LIFESTYLES

FEED THE BIRDS
Winter does not have to be

humdrum with these garden tips

THIS IS a great time of the
year for everyone but the
gardener.

Oh, [I'm sure there are a few
who manage to divert themselves
temporarily by spending Christmas
with the family. Or maybe they
spend New Year’s with old friends
like Jim Beam, Jack Daniels,
Johnny Walker and Bud.

But the bottom line is, there is
not much to do in the garden; and
not much to see either.

If you were a fish fancier, you
would always have something to
do. Watching fish is not my idea
of a fun time, but most will say it
beats watching the leaves turn to
compost.

Well, winter in the garden need
not be quite so humdrum. If you
were to add a few of the trees and
shrubs that produce winter crops
of berries, you would have much
taore to look at.

The berries themselves wil! bring
interest and eye catching displays
to the garden, but they will also at-
tract birds. Of course, bird feeders
will achieve the same results; it just
doesn’t seem the same.

Here are a few of the plants that
you may want to consider for the
winter garden.

Res

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The Hollies — There are several
forms, from the old Christmas
Standard, English Holly (ilex
aquifolium) to the less common

Strains of Chinese Hollies (i. cor-
nuta).

One I particularly favor is i. x
‘Blue Princess’ and i. x ‘Blue
Prince’; dark, blue-green foliage
and bright red berries.

All holly trees prefer moist,
slightly acid soils. They will endure
a bit of shade, but, if you want
fewer problems and better perfor-
mance, give them six or more
hours of sun.

The Cotoneasters — There are
large cotoneasters (cotoneaster
factea & c. Salicifolia), small,

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groundcover cotoneasters (c.
dammerii & c. repens), and those
that make good wall coverings (c.
hybrida pendula).

over the

garden gate

Geoff Tobiasson

While a few plants are complete-

ly evergreen or completely

deciduous, most are semi-
evergreen.
They will produce varying

amounts of berries ranging in color
from orange-red to red. All prefer
sun and well drained soils.

The Strawberry Arbutus — The
Strawberry arbutus (arbutus
unedo) is not to be confused with
our local arbutus trees (a. men-
ziesif). This broadleaved-evergreen
is more a large shrub than a tree.

It is unique in that it bears both

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flowers and fruit during the same
fall and winter months.

The flowers look similar to those
of the pieris family while the fruit
bears a striking resemblance to the
Strawberry. Lots of sun and good
drainage for this one.

Pyracantha — Other than the
cotoneasters, this is the most
commonly planted, berry-produc-
ing plant. Although it can be used
as a free-standing shrub, it is more
often seen as a semi-vining screen
for wails and trellises. .

They are all completely
evergreen and produce berries
ranging from golden yellow (p.
‘Teton’) to the bright reds (p.
‘Cherri Berri’). As usual, they like
sun and decent drainage, but do
not Jet them dry out in the summer
months.

Beautyberry — This is a truly
unusual plant in more ways than
its botanical name (callicarpa
bodinieri giraldii). If you like the

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[LIFESTYLES

berry idea but are not fussy over
the the oranges and reds, how
about magenta?

This plant more than makes up
for its ho-hum, spring and summer
appearance when it loses its leaves
in the fall by presenting abundant
clusters of bright, violet-purple
berries.

Those of you who frequented
Mt. Seymour Boulevard this fall
were treated to a good display of
this plant’s charms courtesy of the
District of North Vancouver Parks
Department.

If you would like to become
more familiar with the potentials
offered by berry producing plants
over the winter months, visit Van
Dusen Gardens.

Besides the current appeal of the
Festival of Lights Show, the
garden can offer you some great
examples of the ways to add inter-
est to the garden over these rather
dull, winter days.

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