sure to be a delight. They are at Oak and 33rd in Vancouver
http://www.city.vancouver.bc.ca/parks/parks/vandusen/website/index.htm

Finally, if you are heading out through the Fraser Valley you might want to set aside some time to stop at the Minter Gardens, the home of Brian Minter, the popular CBC Radio gardening expert. http://www.mintergardens.com/minter.htm

Stay on top of watering. When it’s cool, it’s easy to forget that the soil may be drying out around your newly seeded beds.

Put supports in place for tall plants like peonies and delphiniums.

Deadhead daffodils and tulips, but leave the foliage to die down.

Check for aphids on the new growth of roses. Remove with a strong spray from the hose.

Plant gladioli and tuberous begonias.

Direct seed radishes, and cool weather greens like mesclun, lettuce, arugula, spinach, and chard. Plant potatoes. Sow beets after the middle of the month.

Mulch garlic patch with aged manure for the biggest bulbs.

By Elizabeth Cull, Franchise President

Gardeners are not usually inclined to let a few aches or pains slow them down, but we really should listen to our bodies. After all, your body, and all its working parts, is the most important tool you use in your garden.

Every year, the local Arthritis Society borrows tools from us for their gardening workshops. The tools and accessories our local society likes include our folding kneeler seat, the long handled and lightweight Telesco weeder, and wrist wraps which protect your wrists.

Last year we introduced a new brand of ergonomic hand tools that we’re really excited about. Made of aluminium, the Radius trowel, cultivator, weeder and bulb trowel are designed to maximize power and comfort while minimizing hand and wrist stress. Everyone can use a tool that minimizes stress on our wrists!

Whether you have arthritis or not, here are some tips from the Arthritis Society that we all can use to make gardening a little easier. For more information, visit www.bcarthritis.ca/garden/Tips%2014.htm

· Plan your gardening schedule. Don’t try to do everything in one day! Set a kitchen timer to curb your enthusiasm. Take a 10-minute break every hour.

· Select tools that reduce stress on the joints, and keep them sharp and well-oiled.

· Mulch wherever possible to cut down on watering and weeding chores.

· Containers are an easy way to have a beautiful garden without the constant work of weeding. Massed together they can be as beautiful as the most elaborate garden bed.

· Use “Easy Ups” – a type of pulley system – to raise and lower hanging baskets. Use a lightweight water wand to water and fertilize them.

· Use a folding kneeler when working on your hands and knees weeding or planting. The arms will assist you to stand back up, and you can flip it over for an instant seat anywhere in the garden.

· Use long-handled tools where possible. The handle should be as long as your own height.

· Cut down on watering and the need to haul hoses around. Mulch where possible to conserve water, use soaker hoses and consider having a micro-drip irrigation system installed.

· Wear a multi-pocket apron or tool belt for string, clippers, seed packets. Make sure all the weight is not on your neck.

Virginia Parkhurst, Owner, Broadmead Dig This

I, like most gardeners these days, am concerned about the environmental impact of my gardening activities and eager to learn more about how we can change our habits to minimize any negative environmental impacts. Over the years, I have used 14-14-14 around the garden to fertilize the plants, and weekly doses of 20-20-20 in my containers and hanging baskets. But, in the last two years I’ve started using my Aunt Marji's recipe for organic fertilizer on my bedding plants, tomatoes, peppers and other vegetables that I plant into the garden, and also in my containers and baskets. I’ve been amazed at how the plants looked so much stronger and healthier!   You can see the proof in the photo of my garden to the right.

All fertilizers are described by three numbers – e.g. 20-20-20 or 6-8-6. The numbers correspond to the ratio of nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium (N, P, K) in the fertilizer. Organic fertilizers are always lower in the N P K ratio than the synthetic fertilizers, but that doesn’t mean they are less effective. According to an article by Vancouver gardener, Steve Whysall, the synthetic fertilizers do not include the impurities that are hidden in their product and these block the nutrients to the plant due to chemicals already present in the soil. So, there is no need to worry that your plants are not receiving enough nutrients with the lower numbers in organic fertilizers.

Organic fertilizers build up the beneficial organisms in the soil while synthetic fertilizers kill them.  Organic fertilizers work with soil organisms to to release nutrients, and therefore are most effective when the soil is moist and warm enough for the microorganisms to be active.

Organic fertilizers are based on three main sources: vegetative matter such as kelp, flax, and alfalfa; animal byproducts like blood and bone meal, or worm castings; and minerals like rock sulphate, glacial rock dust.

Some organic ingredients are:

Greensand: Formed from marine deposits, and very rich in magnesium, lime, iron and up to 30 other trace elements. It absorbs ten times more moisture than ordinary sand. It can bind sandy soils, and loosen clay soil.

Rock Phosphate: Ground rock dust that contains as much as 30% phosphate. This helps improve soil structure, makes nutrients more available to plants.

Blood Meal: Collected from the blood of animals, it is sterilized and dried to a powder. A rich source of nitrogen, trace elements including iron.

Kelp Meal: A natural soil supplement made from seaweed.

Alfalfa Meal.  Laura at our downtown store swears by alfalfa meal as a top dressing for her roses.

Dig This stocks several brands of organic fertilizer designed to boost flowers, vegetables and green growth.

Here's my Aunt Marji's recipe :

40 litres peat moss
40 litres potting soil that has some sand in it
250 ml each of bloodmeal, rock phosphate, green sand
125 ml lime

Mix peat and potting soil
Mix fertilizer and add to above. Add water and pack into trays.

Local gardening expert, Carolyn Herriot continues with her presentations at Dig This Johnson Street.

· Harvesting Food Year Round, Thurday, April 12th, 6:00 pm to 7:30 pm. Learn how to plant and maintain a garden that provides food for your table 12 months of the year.

· A Mixed Border for All Seasons, Thursday, April 26th, 6:00 pm to 7:30 pm. Ever planted a flower border, only to discover it was without blooms much of the year? Learn Carolyn’s tips for continuous bloom.

Refreshments will be available to tide you over until dinner time! $10 per session. You will receive a gift certificate equal to the registration fee on the night of the event. Please register in advance by calling 385 3212.
For more information on Carolyn, check out http://www.earthfuture.com/gardenpath

Beginners Bonsai Workshop at Dig This Nanaimo.
Saturday, April 14th at Noon.
Our beginners bonsai workshop is about 2 hours long and covers the basics of pruning, potting and training. The course fee includes everything you need and each participant will leave with a potted tree. This beginners workshop will feature the Shinpaku Juniper. Please contact Dig This Nanaimo at 250 756-0049 to register.
Cost: $35

Beginners Bonsai Workshop at Dig This Johnson Street.
Saturday, April 21st at Noon
This beginners workshop will feature the Shinpaku Juniper. Please contact Dig This Johnson Street at 250 385-3212 to register.
Cost: $35

Beginners Bonsai Workshop at Dig this Broadmead.
Sunday, April 29th at 10:00 am
This beginners workshop will feature the Shinpaku Juniper
Please phone Dig This Broadmead at 250 727-9922 to register
Cost: $35

Build Your Own Hanging Basket
Sunday, May 6th, 10 am at Dig This Oak Bay and Dig This Broadmead
Come ready to get your hands dirty ! We’ll have all the things you need to create an inspired moss hanging basket. Please phone Dig This Oak Bay at 250 598 0802 or Dig This Broadmead at 250 727 9922 to register. Space is limited.

Wednesday, May 16th, 10 am at Dig This Broadmead
A mid-week repeat of the Moss Hanging Basket workshop.

Victoria Home Show. April 27th to April 29th. Dig This will have a “garden room” display at the show. Come discuss your garden ideas with our exterior design consultants.

Oceanside Garden Show April 28th & 29th at Coombs Fairgrounds. Dig This Nanaimo will have a booth at this show.  Christaine, our Nanaimo exterior design expert, will be available for consultation.

VIP Tour of Cowichan Garry Oak Preserve, Dinner and Art Auction, Lecture and Concert. April 29th. Call 250 479 3191, extension 221 for more information.

Cowichan Valley Rhododendron Society Plant Sale. 10am -2 pm Saturday, May 5th. Rabbit Barn at Cow. Ex. Fairgrounds. For more information, call 250 748-6152

We hope you enjoyed this month's newsletter.  Please let us know if there are any topics you want to see us cover.  Next month look for articles on hanging baskets, caring for garden furniture, and building your own water feature.

The Dig This Team