PLANT OF THE MONTH- APRIL

by Sigrie Kendrick

Pulsatilla vulgaris, the European Pasque flower

Few spring-blooming perennials combine delicate beauty with rugged resilience quite like Pulsatilla vulgaris, the European Pasque flower.

Named for its bloom time around Easter (Pâques in French), this silky-petalled gem is equally at home in a rock garden or a sun-baked hillside and is virtually maintenance-free.

Pasque flower is cold-hardy in zones 4-8, making it an excellent choice for even the higher elevations in our Okanagan valley.

Native to the dry chalk grasslands and limestone meadows of central and northern Europe, Pulsatilla vulgaris has evolved over millennia in some of the continent’s most unforgiving soils.

Poor, thin, and freely draining ground is exactly what it prefers. Plant it in rich, moisture-retentive soil, and it will quietly sulk or simply disappear.

Give it the lean, gritty conditions it knows, and Pulsatilla vulgaris will reward you with decades of enjoyment.

How does Pulsatilla vulgaris resist drought?

The Pasque flower’s drought resilience is structural, not incidental. Its deeply tapering taproot drives far down into rocky substrate, accessing moisture reserves long after the surface soil has dried.

The finely divided, feathery foliage is covered in soft silver hairs, a classic xerophytic adaptation that reflects intense sunlight and reduces water loss through the leaf surface.

Even the ornamental silky-tailed seed heads that follow the blooms serve a purpose by allowing the plant to complete its reproduction cycle quickly, before summer heat fully arrives.

Growing tips–

Once established, which typically takes a full growing season, Pulsatilla vulgaris requires essentially no supplemental irrigation in climates such as the Okanagan with its modest spring rainfall.

It is highly suited to xeriscaping plantings, gravel gardens, and low-maintenance perennial borders where water conservation is a priority.

Pulsatilla vulgaris prefers to be sited in a full-sun location with excellent drainage, but will tolerate part-sun.

Avoid transplanting Pulsatilla once established, as the taproot, which makes this such a successful xeric plant, resents disturbance.

Cultivars of this perennial range from the classic violet-purple through white, red, and soft pink.

Pasque flower is one of the earliest blooming spring perennials and, as such, offers vital support for pollinators emerging from the long winter.

Our Plant Database features more than 500 plants tested and ideally suited for the unique challenges of gardening in the Okanagan’s extreme climate, including the plants in this article.

PLANT OF THE MONTH- March

by Sigrie Kendrick

Lenten or Christmas Rose, or Hellebore

Helleborus orientalis, commonly known as the Lenten or Christmas Rose, or simply Hellebore, is an excellent choice for Okanagan gardens.

Native to Greece, Turkey, and the Caucasus region, this elegant perennial has been favored by gardeners for centuries for its remarkable resilience and quiet, understated beauty.

Despite its common name, the Lenten Rose is not a true rose but a member of the buttercup family, Ranunculaceae. It produces nodding, cup-shaped flowers in a stunning range of colours from pure white and soft cream to deep plum, burgundy, and near-black.

Many cultivars feature attractive spotting, veining, or picotee edges, adding further visual interest. Helleborus orientalis blooms appear from late winter through early spring, often pushing up through frost and snow, earning the plant a reputation as a harbinger for the warmer days ahead.

The leathery, dark green foliage is evergreen in many climates, providing year-round structure and ground cover. Leaves are deeply divided into palmate segments, giving the plant a bold, architectural quality even when not in bloom.

Hellebore thrive in a woodland garden

Helleborus orientalis thrives in partial to full shade, making it an invaluable choice for woodland gardens and shade borders. It prefers well-drained, humus-rich soil with a neutral to slightly alkaline pH. Once established, it is remarkably drought-tolerant and long-lived, with individual plants surviving for decades with minimal care.

Few plants offer so much for so little effort. The Lenten Rose naturalises freely, self-seeding to gradually form impressive clumps. It is also deer-resistant, a significant advantage in many Okanagan gardens.

However, gardeners should note that all parts of the plant are toxic if ingested, so care should be taken in gardens frequented by children or pets. Some people may even experience mild skin irritation after touching Hellebore.

With its late-winter blooms and easy-going nature, Helleborus orientalis remains an essential plant for any shade garden.

Our Plant Database features more than 500 plants tested and ideally suited for the unique challenges of gardening in the Okanagan’s extreme climate, including the plants in this article.

PLANT OF THE MONTH- JANUARY

by Sigrie Kendrick

Wild pansy, heartsease, or Johnny-jump-up

Although not typically considered a xeriscape plant, these diminutive beauties, sited on my patio, receive very little supplemental irrigation and are actually quite drought-tolerant. They have been blooming since September and, with our recent mild weather, continue to do so, brightening the gloomy winter days, making them worthy to feature as Plant of the Month.

Viola tricolour, commonly known as the wild pansy, heartsease, or Johnny-jump-up, is a delightful European wildflower that has captured hearts for centuries. This small but mighty plant, belonging to the violet family Violaceae, displays cheerful blooms in combinations of colours, hence its scientific name “tricolour,” meaning three colors. Blooming in shades of blue, purple, orange, yellow, burgundy, white, and near-black, with many multicoloured varieties, these are tough, fast-growing, self-seeders.

Native to Europe and temperate regions of Asia, this hardy annual or short-lived perennial thrives in meadows, wastelands, and cultivated fields. The plant typically grows 6 to 8 inches tall, with delicate flowers measuring about half an inch across. Each bloom features distinctive face-like markings, with dark lines radiating from the center.

Viola tricolour – folklore and symbolism

Throughout history, Viola tricolour has been steeped in folklore and symbolism. Medieval Europeans called it heartsease because of its supposed ability to mend broken hearts and ease emotional pain. In the Victorian language of flowers, it represented loving thoughts and remembrance. Beyond its ornamental appeal, the wild pansy has practical uses. Herbalists have traditionally employed it to treat skin conditions, respiratory ailments, and inflammation. The flowers are edible and make attractive garnishes for salads and desserts, offering a mild, slightly minty flavor.

Viola tricolour is also the ancestor of the modern garden pansy (Viola × wittrockiana), developed through extensive breeding in the 19th century. While cultivated pansies now boast larger blooms in countless color combinations, many gardeners still cherish the wild pansy’s modest charm and natural grace.

This resilient little flower continues to brighten gardens and wild spaces, reminding us that beauty often comes in small, unpretentious packages. Viola tricolour are typically more heat and drought-tolerant than pansies and worth including in any garden.

Our Plant Database features more than 500 plants tested and ideally suited for the unique challenges of gardening in the Okanagan’s extreme climate, including the plants in this article.

GARDENING WITH NATURE

Article by Sigrie Kendrick

Living with Deer in the Okanagan

Living in the beautiful Okanagan Valley comes with many perks, but for gardeners, there is one persistent challenge that stands out: marauding deer.

While deer may be lovely to observe from a distance, they can quickly transform a carefully-cultivated garden into their personal buffet. Understanding deer-resistant plants, particularly those suited to our semi-arid climate, can help you create a thriving landscape that both you and the local wildlife can appreciate—each in your own ways.

Deer are opportunistic feeders, but with surprisingly-discerning palates. They typically avoid plants with certain characteristics that make them either unpalatable or difficult to consume.

The most effective deer-resistant plants share common traits: strong fragrances, fuzzy or textured foliage, bitter or toxic compounds, thorny structures, or tough, leathery leaves.

Plants with high essential oil content, such as herbs and aromatics, are particularly unappealing to deer, as their sensitive noses find these scents overwhelming.

It’s important to emphasize that no plant is completely deer-proof. When food sources are scarce, particularly during harsh winters or drought conditions, deer will eat almost anything, a behavior that was especially obvious in West Kelowna gardens since the 2023 McDougall Creek Fire.

I have a client in Casa Loma who has gardened at her property for decades and accepted that the deer would munch on her Bergenia cordifolia flowers, but more recently, both flowers and foliage are missing.

Deer in an urban garden

Deer-Resistant Plants for a Semi-Arid Climate

The Okanagan’s semi-arid climate, characterized by hot, dry summers and relatively mild winters, makes it ideal for xeric plants, those adapted to dry conditions. These water-wise plants not only conserve our precious water resources but often possess natural deer-resistant qualities.

Many xeric plants have evolved tough, waxy, fuzzy or aromatic foliage as adaptations to conserve moisture—characteristics that coincidentally make them less appealing to browsing animals.

Check out the plant database on this website for examples of some plants we’ve found that normally deter deer.

Perennials: Okanagan deer-resistant, xeric perennials include Achillea cultivars (Yarrow), with its ferny foliage and flat-topped flowers in various colours, and Nepeta (Catmint), which produces spikes of blue flowers and aromatic foliage that deer find objectionable.

Lavender stands out as perhaps the perfect Okanagan deer-resistant plant. Its intense fragrance, drought tolerance, and beautiful purple flowers make it both functional and ornamental.

Similarly, Perovskia atriplifolia (Russian sage) offers aromatic silvery foliage and tall spikes of blue flowers while requiring minimal water once established. Both plants thrive in our alkaline soils and intense summer sun.

Ornamental grasses provide excellent deer resistance while adding movement and texture to the landscape. Helictotrichon sempervirens (Blue Oat Grass), Schizachyrium scoparium (Little Bluestem), and Pennisetum alopecuroides (Fountain Grass) all perform well in our climate, requiring little supplemental irrigation after their first year. Their thin, sharp-edged leaves are simply not appealing to deer.

Shrubs: consider Mahonia species, formally Berberis (Barberry) species, which combine drought tolerance with thorny branches that deer actively avoid.

Potentilla fruticosa (Shrubby Cinquefoil) offers bright flowers throughout the summer in shades of yellow, orange, pink, and white while requiring minimal care. Appreciated more for its foliage than its flowers, Sambucus racemosa “Lemony Lace” (Elderberry) offers yellow-green lace-like foliage with highly dissected leaves and, as of yet, has not been browsed by deer in our West Kelowna demonstration garden.

Annuals: Tagetes tenuifolia (Signet Marigolds), Zinnia elegans (Zinnias), and Antirrhinum majus (Snapdragon) provide bright blooms while being generally deer-resistant, though they’ll need a little regular watering in our dry climate.

Lavender

Designing a Water-Wise Garden with Deer-Resistant Plants

Our Plant Database features more than 500 plants tested and ideally suited for the unique challenges of gardening in the Okanagan’s extreme climate. Deer-resistant plants are included.

Sigrie Kendrick is a master gardener and executive-director of the non-profit Okanagan Xeriscape Association.

GARDENING WITH NATURE

Article by Sigrie Kendrick

It all starts with the seed

Whether you buy blooming plants and tall trees for your landscaping or plant seedlings and seeds—it all really begins with the collection of seeds from mature plants.

We all have the means to do that right in our own back yards. But, like so many things, it’s actually a bit more complicated than that. Working with Okanagan Xeriscape Association members and volunteers in the Xeriscape Demonstration Garden, we spent a couple of hours collecting seeds from the garden’s perennials and annuals. It’s a fun and inexpensive way to ensure the plants that thrived in their given environment this year will be around for future seasons.

As we were collecting the seed heads and labeling the storage bags, one of the volunteers peppered me with questions– How do you know when the seeds are ready to harvest? What conditions do you need to store them, and in what?

Quite a heated discussion ensued among everyone present, as, with so many gardening tasks, there is often more than one answer.

When and How to save your seeds

Annual and perennial seeds are ready to harvest when the flowers have finished blooming and the flower petals have turned brown or fallen off.

Collect the ripe seeds from the flower heads and lay them on wax paper away from sunlight to dry for a week or so. You can use a variety of storage vessels, plastic bags, wax, or paper envelopes. My personal favourite are the compartmentalized plastic containers my mechanic uses to store nuts and bolts and such.

Proper storage of your seeds will go a long way to keeping them viable for longer. Ideally, seeds prefer a dark, dry, cool environment between 35 F (1.6 C) and 40 F (4.4 C) with a humidity as low as possible.

While your refrigerator can supply the cool and dark environment, the high humidity inside is not ideal. If you do choose to use your fridge for seed storage, make sure to use airtight containers such as mason jars.

Wherever or however you choose to store your seeds make sure to label them properly, specifying the date and the plant from which the seed was collected. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve thought I would remember which seeds were which, only to scratch my head in the spring when I opened each compartment.

Many seeds benefit from a chemical change which mimics what they experience in their natural environment, such as freezing winter weather, burning temperatures or scarring or cutting from being exposed in the outdoors, or gnawed by an animal.

Scarification is the process of opening the seed coat and can be done mechanically, chemically or thermally in order to allow water inside the seed coat. Typically, this method is used on seeds with an extremely thick outer layer and is achieved unnaturally by scratching, filing, breaking, puncturing or burning the seed coat.

Stratification uses temperature to break the dormancy of the seed and it can be achieved by subjecting the seeds to periods of cold, either dry or wet cold. It is often achieved by storing your seeds in either the refrigerator or an outbuilding for several months.

One of the seed varieties that I’m most excited about is the Echinacea purpurea “Cheyenne Spirit” seeds, which we collected from the West Kelowna Xeriscape Spirit Square Garden. Many of the fancy new Echinacea cultivars have to be cultivated by vegetative means, and as such are expensive. Echinacea “Cheyenne Spirit” can be easily cultivated from seed and comes in a dazzling array of colours including red, purple, pink, orange, yellow and cream.

This xeriscape perennial has performed very well in the garden even during the challenges of severe water restrictions imposed during the summer season. I look forward to start propagating more of these tough beauties ready for purchase at our annual spring plant sale.

Check our Plant Database for more information on the plants mentioned above.

Sigrie Kendrick is a master gardener and executive-director of the non-profit Okanagan Xeriscape Association.

A Pollinator-Friendly Garden

Article by Pat Zander

Pollinator Attraction

My husband and I have always tried to attract birds to our garden. That meant planting shrubs
and perennials that would be sources of food and shelter, and minimizing the use of pesticides
that might harm.

Then we got a hive of honey bees and found that many of the same principles apply. In
particular, bees need a good and consistent source of pollen and nectar-rich flowers during the
warm season. And being very careful with pesticides is even more critical. As they feed, they
are moving pollen around and fertilizing the flowers. The majority of our food crops need these
busy little critters to accomplish this for them before they can produce seeds or fruit.

At one time, I thought there was nothing more entertaining in the garden than watching a
couple of robins bathe in the fountain. However, watching a bee wiggle her way into a tubular
flower and then wiggle back out, covered with pollen, is right up there too. It is a huge bonus
that I am now more aware of all the other pollinators that come our way. With awareness
comes appreciation. I’ve seen three different species of bumblebees “working” the same
patch of flowers, a tiny bee the size of an ant navigating a Hydrangea bloom, and the delicate
scalloping leafcutter bees make on a rose leaf.

Some Familiar Easy to Grow Favourites

Early Spring:
Crocus | Glory of the Snow | Pasque Flowers |  Snowdrops |  Tulips | Hazelnut | Pussywillows

Late Spring:
Allium |  Lilac | Saskatoons | Elderberry | Blossoming Berries |  Blossoming Fruit Trees and Shrubs | Oregon grape

Summer:
Beebalm |  Catmint |  Coneflower |  Dill | Fennel | Globe Thistle | Hyssop |  Jupiter’s Beard | 
Lavender |  Lambs Ears | Mint | Russian Sage | Salvia; | Snapdragons |  Veronica |  Yarrow | Butterfly Bush | Ninebark | Rose of Sharon

Late Summer into Fall:
Autumn Joy Sedum | Sunflowers |  Bluebeard (Caryopteris) | Russian Sage

I have mentioned only the plants in our garden which I know to be pollinator favourites. There
are hundreds more. A quick search on the internet will provide lists of appropriate choices;
borderfreebees.com is a good one. Also, do check out the plant list and images on OXA’s Pollinator Garden in the UnH2O Demonstration Garden on this site. 

It is also worth noting that native plants are the most appropriate for feeding native insect
species. Bonus that they are really easy on the water.

Living in the Okanagan where fruit growing is an important industry, gives us even more reason
to encourage healthy populations of pollinators.

Oh, and if you happen to have a few dandelions in your lawn, you are serving bee candy. Now
there’s an excuse to avoid hours on your knees digging them out.

GARDENING WITH NATURE

Article by Sigrie Kendrick

Think outside the box when prepping for winter

As gardeners, let’s remember to switch up the traditional garden tasks and think in a different direction: perhaps a more environmentally friendly one, that also provides us with more winter garden interest.

For instance, fall is the time of year when ornamental grasses shine. Many are in bloom and at the peak of their beauty.

What poet within us wouldn’t be charmed by the gentle way their graceful seed heads sway in the breeze and dance on the long stalks they’ve been growing all season? Grasses really add movement to your garden—unless you chop them down prematurely.

I recently had the opportunity to consider the importance ornamental grasses hold in our gardens as I cut down literally hundreds of Calamagrostis x acutiflora ‘Karl Foerster’, commonly known as Feather Reed grass, at a client’s property.

So often clients want their grasses razed to the ground before the onset of winter as they
perceive the standing grasses to be “messy” rather than graceful.

Often, land care providers such as landscapers are all too happy to oblige as that means one less task facing them in the spring.

Instead of this perverse desire to tidy in the fall why not take into consideration all the benefits of leaving ornamental grasses over the winter?

What about ecology?

From an ecological standpoint there also are many reasons to leave your ornamental grasses and your perennials standing over the winter. They provide needed habitat for birds and a myriad of other wildlife, as well as for beneficial insects to overwinter.

The seed heads of ornamental grasses and also annuals and perennials which have gone to seed, provide food for birds, who have to forage widely during the colder months, just to survive. They also provide great erosion prevention and slope stability, especially where wildfire has run through the previous season.

The time to shear your ornamental grasses is when you begin to see new growth at the base sometime in spring. Then, don’t toss out the cut grass. Instead, find a spot in your yard where it will be out of your way, but will provide valuable habitat for beneficial insects.

Perennials can also be pruned in early spring, when new growth begins to be visible, while annuals can be pulled out as soon as the ground softens in late winter or early spring.

Remember too that the fallen leaves from deciduous trees should also be left where they fall, rather than being neatly raked up and composted elsewhere in the fall. Those rotting leaves are like gold to a gardener and they provide habitat for insects and wildlife while they decompose over winter.

They also suppress weed growth and protect the roots of perennials over winter and what’s left can be gently dug into the soil come spring.

So, leave the leaves, don’t mow down the grasses and allow perennials and annuals to go to seed (unless they tend to be invasive!)

Gardening with Nature

Article by Sigrie Kendrick

Keep vital pollinators thriving with your plant choices

Pollinators have great access to food during the summer months when there is a buffet of flowers
blooming on every corner and in every meadow—but what about food for them in early spring and late
fall?

We need to make plant choices for our landscapes that are focused on extending the seasonal banquet
table for these vital little critters by choosing pollinator-friendly plants that provide food for them on the
shoulders of summer.

That should include both native and non-native xeric plants which will require little supplemental irrigation
once established, so we’re not wasting any of our precious resource, water.

It’s estimated that 90 percent of flowering plants need pollinators such as bees and butterflies to
reproduce. That includes a third of the food we eat, such as nuts, fruit, vegetables, and herbs that require
insect pollination.

As we pave over wild lands and build on meadows, we destroy natural habitat and food for pollinators, so
it’s essential that we pay more attention to planting food sources to keep these little insects alive and
thriving and reverse the current trend of their decline.

Recently the Okanagan Xeriscape Association collaborated with Kelowna Rotary Clubs on the creation
of two pollinator gardens located at Sarsons Beach Park, 4398 Hobson Rd. and Cameron Park, 2345
Richter St. in Kelowna.

These gardens have been a year in the making and it was fantastic to finally get shovels in the ground as
OXA, Rotary, and Kelowna’s Parks Department worked together to design and ultimately plant up these
spaces.

Both were designed to have both early and late-blooming perennials to support longer access to food for
pollinators.

Early bloomers in the gardens are the shrub Amelanchier alnifolia, commonly known as Saskatoon berry,
Corsican violets and the native Penstemon fruiticosus or Shrubby Penstemon.

We also included several Achillea millefolium, known commonly as Yarrow, as studies from Simon Fraser
University have shown that this perennial, which is native to the Okanagan, is by far the most appealing
to the largest number of pollinators.

Achillea millefolium will be visited by Hairy Belly Bees, Sweat Bees, Mining Bees, Butterflies, Flies,
Wasps, and Beetles.

With prompt removal of the blooms, we should get 3 bloom periods from the Achillea millefolium as well
as the Nepeta racemosa that we planted. It’s a standout pollinator perennial.

Blooming later in the season, Asclepias speciosa, Showy Milkweed, will support Monarch butterflies as
this perennial is a host plant for females to lay their eggs.

The exceptionally long-blooming Colorado Gold Gazania and Coronado Red Hyssop will round out the
season, blooming until frost.

All of the plants selected were purchased from responsible growers as many nursery plants have been
treated with toxic insecticides, known as neo-nicotinoids, which are harmful to pollinators.

Pollinator Corridor

Rotary Clubs of Kelowna have partnered with Rotary Clubs across the B.C. Interior to establish a
pollinator corridor stretching from Clearwater to Osoyoos to support the growth in populations of bees,
butterflies and other pollinators in our valley.

Visit these public gardens to see the bee-friendly gardens in person and consider planting a pollinator
garden in your own backyard to provide support for these little heroes, who are suffering from the
effects of pollution and climate change.

Sigrie Kendrick is a Master Gardener and Executive-Director of the Okanagan Xeriscape Association. She can be reached at 778-363-8360 or by email at exec_dir@okanaganxeriscape.org.

Gardening with Nature

Article by Sigrie Kendrick

Plant spring bulbs now for xeriscape colour later

In addition to perennials, fall is the ideal time to get a jump on next year’s garden by planting bulbs to provide a pop of colour in the spring garden.

A xeriscape flower that many people don’t think of is the spring-flowering bulbs such as narcissis, crocus, tulips and scillas.

Drought-tolerant or technically, drought-avoidant bulbs, bloom before the heat of the summer season and benefit from dry conditions once they have finished blooming.

Since our mandate is to help educate people about ways to conserve water used on the landscape, promoting spring bulbs is right up there with hiking for a fun fall activity, in my books.

Two of my favourites

One of the earliest bulbs to appear in spring is Winter Aconite (Eranthis Hyemalis) which pokes its cheery yellow head up as early as late February, often in the same time frame as snowdrops, although it is not as common.

It is well worth searching out this bulb as it will naturalize in your garden and in time allow you to share some bulbs with your friends.

It seems that few gardens in the Okanagan are untouched by marauding deer, so homeowners are always on the lookout for plants those pesky animals tend to shun. Another great bulb for the spring garden is the Turkestan onion (Allium karatievense), a member of the onion family. That means it is ‘stinky’ to deer, although not to us, and as such it’s usually not on the menu for our four-legged friends.

The Narcissus Family

Another bulb deer tend to go by without nibbling is the narcissus family.

These can provide up to six weeks of bloom with a selection of early, mid, and late-flowering varieties, plus they are readily sourced at nurseries or big box stores.

One of the varietals that we planted recently in the OXA UnH2O Xeriscape Demonstration Garden on Gordon Drive, is the absolutely-stunning Narcissus poeticus, which is, ironically, one of the oldest daffodils to be cultivated, dating back to ancient times.

I’m enamoured with its simple shape and pure white petals, so different from the brassy yellow we usually associate with daffodils.

No matter what you decide to plant this fall, the anticipation of a colourful array of spring flowers from your fall bulb planting will help you through the dark winter days to come.

Galanthus nivalis