Down The Garden Path Podcast

This week on the Down the Garden Path podcast, landscape designers Matthew Dressing and Joanne Shaw are joined by Mary Phillips, Head of Garden for Wildlife™ at the National Wildlife Federation. Mary discusses the Federation's wonderful initiatives and shares how we can play a part in growing a bright future for the monarch butterfly and many other iconic native wildlife species.

About Mary Phillips

For eight years, Mary has led Garden for Wildlife™ and Certified Wildlife Habitat® as an ambassador for native plants. Her work ensures all habitat programs and resources are rooted in sustainable practices and the latest science. Since 1977, Garden for Wildlife has been the nation's oldest and largest Backyard Habitat program generating and supporting millions of wildlife gardeners in North America.

Most recently, Mary helped launch the Garden for Wildlife Native Plants Collection™. The goal of this social enterprise is to increase the native plant supply, reduce carbon impacts, and secure the survival of iconic species, such as the monarch butterfly, native bees, and songbirds. The pilot launch in 2021, resulted in over 4,000 native plant collections sold in five months, 237,000 sq ft. of new garden habitat.

Join Joanne and Matt as they welcome Mary Phillips, Head of Garden for Wildlife™ at the National Wildlife Federation.

Here are some of the questions and topics covered in this episode:

• Tell us more about the Garden for Wildlife organization.
  • Can you describe the different habitat programs you have?
  • What are your native plant collections?
  • There are so many native plants which are not available to gardeners and the public. How is the Garden for Wildlife Native Plants Collection™ increasing the native plant supply?
  • How do you know which collection is right for you?
  • Can you describe how someone's garden becomes a Certified Wildlife Habitat? Can Canadians get certified?
  • Do you ship to Canada?
  • Do you sell seeds?
• Monarch butterflies
  • What makes a species iconic?
  • Can you share with us what is happening with the monarch? Why are they getting so much attention this summer?
  • What should we all know about the life cycle of the monarch?
  • There is so much we can be doing to restore the native habitats for monarchs and other native wildlife populations. If we could do one thing after the show to help monarchs, what would you recommend?
• How do we get involved with native plants?
• Do you work with any Canadian wildlife organizations?
• What are some of the resources listeners can find on your website?
• Is there anything you'd like to bring to the attention of our listeners?

Find Garden for Wildlife™ online: Website: www.gardenforwildlife.com Facebook: @gardenforwildlife Twitter: @garden4wildlife Instagram: @gardenforwildlife Pinterest: @gardenforwildlife TikTok: @gardenforwildlife

Find National Wildlife Federation™ online: Website: www.nwf.org Facebook: @nationalwildlife Twitter: @nwf Instagram: @nationalwildlife Pinterest: @nwfpins YouTube: @nationalwildlife

Other resources discussed: Canadian Wildlife Foundation – Similar Canadian Resources. www.invasivespeciescentre.ca – Dog Strangling Vine information. www.monarchjointventure.org

Down the Garden Path Podcast

Each week on Down The Garden Path, professional landscape designers Joanne Shaw and Matthew Dressing discuss down-to-earth tips and advice for your plants, gardens and landscapes.

As the owner of Down2Earth Landscape Design, Joanne Shaw has been designing beautiful gardens for homeowners east of Toronto for over a decade. A horticulturist and landscape designer, Matthew Dressing owns Natural Affinity Garden Design, a landscape design and garden maintenance firm servicing Toronto and the Eastern GTA. Together, they do their best to bring you interesting, relevant and useful topics to help you keep your garden as low maintenance as possible.

In their new book, Down the Garden Path: A Step-By-Step Guide to Your Ontario Garden, Joanne and Matthew distill their horticultural and design expertise and their combined experiences in helping others create and maintain thriving gardens into one easy-to-read monthly reference guide. It's now available on Amazon.

This week, Matt and Joanne present an encore presentation of their August in the Garden podcast from 2019.

Tune in to hear Joanne and Matthew discuss the do's and don'ts for your August garden.

August can be a challenging month in the garden. The heat is unrelenting and the weeds are growing strong. It's right around now that our plants can start to look a little tired or spent, and as gardeners, it can be a difficult time because we may be a little tired and spent ourselves!

In this episode, Matt and Joanne talk about the do's and don'ts for the challenging August garden. From watering tips to weed and insect control, they cover it all.

Down the Garden Path Podcast

Each week on Down The Garden Path, professional landscape designers Joanne Shaw and Matthew Dressing discuss down-to-earth tips and advice for your plants, gardens and landscapes.

As the owner of Down2Earth Landscape Design, Joanne Shaw has been designing beautiful gardens for homeowners east of Toronto for over a decade. A horticulturist and landscape designer, Matthew Dressing owns Natural Affinity Garden Design, a landscape design and garden maintenance firm servicing Toronto and the Eastern GTA. Together, they do their best to bring you interesting, relevant and useful topics to help you keep your garden as low maintenance as possible.

In their new book, Down the Garden Path: A Step-By-Step Guide to Your Ontario Garden, Joanne and Matthew distill their horticultural and design expertise and their combined experiences in helping others create and maintain thriving gardens into one easy-to-read monthly reference guide. It's now available on Amazon.

This week on the Down the Garden Path podcast, landscape designers Joanne Shaw and Matthew Dressing answer listener questions in this "Ask Us Anything!" episode.

Tune in to hear Joanne and Matt respond to listener questions.

Some of the questions listeners asked:

• I saw a post online: 8 plants that repel mosquitos. Any information that you can share with us?
• With this excessive heat in the GTA, is it okay to put down lawn fertilizer? If so, any tips?
• What is the best mulch to use, and what is the best way to mulch a perennial bed? Lots? Little? High? Low?
• My backyard is mostly shady all the time. What plants can I grow that may look nice without (basically) any sun? My yard may get about 4 hours of sunlight per day due to high buildings and trees.
• I did a soil pH test. What is the best solution for raising soil pH levels? When is the best time to water my plants? Some of my friends say that it really doesn't matter if I water them. Is that true?
• I know that I screwed up this year, (I think). But is it too late to grow a pumpkin for Halloween? (Even if the pumpkin would be very small by October 31st)?
• For next year: seeds or plants regarding growing tomatoes?
• How is the book doing? Just remember, Christmas IS approaching!
• Is it better to buy small perennials or larger ones that have blossoms? Can I buy them now and plant them? Any available? I live in the GTA.
• That is great advice about watering plants, (or the lawn) for that matter, at night. But what about when it rains at night? Isn't that the same thing as us watering? Wouldn't rain at night hurt the lawn (and plants) as well in the evening?
• Matt, can't I grow a tomato plant all year round inside with a grow light?
• Resources discussed:
  • Organic Pest Control with David Smorenburg
  • Blue Star Nursery
  • Julia Dimakos – www.juliadimakos.com

Down the Garden Path Podcast

Each week on Down The Garden Path, professional landscape designers Joanne Shaw and Matthew Dressing discuss down-to-earth tips and advice for your plants, gardens and landscapes.

As the owner of Down2Earth Landscape Design, Joanne Shaw has been designing beautiful gardens for homeowners east of Toronto for over a decade. A horticulturist and landscape designer, Matthew Dressing owns Natural Affinity Garden Design, a landscape design and garden maintenance firm servicing Toronto and the Eastern GTA. Together, they do their best to bring you interesting, relevant and useful topics to help you keep your garden as low maintenance as possible.

In their new book, Down the Garden Path: A Step-By-Step Guide to Your Ontario Garden, Joanne and Matthew distill their horticultural and design expertise and their combined experiences in helping others create and maintain thriving gardens into one easy-to-read monthly reference guide. It's now available on Amazon.

This week on the Down the Garden Path podcast, landscape designers Matthew Dressing and Joanne Shaw talk about native plants with Anna Fialkoff, the Ecological Programs Manager at Wild Seed Project in Portland, Maine.

Join Joanne and Matt as they discuss native plants with Anna Fialkoff of Wild Seed Project.

Here are some of the questions and topics covered in this episode:

• What does the Wild Seed Project do and why?
  • A non-profit to inspire people to grow native plants
  • Set people up for success with native plants in the landscape
  • Organize walks, talks and workshops
• Sell and promote native plant seeds
  • Easier to grow from seed as they don't need as much coddling
  • Sow in the late fall and they will germinate in the spring
  • Use a potting mix with compost mixed with your soil
  • Sow them thickly in a 4.5" pot and put them outside with some sand and protect them from rodents
• Tell us about your pledge to rewild and your tree planting initiative.
  • Started in late 2020, helping people find the tools to plant natives and to be more mindful of their practices
  • Mindful practices – less mowing and blowing, unlearning old horticultural practices like cutting everything back in the fall
• Where do you ship to?
  • Currently only ship to the US.
• Are there any special events or items you'd like to promote?
  • Guide publications: Native Ground Covers for Northeast Landscapes and Native Trees for Northeast Landscapes

You can find the Wild Seed Project online at Wild Seed Project and on Facebook and Instagram.

Down the Garden Path Podcast

Each week on Down The Garden Path, professional landscape designers Joanne Shaw and Matthew Dressing discuss down-to-earth tips and advice for your plants, gardens and landscapes.

As the owner of Down2Earth Landscape Design, Joanne Shaw has been designing beautiful gardens for homeowners east of Toronto for over a decade. A horticulturist and landscape designer, Matthew Dressing owns Natural Affinity Garden Design, a landscape design and garden maintenance firm servicing Toronto and the Eastern GTA. Together, they do their best to bring you interesting, relevant and useful topics to help you keep your garden as low maintenance as possible.

In their new book, Down the Garden Path: A Step-By-Step Guide to Your Ontario Garden, Joanne and Matthew distill their horticultural and design expertise and their combined experiences in helping others create and maintain thriving gardens into one easy-to-read monthly reference guide. It's now available on Amazon.

This month on the Down the Garden Path podcast, landscape designers Matthew Dressing and Joanne Shaw discuss the wide assortment of shrubs available for your gardens and landscapes. With so many wonderful new and tried-and-true shrubs on the market, they believe there are a few that deserve more attention. So, in this episode, they share some of the hidden gems you can find at your local independent garden centre.

Join Joanne and Matt as they discuss hidden gems you can find at your local garden centre.

Here are some of the questions and topics covered in this episode:

• How do Matt and Joanne define a hidden gem?
• Joanne's favourites:
  • Microbiota or Russian Cypress, Microbiota decussata – zone 3-7, 6"-18" tall by 36" wide, evergreen, full sun to partial shade, burgundy bronze fall colour.
  • Carol Mackie Daphne, Daphne × burkwoodii 'Carol Mackie' – zones 4-8, 2-3' tall by 3-4' wide, semi-evergreen, partial shade, fragrant pale pink flowers in May.
  • Cutleaf Gold Elderberry, Sambucus racemosa 'Lemony Lace' – zones 3-7, 3-5' tall by 4-6' wide, deciduous, full sun to part shade, fragrant white flowers in May and June. Berries are sour but edible.
• Matt's favourites:
  • Low Scape series Chokeberry, Aronia melanocarpa cultivars from Proven Winners – zones 3-9, 1-5' tall by 2-5' wide, deciduous, white flowers in mid spring, edible dark purple berries and orange-red fall foliage. Berries are edible.
  • Tint Tuff Stuff Ah-ha Mountain Hydrangea, Hydrangea serrata 'SMNHSDD' – zones 5-9, 3' tall and wide, deciduous, pink or blue lace cap flowers from summer through fall, with red fall colour.
  • Caryopteris or Bluebeard, Caryopteris cultivars – zones 5-9, 2-3' feet tall and wide, deciduous, true blue flowers in late summer to fall.

Down the Garden Path Podcast

Each week on Down The Garden Path, professional landscape designers Joanne Shaw and Matthew Dressing discuss down-to-earth tips and advice for your plants, gardens and landscapes.

As the owner of Down2Earth Landscape Design, Joanne Shaw has been designing beautiful gardens for homeowners east of Toronto for over a decade. A horticulturist and landscape designer, Matthew Dressing owns Natural Affinity Garden Design, a landscape design and garden maintenance firm servicing Toronto and the Eastern GTA. Together, they do their best to bring you interesting, relevant and useful topics to help you keep your garden as low maintenance as possible.

In their new book, Down the Garden Path: A Step-By-Step Guide to Your Ontario Garden, Joanne and Matthew distill their horticultural and design expertise and their combined experiences in helping others create and maintain thriving gardens into one easy-to-read monthly reference guide. It's now available on Amazon.

With summer well underway and many of us heading off to the cottage or to spend some time out in nature, Joanne and Matt help you identify some of the harmful plants you might find during your travels. In this episode of the Down the Garden Path podcast, they discuss poisonous plants.

Join Joanne and Matt as they discuss poisonous plants.

What are the common harmful plants when camping and hiking?

• Poison Ivy

Poison Ivy Dermatitis Causes

• Poison ivy, poison oak, and poison sumac plants contain a compound called urushiol, which is a light, colourless oil that is found in the fruit, leaves, stem, roots, and sap of the plant. When urushiol is exposed to air, it turns brown and then black; plant leaves develop small black spots.
• There are several ways that you can be exposed to urushiol:
  • By touching the sap or rubbing against the leaves of the toxic plant at any time of year
  • By touching something that has urushiol on it, such as animal fur or garden tools
  • By breathing in smoke when toxic plants are burned

After contact with urushiol, approximately 50 percent of people develop signs and symptoms of poison ivy dermatitis. The symptoms and severity differ from person to person.

The most common signs and symptoms of poison ivy dermatitis are:

• Intense itching
• Skin swelling and blisters
• Skin redness

These symptoms usually develop within four hours to four days after exposure to the urushiol. After the initial symptoms, allergic individuals develop fluid-filled blisters in a line or streak-like pattern. The symptoms are worse within 1 to 14 days after touching the plant, but they can develop up to 21 days later if one has never been exposed to urushiol before.

The blisters can occur at different times in different people; blisters can develop on the arms several days after blisters on the hands developed. This does not mean that the reaction is spreading from one area of the body to the other. The fluid that leaks from blisters does not spread the rash. Poison ivy dermatitis is not contagious and cannot be passed from person to person. However, urushiol can be carried under fingernails and on clothes; if another person comes in contact with the urushiol, they can develop poison ivy dermatitis.

• Poison Sumac: Poison Oak and Poison Sumac.
  • Appearance: 10 to 15 ft tree
  • Where they can be found: Wet woodland area, moist acidic areas
  • How they grow
  • How to be safe around them

Other poisonous plants mentioned by listeners on the podcast:

• Giant Hog Weed
• Stinging Nettle
• Water Hemlock
• Night Shade
• Ornamental Plants like Angels Trumpet and Castor Bean Plant

NOTE: Any treatment mentioned during the show is not medical advice and is based on the personal experience of Joanne, Matthew, and their listeners of the podcast. If you encounter any of the plants mentioned during the show, please seek professional medical attention immediately! In case of an emergency, call 9-1-1.

Source: UpToDate and Poisonous Plants by F. Stary, Z. Berger

Each week on Down The Garden Path, professional landscape designers Joanne Shaw and Matthew Dressing discuss down-to-earth tips and advice for your plants, gardens and landscapes.

As the owner of Down2Earth Landscape Design, Joanne Shaw has been designing beautiful gardens for homeowners east of Toronto for over a decade. A horticulturist and landscape designer, Matthew Dressing owns Natural Affinity Garden Design, a landscape design and garden maintenance firm servicing Toronto and the Eastern GTA. Together, they do their best to bring you interesting, relevant and useful topics to help you keep your garden as low maintenance as possible. In their new book, Down the Garden Path: A Step-By-Step Guide to Your Ontario Garden, Joanne and Matthew distill their horticultural and design expertise and their combined experiences in helping others create and maintain thriving gardens into one easy-to-read monthly reference guide. It's now available on Amazon.

This month on the Down the Garden Path podcast, landscape designers Joanne Shaw and Matthew Dressing are talking about all the wonderful shrubs for your gardens and landscapes. In this episode, they discuss interesting evergreen shrubs.

Join Joanne and Matt as they discuss interesting evergreen shrubs.

• What makes an evergreen interesting?
• What is an evergreen?
• Best practices when caring for your evergreens
• Differences between an evergreen vs. a conifer?
  • Conifers are cone-bearing evergreens
• Our listeners' favourite evergreens in the warmer climate
• Interesting evergreens listeners should look for?
  • Golden Mop Threadleaf False Cypress – Chamaecyparis pisifera ' Golden Mops'
  • Fire Chief Cedar – Thuja occidentalis 'FireChief'
  • Mr. Bowling Ball & Pancake Globe Cedar – Thuja occidentalis 'Mr. Bowling Ball' & T. occidentalis 'Pancake'
  • Moon Frost Canadian Hemlock – Tsuga canadensis 'Moon Frost'
  • Lime Glow Juniper – Juniperus horizontalis 'Lime Glow'

Joanne and Matt answer listener questions on a variety of topics:

• Needle drop
• Wrapping and screening your evergreens
• Best evergreens for privacy

Each week on Down The Garden Path, professional landscape designers Joanne Shaw and Matthew Dressing discuss down-to-earth tips and advice for your plants, gardens and landscapes.

As the owner of Down2Earth Landscape Design, Joanne Shaw has been designing beautiful gardens for homeowners east of Toronto for over a decade. A horticulturist and landscape designer, Matthew Dressing owns Natural Affinity Garden Design, a landscape design and garden maintenance firm servicing Toronto and the Eastern GTA. Together, they do their best to bring you interesting, relevant and useful topics to help you keep your garden as low maintenance as possible. In their new book, Down the Garden Path: A Step-By-Step Guide to Your Ontario Garden, Joanne and Matthew distill their horticultural and design expertise and their combined experiences in helping others create and maintain thriving gardens into one easy-to-read monthly reference guide. It's now available on Amazon.

This week on the Down the Garden Path podcast, landscape designers Joanne Shaw and Matthew Dressing wrap up their look at perennials with an episode dedicated to some of their favourites. These hidden gems of the perennial garden work hard but are often overlooked.

Join Joanne and Matt as they reveal their top five perennial favourites.

Joanne's hidden gems:

• Geum: Geum Triflorum
  • Zone 4
  • Part to full sun
  • Green foliage with small red-orange flowers on tall stems
• Bergenia: Bergenia Cordifolia aka Pig Squeak
  • Zone 4
  • Part shade
  • A clumping perennial with unique evergreen foliage
  • Flower spike in Spring
• Epimedium: Epimedium grandiflorum also known as Barrenwort or Bishop's Hat
  • A perennial groundcover, good for dry shade.
  • Inconspicuous flower but interesting leaf with nice fall colour.
• Ligularia: aka Leopard plant
  • Zone 4
  • Big interesting foliage with yellow flower spike
  • Grows in part to full shade
  • loves moisture and clay soil
• Amsonia x Blue Ice
  • Zone 3
  • An upright clump-forming perennial with pretty clusters of periwinkle blue flowers.
  • The truest blue flower
  • Full sun to part shade

Matt's hidden gems:

• Little Bluestem, Schizachyrium scoparium
  • North American native
  • Zones 3 – 7
  • Full sun to partial shade
  • Blue-green foliage gives way to fall colours lasting through the winter
• Beardtongue, Bearded-tongue, or Foxglove Beardtongue, Penstemon digitalis
  • North American native
  • Zones 3 – 7
  • Full sun to partial shade
  • Tall spikes of white, pinks and deep pinks over sturdy, upright, dark green foliage
• Turtlehead, Chelone obliqua & C. lyonia
  • North American native
  • Zones 3 – 9
  • Full sun to partial shade
  • Good for moist soils and bogs
  • Blooming late summer to mid-fall with hooded flowers which look like a turtle's head in deep pinks and white.
• Lungwort, Pulmonaria hybrids
  • Native to Europe and western Asia
  • Zones 3 – 9
  • Full shade to partial shade
  • Tall clusters of flowers in late spring to early summer with pink buds turning bluish-pink, blue, purple
• Spigelia, Spigelia marilandica 'Little Redhead'
  • Native to eastern North America in along woodlands and streambanks
  • Zones 5 – 9
  • Full sun to partial shade, with very good shade tolerance
  • Blooms in late spring to mid-summer with upright, arching stems of upward-facing red trumpet flowers with yellow throats

Each week on Down The Garden Path, professional landscape designers Joanne Shaw and Matthew Dressing discuss down-to-earth tips and advice for your plants, gardens and landscapes.

As the owner of Down2Earth Landscape Design, Joanne Shaw has been designing beautiful gardens for homeowners east of Toronto for over a decade. A horticulturist and landscape designer, Matthew Dressing owns Natural Affinity Garden Design, a landscape design and garden maintenance firm servicing Toronto and the Eastern GTA. Together, they do their best to bring you interesting, relevant and useful topics to help you keep your garden as low maintenance as possible. In their new book, Down the Garden Path: A Step-By-Step Guide to Your Ontario Garden, Joanne and Matthew distill their horticultural and design expertise and their combined experiences in helping others create and maintain thriving gardens into one easy-to-read monthly reference guide. It's now available on Amazon.

This week on the Down the Garden Path podcast, landscape designers Joanne Shaw and Matthew Dressing look at two classic perennials that have long been staples in our gardens, phlox and campanula, commonly known as bellflowers. Whether you're looking for a plant with some height, or one a little lower growing, these classics have got you covered.

Join Joanne and Matt as they look at perennial favourites phlox and campanula (aka bellflowers).

Some of the questions and topics covered about phlox and campanula (aka bellflowers):

• What are the ideal growing conditions required?
• When do these perennials bloom?
• Popular choices for short and tall cultivars
• How to find them in the garden centre? Are they expensive?
• Where and how to use phlox and bellflowers in the landscape?

Each week on Down The Garden Path, professional landscape designers Joanne Shaw and Matthew Dressing discuss down-to-earth tips and advice for your plants, gardens and landscapes.

As the owner of Down2Earth Landscape Design, Joanne Shaw has been designing beautiful gardens for homeowners east of Toronto for over a decade. A horticulturist and landscape designer, Matthew Dressing owns Natural Affinity Garden Design, a landscape design and garden maintenance firm servicing Toronto and the Eastern GTA. Together, they do their best to bring you interesting, relevant and useful topics to help you keep your garden as low maintenance as possible. In their new book, Down the Garden Path: A Step-By-Step Guide to Your Ontario Garden, Joanne and Matthew distill their horticultural and design expertise and their combined experiences in helping others create and maintain thriving gardens into one easy-to-read monthly reference guide. It's now available on Amazon.

This month on the Down the Garden Path podcast, landscape designers Joanne Shaw and Matthew Dressing discuss some of their favourite perennials. They begin with a look at a versatile classic, sedums. From shrub substitute to colourful ground cover, it's hard not to have a spot in your garden for a spectacular sedum.

Joanne and Matt kick off the month with a look at sedums, a perennial favourite.

Some of the questions and topics covered:

• What is the best soil for sedums?
• Matt discussed the Sunsparkler Sedum series.
• The versatility of sedums in your landscape
• Sedum mats
  • available in 1 x 2 foot rectangles to quickly cover an area with a dense thick mat of sedums
• Joanne spoke about attending Toronto Botanical Garden's annual garden tour Through the Garden Gate, exploring the Wychwood area of Toronto
• Matt talked about attending the Oshawa Peony Festival

Each week on Down The Garden Path, professional landscape designers Joanne Shaw and Matthew Dressing discuss down-to-earth tips and advice for your plants, gardens and landscapes.

As the owner of Down2Earth Landscape Design, Joanne Shaw has been designing beautiful gardens for homeowners east of Toronto for over a decade. A horticulturist and landscape designer, Matthew Dressing owns Natural Affinity Garden Design, a landscape design and garden maintenance firm servicing Toronto and the Eastern GTA. Together, they do their best to bring you interesting, relevant and useful topics to help you keep your garden as low maintenance as possible. In their new book, Down the Garden Path: A Step-By-Step Guide to Your Ontario Garden, Joanne and Matthew distill their horticultural and design expertise and their combined experiences in helping others create and maintain thriving gardens into one easy-to-read monthly reference guide. It's now available on Amazon.