‘A lot of palm species are hardier than people expect:’ says a local resident, part of a group of gardeners who push the limits of what can be grown locally
This article appeared previously on CambridgeToday.
Recent updates to Canada’s Plant Hardiness Map means local gardeners have a little more room to play around with what they can grow.
Canada’s Plant Hardiness Map measures climate variables that influence plant survival and divides the country into different zones, rated from zero, the coldest parts of the country, to nine.
This map was recently updated for the first time in a decade, with Cambridge moving from a 5b zone to a 6a zone.
“Basically, what that means is that things have warmed up,” said John Pedlar, a biologist for Natural Resources Canada, in an interview with EloraFergusToday.
It’s not a crazy shift, said Denise Hostrawser, horticulture and lead greenhouse technician at the Cambridge Butterfly Conservatory, with hundreds of plants opened up to gardeners.
“It just kind of opens us up a little bit wider … there is a little bit more to play around with in our garden,” Hostrawser said.
Although only a slight degree shift, that doesn’t stop people such as Galt-resident Samuel Michaud from experimenting with what can be planted including tropical varieties.
Michaud is part of a Facebook group called Zone Pushers, which features gardeners from around the world who test what can be planted in their zone.
Michaud’s small garden at his home in Galt features several palm tree species, elephant ear plants, brugmansia, banana plants and more not native to the area. His parents’ house in Hespeler also features tropical plants too.
His interest stemmed from a high school interest in the Carolinian forest and what tree species run up against their northern limits in this area but he started taking it more seriously about 10 years ago.
“I went on a few trips down to Costa Rica and I was kind of inspired by their tropical gardens and wanted to give myself a little bit of that flavour,” he said. “I just like watching things grow, watching it come to life in the spring.”
He has begun to notice some plants, such as his bananas, can last until Halloween and he can bring some plants out in early-May.
Some tropical plants need to be moved inside over winter, he explained, but some can simply be covered and monitored and they will last through the season. For one palm tree, Michaud has an enclosure he can open and close during the winter if it gets too cold and has noticed some seasons he hardly needs to close it at all.
“A lot of palm species are hardier than people expect them to be,” he said.
Hostrawser said the conservatory has a palm tree, donated by a man who grew it in his front yard in Toronto.
She also noted the butterfly bush they have at the conservatory did not need to be covered this past winter for survival, despite recommendations to do so.
“The zone shift is kind of allowing us to ease off this winter protection that we’re doing for some of our perennials,” she said.
Although there may be some silver lining, Hostrawser noted this is evidence of the changing environment.
“Climate change is a reality … it’s a call to action to do what we can to help mitigate it,” she said.
This sentiment was echoed at Ferguson Cottage where the Galt Horticultural Society (GHS) was working on the garden.
P.J. Gagne, GHS member, said they can broaden their plant base but the other side of the coin is climate change.
“The summers are getting hotter, the droughts seem to be an annual thing now and when we do have storms, they’re really quite violent storms,” said Gagne.
“Weather generally is much more erratic now,” added GHS member Margaret Mishra. “You’re looking at big swings in temperature … very dry periods and very wet periods in the same season. The plants are not accustomed to that, even the native plants are not necessarily acclimated to these very high temperatures.”
Michaud has concerns about potential new invasive species trying to take over the local ecosystem but generally thinks most wouldn’t survive the winters.
He’s not too anxious over climate change, believing nature will balance itself out but is concerned about potential cold snaps that can hit early.
“You get too comfortable with a certain type of climate, then sometimes you’re reminded that you’re still in Canada,” he said.
– with files from Isabel Buckmaster, EloraFergusToday
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