Natural Garden News from Grounded – May 10, 2025

May 10, 2025

Inside this edition of Natural Garden News

‘Get outside to look inward’
If you want a Grounded garden…
18 natural garden laws for cottage country
How to create a landscape that belongs here
All hail the humble sedge!
New here? Start with these articles
Today’s recommended reading
Today’s VIP (Very Important Plant)
It starts with one plant
Lucas House Diary
Of blood and maples

I hope you enjoy the newsletter! If you have any questions or feedback, please reply to this email.

Simon Payn
Grounded

Email: hello@groundedgardens.ca
Web: groundedgardens.ca

‘Get outside to look inward’

More people care than I realized. That’s one of the messages I got from the Watersheds Canada conference, the first of which was held right here in Haliburton earlier this month.

I was blown away by the number of people working to keep our lakes and rivers healthy, from the water itself to the shorelines.

The care goes more than skin deep. It was about a desire to protect our future, about leaving a good legacy. And a desire to know ourselves and our place in the world.

Mark Cullen, the garden writer and tree advocate, gave one of the keynotes. His words say it best:

I think we’re all looking for meaning outside of the muck, outside of the fabricated world that we sometimes immerse ourselves in. And we’re all slowly discovering what we’ve really known all along – that you need to get outside to look inward.

Amen to that.

Simon

If you want a Grounded garden…

I’m currently booking garden and shoreline installs for 2025 and 2026.

My pipeline is filling up, but I still have space for summer and fall installations.

We start by having a quick call to see if it makes sense for me to come look at your site.

Learn more

To see some of my recent work, please see this page.

18 natural garden laws for cottage country

Here’s what we know about how to garden naturally – in 18 short paragraphs. Read more.

How to create a landscape that belongs here

To make your home truly belong in its surroundings, the finishing touch comes from thoughtful planting choices, creating a natural connection to the local environment. Read more.

All hail the humble sedge!

Sedges don’t get much love. And that’s a shame because they do pretty much everything… everywhere. Read more.

New here? Start with these articles

Native plants and natural gardens 101

Links to my most important articles. Read more.

Myths about native plants and natural gardens

I hear a lot of myths. Here’s the reality. Read more.

All about shorelines

A look at shoreline naturalization: why it’s important and how to do it. Read more.

Today’s recommended reading

Shoreline bylaw clarity: The County of Haliburton has updated its website about the Shoreline Perseveration Bylaw. In case you’re wondering, it’s highly unlikely any work that Grounded does conflicts with the bylaw, although of course we’re mindful of it. Read more.

Gardens that changed the world: Want a little vacation? Here’s a massive bouquet of gardens from across the planet that impacted how we look at plants. Read more.

All in the name: The term “native plant” can be problematic. How about eco-beneficial plant instead? There’s good reasons why. Read more.

Watersheds Canada comes to Haliburton: A report from The Highlander on the healthy lakes and rivers conference. Read more.

Spotlight on… light: A study of a Highlands East lake found how artificial light harms biodiversity. Read more.

Plants relying on gig workers for pollination: As always, The Onion provides satire. But beneath that satire is more than a grain of truth. Looking at you honey bees. Read more.

Get the free guide

I’ve updated my guide to natural gardens in Haliburton County and surrounding areas.

Download here

Now booking garden and shoreline installs

If you’d like me to come and look at your garden or shoreline, please contact me.

Learn more

Today’s VIP (Very Important Plant)

I’ve put together some information “cards” about native plants. These are plants I use in my designs.

Today let’s look at Canada Violet.

Please share me!

If you know someone who might like this newsletter, please forward it to them!

Did someone forward this to you?

Get your own copy by clicking here and adding your email address.

Lucas House Diary:
May 10, 2025

Spring clean-up is pretty much complete now. The garden can breathe again, particularly the parts that were under a thatch of Little Bluestem stalks. Read more.

Of blood and maples

I was driving along Kennisis Lake Road this week and it looked like the pavement was bleeding.

Maple flowers had turned the road red.

We don’t think of trees flowering. But many of them do. The subtle flowers of red maples provide a warm cloud in the forest canopy before the leaves appear.

And then they litter the ground – such as these at my own house.