Can you help?

– Posted in: Miscellaneous
7 comments

Just received an email from a woman who’s just moved to Manitoba. Is there anyone out there with experience gardening in a really cold climate that can help her? Post your answer in the comments.

“I have just moved to The Pas, Manitoba (Zone 1B) from southern Ontario (Zone 5B). I am looking to correspond with other northern gardeners to find out what kinds of perennials grow in this cold a climate. I may be able to get away with some Zone 2 or even very hardy Zone 3 plants. I’ve been walking around town and although I recognize some things, there are several other that look very pretty but I don’t know what they are. I am not forward enough to ring someone’s doorbell and ask.

Thanks for any help you can give.

Marion Jenkins”

About the Author

Kathy Purdy is a colchicum evangelist, converting unsuspecting gardeners into colchicophiles. She gardens in rural upstate NY, which used to be USDA Hardiness Zone 4 but is now Zone 5. Kathy’s been writing since 4th grade, gardening since high school, and blogging since 2002. Find her on Instagram as kopurdy.

In its own way, frost may be one of the most beautiful things to happen in your garden all year . . . Don’t miss it. Like all true beauty, it is fleeting. It will grace your garden for but a short while this morning. . . . For this moment, embrace frost as the beautiful gift that it is.

~Philip Harnden in A Gardener’s Guide to Frost: Outwit the Weather and Extend the Spring and Fall Seasons

Comments on this entry are closed.

Rose Gardening September 4, 2004, 5:55 pm

There is a very interesting book on cold climate gardening.
I looked it up and found it at:
http://www.backwoodshome.com/store/files/fp7.html
Hope this helps!
Sandra

Marion September 2, 2004, 11:19 pm

Thanks, Jenn and Kathy, I looked at the site and it’s really interesting. I’ve bookemarked it with a number of other sites. My task this fall, if it ever stops raining long enough, is to clean out the flower beds as much as possible and figure out just what is in there among all the dandelions and quack grass. So far, I’ve found asparagus (well that wasn’t too hard since it’s shoulder height), day lilies, iris, an anemone (I think), dephiniums, mint, white geranium, and rhubarb. I also think there is an astilbe and something that looks suspiciously like St. John’s Wort although I didn’t think it grew this far north. Sorry, I’m not so good on the Latin names for things.

Kathy September 2, 2004, 10:08 pm

I wrote up an entry on the Renegade Gardener quite a while back, but I forgot all about him when Marion emailed me. I wonder when he’s going to get around to providing an RSS feed? Yes, Marion, definitely check him out.

jenn September 2, 2004, 9:50 pm

This may also be of some use:

The Renegade Gardener

Self proclaimed as: “RENEGADE GARDENER is the Web’s best site for gardeners living in Minnesota, the Dakotas, Wisconsin, Upper Michigan, and other states and Canadian Provinces banished to the forgotten USDA Hardiness Zones 2 through 4.”

Marion Jenkins August 31, 2004, 6:18 pm

Thanks Chris, this is what I am looking for. I will check it out.

Marion

Kathy August 31, 2004, 5:46 pm

Glad to hear from you, Chris, and to learn of another website that helps cold climate gardeners. Thanks for providing that link.

Christopher Barown August 31, 2004, 2:17 pm

I found this on the web… I hope it is helpful.

http://www.geocities.com/PicketFence/4332/top.html

-chris