local dirt


Message from the publisher


Dear Readers, One of the things l love about gardening are the surprises. Last year


I planted several daylilies, and while I didn’t expect to see them flower last summer, one did and I relished in the beauty of that fleeting bloom. Dropped seeds also sprouted and grew; brilliant yellow snapdragons pushed their way through the rocks in front of my porch, a tomatillo from last year popped up in my vegetable garden, and forget me nots I was sure had died off several years ago, appeared and flourished in a completely different garden from where they were once planted. Every year it’s the same, some plants for whatever reason, don’t thrive or


disappoint us; they serve as excellent teachers and provide us with lessons for the years to come. But others, against all odds, make it. They are the ones that make you smile at their fortitude, so I say let them stay. When Dorothy asked me to take over as publisher, it was a surprise. The


Gardener publications are synonymous with Dorothy Dobbie, I was just a little seed that had the good fortune to blow into the Pegasus Publications family. Dorothy saw my love of gardening, let me set some roots down and is now giving me the space to grow, and for that I am thankful. I am looking forward to the exciting year we have planned for 2016;


I promise lots of delightful surprises. Please write or email, send in your photos and comments, good or bad, and don’t despair because Dorothy is not abandoning us, she will still be writing and working with me, and answering your questions as well. Enjoy our “Dreaming” issue. I hope it inspires you and provides you


with ideas that you can implement in your home or garden this year. Cheers,


Tania Are you looking to make an impression?


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istakes cost. But as homeowners we don’t always want to believe that the old adage, “you get


what you pay for”, will ring true. Home renovations are turning into cautionary tales. Horror stories are becoming all too common of homeowners discover- ing that their new paved walkways and irrigation features are either cracked and crooked or leaking inside their homes. In an effort to prevent companies who


pop up, seemingly overnight, with a lawn mower and trailer but no training, from thinking that they’re ready to do work on a home, the landscape and horticulture industry has made a real push toward professional development. Landscape Industry Certification


and apprenticeship training exist across Canada to provide technical and hands- on learning as well as formalized testing. The goal is to ensure that professionals across the country comply with current standards and industry best practices. The benefits are twofold; for members of the industry it means a certifiable profession- al credibility and competency, while for homeowners it means having confidence in the fact that work is being completed by a professional, not an amateur. As a homeowner you should be aware


of who you’re employing. Although shopping around for pricing estimates has its benefits, sometimes you run the risk of settling for who can do the job the cheapest because you think “they’re just cutting grass and maintaining my yard, what could go wrong?”


Continued on page 6. localgardener.net


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Photo by Peggy V. Photography.


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