Columbine

The Columbine are blooming in my garden at the moment. These are one of my favourite plants. Oh, who am I kidding? I love all plants, but these hold a certain fascination for me. I love the five-petaled flowers and the long spur that grows to the back of the flower. Hummingbirds are supposed to love the nectar of these flowers. But I have not seen any yet this year. Columbine have such lovely delicate foliage. Even after they have flowered, I love to look at the leaves of this plant amongst my other plants. This is a pretty double pink variety.


There are about 70 species of Columbine. They are in the buttercup family - Ranunculaceae. I love this white one. It looks so delicate - almost see-though.

This yellow one is a fairly new acquisition. I just can't keep myself from buying a new plant every once in awhile. They look best in a sort of woodland setting, but they can be grown anywhere.

The wild Columbine (Aquilegia Canadensis) is Scarborough's official flower. Scarborough is the area of Toronto where we live. Because of that I have always devoted a special place in the garden for these wonderful herbaceous perennials. Isn't this pink one gorgeous?

Family: Ranunculaceae. Genus: Aquilegia. Numerous varieties.

Common Name: Columbine

Back to Nature Part 4

I have a couple of other naturalized plants in my garden, but the photos are not very good. This is Jack in the Pulpit. There are about 5 or 6 of these plants now. I planted only one a few years ago. This patch that I have is totally covered in leaves - many leaves of a very large size. And they all seem to be facing the back of the garden. I don't know why this is, but it meant that I was not able to get a good shot of them. Jack in the Pulpit can be poisonous if ingested.

Family: Araceae. Genus: Amsaema. Species: A. triphyllum.

Common Name: Jack in the Pulpit

And here is my Lily of the Valley. I have thousands of these plants. But to get a photo, I had to drive my scooter into my neighbour's backyard. On my side there is a huge pile of gravel that is supposed to fill in the pool. Yes, sadly we are taking it out, or rather, filling it in.

Lily of the Valley is a fragrant, hardy, shade-loving perennial. It can be invasive as it reproduces by sending out uderground stems called rhizomes.

Family: Ruscaceae. Genus: Convallaria. Species: C. majalis

Common name: Lily of the Valley

I also have a lovely red trillium. I planted one many years ago and only one keeps coming up. I bought it at a garden centre, so no worries about taking it out of the wild. I think I will have to revisit this garden centre sometime in the future and purchase some more - maybe some white trilliums too. I love those.

Back to Nature Part 3

Another fascinating native plant is called Wild Ginger. It is a very low-growing woodland plant. The leaves are an interesting heart shape. It produces very unusual dark brownish to deep burgundy flowers at ground level. The flowers are not visible from above the plants. Ants pollinate the flowers. Wild Ginger reproduces by rhizomes or seeds.

Although Wild Ginger is not related to the ginger root that you can buy in a grocery store, it can be used to flavour many dishes. Early pioneers used it fresh or dried as a ginger substitute. It is also said to have medicinal properties. Aboriginal peoples used this plant as a cure for many ailments, including digestive disorders.

I dug this little plant up because it had seeded itself into another part of the garden where I did not want it. I am going to give it to my daughter to plant in her garden. She is eager to grow a large patch of them so that she can experiment with using this plant as a ginger substitute! I was able to take a photo of the flower this way too!

Family: Aristolochiaceae. Genus: Asarum. Species: A. canadense

Common name: Wild Ginger

Back to Nature Part 2

Another plant which I have introduced into my garden is called a May Apple. It is part of my mini woodland garden. The leaves of this plant are awesome! They are large and palm shaped. Each plant has two leaves growing up from a central stem.


They bear a single white flower in between the two leaves. The flower will eventually mature into a greenish fruit, which resembles an apple. These apples are edible when ripe, but only in small quantities. I will not be eating these! Large amounts are toxic!

This plant reproduces by root growth. The single plant I planted many years ago has grown into a nice grouping. The roots of this plant are highly toxic! I have always loved this plant since I was a young girl. It was one of the first plants I was introduced to when we first came to Canada. It grew wild all around and near our house!

Family: Berberidaceae. Genus: Podophylum. Species: P. peltatum.

Common name: May Apple

Back to Nature Part 1

Don't get me wrong! I love colour and I love flowers, but over the years I have become interested in returning back to the way things were, especially when it comes to my plants. I have been putting plants into my garden which may have grown in this area centuries ago.

The area we live in used to be part of the Carolinian Rain Forest - a huge forest which covered a vast area from the Carolina's to just north of here. Most of the forest has been cut back to make way for people and progress. Some organizations are becoming involved in preserving whatever is left of the original forests. Our Rouge Valley is one of these areas. Conservationists want to keep this forest alive. Many of the original species have died out and there is not much that can be done if we keep cutting down trees and building new homes. But the interesting thing is that a lot of the flora and fauna are returning to our area.

I am helping things along a bit by planting some of the native species in my garden. This first one is called Solomon's Seal. I bought one small plant about 7 years ago at a local plant sale. I planted it under my apple tree because I was told it liked a sort of shady woodland setting. I guess it is really happy here because there are now about twenty plants! They multiply by a travelling root system, but they are not invasive.

Solomon's Seal has graceful, arching stems with long oval shaped leaves which are borne on the stems symmetrically. I love the rows of tiny white flowers that dangle in pairs like little white bells under the stems. They look like a string of pearls to me. (Sorry about the photo. These are growing way back in my garden and I can't get close enough in my wheelchair to take a good photo.)

Family: Ruscaceae. Genus: Polygonatum Species: P. biflorium

Common name: Solomon's Seal