GARDEN MAVENS: Emily Bi + Dennis Zhang Ginkgo Footprints Annan, Ontario / Zone 5B This past Saturday May 30th, 2026 a group of artists (myself included!) gathered at Ginkgo Footprints, the extraordinary garden created by GARDEN MAVENS Emily Bi and her husband, Dennis Zhang over the past 17 years. Nestled on the outskirts of Owen Sound, Ginkgo Footprints has been evolving since 2009 into what can only be described as a living work of art - a place where horticulture, wildlife

GARDEN MAVEN: Mary Ann's Forest Edge Garden Collingwood, Ontario / Zone 5B Our first Garden Maven is Mary Ann, a neighbour I have come to know since stumbling upon her remarkable Forest Edge Garden on the edge of Cranberry Golf Course. For more than thirty years, Mary Ann has tended, expanded, and evolved this woodland sanctuary. What began as a shared vision with neighbours who helped her carve stone pathways through the forest, has grown into an extraordinary garden that r

Each time someone declares, “I HATE junipers.”, I can’t help but wonder which unfortunate juniper they met. Somewhere along the way, there was probably one sad, skeletal, over-pruned shrub crouched beside a gas station or abandoned foundation planting, and suddenly an entire genus was sentenced for life. It’s a bit like saying you don’t like dogs because you once met a badly behaved Llasa Apso. Junipers are one of the most versatile, resilient, and visually diverse groups of

There’s something quietly powerful happening in the garden world—and this data confirms what many of us have been sensing. At first glance, it might look like gardening still belongs to an older generation. The largest segment here is 65+ at 38.9%, followed by a tie between 25–34 and 45–54 at 22.2% each, and 55–64 at 16.7%. But look a little closer, and a more interesting story begins to unfold. The presence of the 25–34 group matching the 45–54 demographic is not a small det

After a slow, cool, and very wet spring across our region, it’s natural to feel behind in the garden. You’re not. In fact, this kind of spring often sets the stage for a strong, resilient summer garden—if you work with the conditions rather than against them. A few gentle reminders for right now: Soil needs time to warm and dry before planting Tender crops (beans, corn, annuals) are best left until late May or early June Seedlings benefit from gradual exposure outdoors (harde

It was the Summer of Gardening Hell. Nothing I attempted, did well. Most of the seeds I scattered, you know those easy peasy Cosmos, died. Again. The condo board decided to chop a bunch of trees down and in an afternoon I went from having a dappled shade garden with a bit of sun at the front to blazing sun everywhere. Away went the hostas, back to the Collingwood Garden Club / Horticultural Society for next year's plant sale. All of the vegetables I planted in the vegeta

This took 5 minutes. But no it did not. It took 3 weeks. 3 weeks of thinking of the shapes within the shapes; the client setting; what I will like; the textures I want; the mood I want to create. What follows is a week of second guessing, peeking at it again, and revising. (This photo is a week old. Rev 3 is current.) We forget about the importance of time in the creative process. Think time. Roll around in it time, as my friend Will taught me. Creative cloud gazing time.