We love to celebrate Canadian artists and support them as much as possible. Wendy thinks it’s time to celebrate Canada…. from the province of Saskatchewan; *easiest province to draw* to The Canadian Flag; *hardest flag to draw*. She’s always on the lookout for new Canadian heroes and retro diners. We carry a variety of … Read more
Kids want and need to be active. After a full summer of running, jumping, swimming, and climbing, often outdoors, they’re returning to school, where they’ll spend a lot of time indoors, sitting down and looking at screens. Their memories of the outdoor adventures they had with bugs, slugs, birds, and mammals will outlast any experiences … Read more
It’s been a good summer for the birds, and there are baby birds everywhere. Perhaps you’ve noticed more chatter as juvenile robins, cardinals, jays, and sparrows beg for food from their parents. Or perhaps you’ve noticed what sounds like familiar song but a bit off-key? That’s the sound of juvenile birds learning and practicing their … Read more
Carlotta James from Three Sisters Natural Landscapes (http://www.3sisters.ca/) is my guest on this episode to talk about pollinators and pollinator gardens. Pollinators are very important for our environment. Without them we would have much less food available to us. It is estimated that one of every three bites of food depend on pollinators. The Three … Read more
The Peterborough area is blessed with an abundance of American Goldfinches, which some people call Wild Canaries. Male Goldfinches are a rich lemon-yellow, with black wings, a black tail, and a black “toupee.” Females are a paler yellow and lack the toupee (perhaps the males struggle with male pattern baldness?). Goldfinches alternate between flapping their … Read more
On this episode we share some great tips on tools you can use in the garden to make the work a little easier. Gloves, the Garden bandit, kneeling pad, all natural sunscreen and lip balm, hat etc. Plus you’ll see that I’m wearing a heat guard. Soak these neat little neck scarves in water for … Read more
The Peterborough area is blessed with an abundance of American Goldfinches, which some people call Wild Canaries. Male Goldfinches are a rich lemon-yellow, with black wings, a black tail, and a black “toupee.” Females are a paler yellow and lack the toupee (perhaps the males struggle with male pattern baldness?). Goldfinches alternate between flapping their … Read more
We have so many great locations for bird watching in our region, sometimes we just don’t know where to start! On this episode of Garden Gate I speak with local ornithologist Andrew Jobes about his favourite spots to go birding!
We have had a massive number of orioles coming to our backyards since late April.. We’ve been hearing comments from across the province that there are a LOT of orioles this year. Local ornithologist Andrew Jobes and Brenda Ibey discuss why this may be the case this year and also share a few tips on … Read more
Some people refer to hummingbirds (“hummers” to birdwatchers) as “winged jewels,’ which is no surprise, given their small size, the males’ brilliant iridescent colours, and the way they flit about. There are 5 hummingbird species in Canada, but only one, the Ruby-throated Hummingbird, in Ontario. Males have bright red throats, iridescent green backs, wings, and … Read more