Planting Plans
& Veggie Gardens
Choosing plants can be a hard task as there are multiple things to consider such as, sunlight, shade, wind, drainage, access to water, foot traffic patterns — and the balance between lawn, shrubs, flowers and vegetables. A planting plan that considers these and other factors is an important first step in your garden planning!
As we plan the design for your softscape, we will be there every step of the way to create a full planting plan! We come with you to the nursery and hand pick only the best plants together and make any changes in plant or colours!
Top 12 plants for Alberta gardens
Hens and Chicks
Succulent rosettes with the parent plant being the hen, which dies after flowering, and the new growth chicks taking over. A great groundcover for a dry area with full sun and well drained soil.
Columbines
The columbine plant (Aquilegia) is an easy-to-grow perennial that offers seasonal interest throughout much of the year. ... Columbine flower seeds can be directly sown in the garden anytime between early spring and mid-summer
Blue Oat Grass
This species is a large, clump-forming evergreen grass with blue leaves and tan seed heads held on tall stems. It flourishes in growing conditions similar to that needed by blue fescue. It prefers well-drained soils. Partial to full sun.
DogWood
This is a relatively low maintenance tree, and usually looks its best without pruning, although it will tolerate pruning. A truly special plant for northern landscapes, valued for its almost "oriental" horizontal branching habit; white flowers in spring, blueberries and purple fall color; quite fussy, needs a cool, moist site with afternoon shade, also prefers acidic soil.
Mother-of-thyme
This species forms an evergreen mat with tiny purple-pink clusters of flowers in midsummer and spreads by creeping stems.Average to dry soil. Prefers a dry sunny location - does well in sun to partial shade cast by spruce trees, along walkways and rock gardens.
Sedum
A large group of succulent plants ranging from low groundcovers through tall upright cultivars. 'Autumn Joy' is a staple for the fall bed with stiff stems topped with rose coloured florets,Part shade to full sun, well drained light soil.
Karl Foerster Grass
This grass performs well in a wide range of climates, remains attractive for months on end, and is not invasive in any way. Clumps are strongly upright, with dark green leaves. Soft feathery green plumes appear in summer, maturing into stiff wheat-coloured spikes, which last into winter. May be used in large groupings towards the back of a border, but also very effective when used more as a single specimen
Columnar Aspen
This tree grows narrow and upright in a columnar form with a strong center and typically branches form a couple feet from ground. Bronze spring foliage turns green in summer, turning to shades of yellow, orange and red in autumn. The tree leaves tremble in the wind creating a great sound break. Excellent as a screen or accent tree for your landscaping and is relatively low maintenance.
Snow In Summer
Mats of silver-green leaves and bright white flowers in early summer are a great filler. It forms extensive fibrous root systems, and prone to spreading into places it shouldn't go. Well contained under spruce trees, and does well in most well-drained soils. Full sun to partial shade.
CatMint
Aside from being a beautiful ornamental plant, it can also help your garden thrive by attracting butterflies and repelling pests. Additionally, catmint has had an extensive history of being a household herbal remedy. Its delicious minty taste makes it great to use in cooking but also to repel mosquitos.
Bloomerang Lilac
This is the newest variety of lilac introduced for the garden, “Bloomerang”. This lilac will bloom in the spring at the same time as all other lilacs and then continue to bloom off and on all summer long. In the fall this lilac will have another large flush of fragrant blooms.
Columnar Blue Spruce
bright blue needles on a narrowly upright and columnar form, branches forking upwards at a sharp angle; best used as an accent, for adding dynamic interest to the skyline or for smaller home landscapes.
Valued in the landscape for its rigidly columnar form. It has attractive bluish-green evergreen foliage which emerges blue in spring. The needles are highly ornamental and remain bluish-green throughout the winter
Hosta
They’re one of Canada’s favourite perennials for 3 good reasons: they’re low maintenance, totally rock in the shade, and have more elegance in one leaf than most perennials have in their whole plant.The lighter colour the foliage is, the more sun your hosta needs. Deep, dark foliage keeps its colour best in more shade while variegated types need more sun to keep crisp contrast.
Starwberry Hydrangeas
The Multi-Colored, Cone-Shaped blooms last a long time with color changes from creamy white to bright pink to strawberry red.
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Amazing Cut Flowers
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Grows in Sun or Part Shade
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Attracts Butterflies & Pollinators
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Year-Round Interest
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Cold Hardy
Globe Blue Spruce
Small, dense globe-shaped shrub has a mounded form that forms a compact and dense shape as it matures. The globe spruce is a dense multi-stemmed evergreen shrub with a distinctive and refined form. The attractive blue foliage remains through winter and new growth emerges silvery-blue in spring
Spring Snow Crabapple
A highly regarded ornamental tree just covered in snowy white flowers in spring, a hardy fruitless variety with a tightly oval habit of growth; makes a beautiful accent in the front yard, very clean and tidy, needs well-drained soil and full sun. This tree should only be grown in full sunlight. It prefers to grow in average to moist conditions, and shouldn't be allowed to dry out.
All About
Veggies
Tips for A Successful Garden
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Let there be light – Most veggies, especially those that bear fruit (tomatoes, cucumbers, squash, and peppers, for example) need sun, and a lot of it. Ideally, you want a site with at least 8 hours of direct sun per day. In less light, you can still grow some edibles; mainly leafy crops and herbs.
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Soil is everything – Healthy, rich soil is the key to a successful and productive vegetable garden, so don’t skip this step! You can use a homemade compost, organic well-composted animal manures, and organic fertilizers like kelp meal and alfalfa meal
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Pick your plants – With your first veggie garden, it’s very tempting to want to grow everything! But, for your own sake, I’d suggest you pick 4 to 5 types of vegetables and grow them well. Trying to cram too much in a compact space is asking for trouble and you’ll end up with a smaller, not larger harvest. However, you can boost yield by succession planting. When your initial crops have been harvested, follow up with a second sowing. For example, follow spring lettuce with summer beans. Succession planting allows you to stretch your harvest season for the longest possible time.
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Bring on the blooms – Ok, this might be hard to believe, but most bugs are your friends! Yup, it’s true. Think bees, butterflies, tachinid flies, ladybugs and more! To attract these good guys to your garden – and boost crop pollination – include clumps of insect-friendly plants like sweet alyssum, zinnias, cosmos, and sunflowers between the veggies and herbs.
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Water, weed & feed – This might seem to be one of the most obvious vegetable gardening tips, but new veggie gardeners may not know when or how much to water. Newly seeded beds will need frequent watering, but most established crops can get by on one to two inches of water per week. To conserve water and reduce the need to irrigate, mulch your soil with several inches of straw or shredded leaves. Side benefit: the mulch will also suppress weeds! As for feeding, quick growing crops like radishes and lettuce won’t need supplemental fertilizers if grown in in fertile soil. Long-term veggies like tomatoes, winter squash, and eggplants, however, will appreciate a boost several times over the growing season. Give them an occasional dose of a water soluble organic food to support growth and encourage the biggest harvest.