Hello new subscribers I met at the Home Show. It was a pleasure!
Indeed, it was more than that. It was an encouragement.
While a lot of people strode by and avoided making eye-contact (maybe they thought I would use some kind of native vine to ensnare them), a lot of you came over to chat.
And you GET IT!
You get that we can garden for more than just ourselves. And you get that when we do that, we have a landscape that’s more fun, more interesting and more joyful to be in.
I hope you find this newsletter interesting, useful and a little bit fun. If you have questions about anything, just hit reply and I will try to answer them. Simon
If you want a Grounded garden…
I’m currently booking garden and shoreline installs (and management services) for summer and fall 2026.
We start by having a quick call to see if it makes sense for me to come look at your site in the spring.
To see some of my recent work, please see this page.
The landscape where everyone’s a winner
No plant is an island. Together, they make a community where every individual benefits every other. Read more.
Native plants and deer
The #1 question/ complaint/desire-for-therapy I had at the Home Show was about deer. I hear you… and so does my garden at Lucas House. Here’s some thoughts. Read more.
Yes, weeding can be a pleasure
What if taking care of your landscape was like visiting an old friend? Read more.
Something is missing but I don’t know what
Sometimes there’s a hunger that only leaves can fix. Read more.
Can’t live, if living is without you
How plants and animals are here for each other, even if they don’t realize it. Read more.
Now Available: The Unfinished Cottage Landscape
I’ve written a short book about my way of landscaping.
The Unfinished Cottage Landscape is about what happens when you stop fighting the land and start noticing what it’s already doing.
It’s for anyone who has ever sighed getting out of the car on a Friday evening, looking at what still needs to be done. And for anyone who suspects there might be a different way.
Click the button below to read more and order the book. Price is $15 with free shipping.
The May long weekend came and so did the mosquitos. A couple of times on client sites I’ve been plagued by a cloud of them.
If you read this, I don’t need to tell you that fogging or spraying them is bad. Chemicals don’t just kill mosquitos, they kill other helpful (and harmless) insects, too. And it’s not that effective anyway.
Last year, I tried the Mosquito Bucket of Doom, which kills the larvae and nothing else. I think it worked to some extent, so I’m trying it again. You can buy the ingredients at Home Hardware and it takes 3 minutes to set up.
Catch our show on Canoe
I’m delighted to be co-hosting a new show and podcast on our local community radio station.
It’s all about gardening and the environment in Haliburton County.
It airs on the first and third Sundays of the month at noon. You can listen live to Canoe at 100.9 and 97.1 FM, or catch the show anytime you wish at canoefm.com and wherever you get your podcasts.
My Haliburton Native Plant Database
At the Home Show last weekend, I got a lot of questions about plants suitable for various situations.
I often went through my fun plant cards (some of you took some away with you – yay!) but did you know I also have an online database where you can browse through suitable species?
You can find it at this link. It takes a while to load, so please be patient or make a cup of tea or something.
That’s a lot of plants!
My team and I put about 2,500 plants in the ground at this shaded cottage lawn conversion the other week.
That’s a lot of plants. In a couple of years they will knit together to create a beautiful sedge meadow. The sedge matrix is interspersed with violets, columbine, zig-zag goldenrod among other plants. There are some shrubs for structure, too.
A shaded sedge meadow, eight months on
With a similar design to the one above, here are some pictures I took this week of a planting I did in fall 2025.
Today’s recommended reading
This made us smile: Some landscaping experts share their moments of joy in their gardens. In my opinion, it’s these moments that are the most important and the most life-changing. Read more.
On the boardwalk: All about the new self-guided nature tour of Minden’s boardwalk through the wetland in town. I’m looking forward to visiting this. Read more.
Soaking it up: The Haliburton Highlands Land Trust on the value of our local wetlands to help limit flooding. Read more.
Playing our part: We’re not invisible to the natural world. Our actions create ripples. As I would say: we are nature. Read more.
Breaking news: It turns out that Ted Turner, founder of CNN, was also a conservationist. Read more.
Get the free guide
I’ve updated my guide to natural gardens in Haliburton County and surrounding areas.
