Once again, this year, many of us spent the summer at home. So, it was only natural to want to design our space to make the most of it.
Here are some general ideas to feed your inspiration!

Respect the style of your home

Creating a landscape is a great way to embellish your home. It’s important to consider the whole picture. Straight lines invite a clean design, curves attract movement. You will also want to draw inspiration from your architecture: country, contemporary, rustic, etc.

A sense of orientation

The most important element to consider in landscaping is orientation. Are you planting your plants in a north or east facing area? Choose plants that grow well in the shade or semi-shade. This is the case for hostas, anemones, asters, campanulas or astilbes, among others. To the south or west, in full sun, you can choose peonies, irises, rudbeckias, echinaceas, etc.

On a large plot of land, consider creating different beds by choosing flowers whose colours work well together. You can also play with the colours of the leaves. Touches of white in the foliage bring a brightness, particularly welcome in a shady corner.

In a small space, why not include berries or decorative cabbage? You'll give yourself colour and flavour! Redbor kale, with its purple foliage, offers a gorgeous look. So does Rainbow mix chard with its colourful stems.

Landscaping: observation and planning

The time spent thinking, planning, and imagining your space is precious. Don’t rush anything, walk around your property, visualize your landscape design.

Do you have any questions? Any doubts? You can always stop by your garden centre.

Are you planning the layout of the flowerbeds on your property? Here are some things to keep in mind to make your job easier.

The importance of preparation

Before you even buy your plants, be aware of the space you have available. Are there any perennials in place already? How large are the open areas? Most importantly, think about how much space your plants will take up when they mature. You want each variety to be able to flourish to its fullest!

When in doubt, never hesitate to ask for advice at the time of purchase. It can save you unnecessary expenses. After all, why buy more plants than you need?

Coherence and harmony in diversity

Some foliage brings a beautiful brightness to a bed. Berberis Aurea Nana and Rose Glow will make a statement with their respective lime green and pink foliage speckled with white. In the spring, Spiraea Double Play Big Bang gives a sublime touch of pink, orange, and lime. Trust your creativity and sense of aesthetics!

Also, consider choosing varieties according to your personality and lifestyle. Will you spend hours in your garden? Do you prefer simple maintenance? Shrubs generally require less maintenance than perennials, which must be pruned and cleared more often.

Let’s talk about maintenance

Using mulch will make your life easier. It helps control weeds and reduces the frequency of watering because it slows down water evaporation. It is recommended to use a thickness of 5 to 7 cm.

In short, with a bit of preparation and a few strategic actions, landscaping your flower beds will be a breeze!

For more gardening tips, we invite you to visit your local garden centre.

Ah! Cultivating your own vegetable garden! What a pleasure to watch the seeds you plant grow!
If you want to eat what you harvest, you’ll want to avoid the use of chemicals. But how do you keep certain insects away? And how do you stimulate the growth of your plants? Are you familiar with the technique of companion planting or associated cultivation?

Vegetal companion planting
This technique involves placing plants side by side to help each other. They can repel different insects or attract pollinators, for example. This technique is not new. It was used before the arrival of chemical fertilizers. However, it has been making a comeback in recent years. People are more and more interested in intervening as naturally as possible in their gardens.

Some examples of good companion planting

Tomatoes get along well with carrots, onions, and asparagus

Beets and cabbage go well together

Lettuce lives well next to beets, cabbage, or peas

Zucchini is happy near corn or beans

Cucumbers thrive near beans, broccoli, celery, lettuce, and tomatoes

Carrots get along well with leeks, onions, or beans

Basil goes well with tomatoes, beans, and peppers

Bad neighbours?
In the same way, some varieties tend to harm each other when placed next to each other. Often, they will have the same needs in terms of organic matter. They will therefore fight to get the same elements at the expense of their neighbour. Avoid planting varieties that are too similar next to each other to prevent this problem.
For more gardening tips, we invite you to visit your local garden centre!
 

Summer is coming to an end. Soon you’ll be enjoying what you’ve harvested, and your canned goods will be sitting on your counter! You’ll also need to prepare your flower beds and vegetable garden before the cold weather arrives.

Let’s look at what you’ll need to do to prepare for winter.

Flowerbeds

Are you one of those people who don’t like to see their perennials wither away? Do you prefer to start afresh when the warm weather returns? In that case, you can cut off the wilted leaves.

However, you should know that there will always be time to clean up in the spring. Thus, by decomposing, your plants will nourish the soil for the next season.

Vegetable garden

You’ve finished harvesting, and all that’s left are the plants that have produced so generously! Again, by letting them decompose, you enrich the soil for your next gardening season.

With your potted perennial herbs, you have a choice. You can plant them in the ground to protect the roots. They will survive the winter, and you can replant them in the spring. Or you can lay them in the ground with the pot, covered with a geotextile, to protect them from the cold and wind. In spring, if the frost has raised the plants, simply replant them so that the roots are well covered with soil.

Winter preparation: keep the leaves!

If you collect your dead leaves, keep them! Spread them in your vegetable garden to benefit from a natural, free fertilizer! You can also spread them at the foot of the most fragile plants and shrubs as protection.

That’s it! You’ve finished the preparation for winter!