What a lovely show the Canada 150 tulips are presenting around the Legion’s cenotaph!
Communities in Bloom members planted the bulbs in the fall of 2016 in anticipation of Canada’s 150th anniversary this year. The tulips will be a lasting symbol for us to enjoy each year.
On the morning of April 30 a group of Communities in Bloom members, with help from other local citizens, worked for several hours refreshing the soil in the flower barrels and planters in the downtown core.
Communities in Bloom volunteers (from left) Jordi Flaherty, Andrea Walker, Lorna Delling, Pache Denis, Ina Gory, Paulette Thille, Shila Natha, Diane Hansford, and Bruce Walker. Photo by David Gory.
The planters and barrels are now ready for planting, which will happen on May 10. As this year is Canada’s 150th anniversary, Communities in Bloom has chosen to plant all the barrels and planters with red and white geraniums. It should be quite a show!
You may notice that there are different kinds of barrels being added in the downtown core. The old wooden whiskey barrels are starting to show their age, and it is becoming quite difficult to find new ones to replace them.
In an effort to conserve water and make the task of watering the barrels less onerous for business owners, Communities in Bloom has been introducing new “desert planters.” These planters are a perfect fit, not only for our dry, hot climate, but also for the decreased time it takes to look after them, together with the quality of the flowers that they produce.
The planters have a built-in reservoir in the bottom, which means that the plants take their water from the roots up rather than the top down.
This means better plants and less water use, as the moisture is not lost through evapotranspiration. Business owners need only refill the reservoir perhaps once a week, depending on how hot the weather is, rather than hauling at least five gallons of water out to each barrel every day.
The only requirement is that the barrels need to be near a tap where a hose can be hooked up to fill them, as the reservoirs hold up to 94 litres of water.
This year we have added eight new desert planters, and hope to add more next year. If you are interested in ordering a desert planter for yourself, you can order from www.costco.ca.
The ones we purchased are called Sierra Stone 94 L Round Self Watering Planters at a cost of $189.00 plus tax (free delivery).