Some of my favorite shrubs are:
- Black Lace Elderberry - great purple leaves (looks like Japanese Maple leaves). Nice focal point shrub that gets to be 3-4' tall and wide
- Mockorange - when in bloom, this is a must-have shrub with its fragrant flowers in later spring. It is nice to grow by a deck or patio so the scent can be enjoyed
- Hydrangea - partial shade to sun shrub with big flowerheads. Two varieties that work well in Calgary are 'PeeGee' and 'Annabelle'. This is a nice addition for late summer blooms and the flowerheads remain throughout the winter
- Burning Bush 'Turkestan' - a smaller shrub you don't see in every garden, but does well in shadier spots. It has narrow green leaves and small pink flowers during the summer. It has fabulous red fall color
I went to the zoo yesterday and taught a fabulous course on Construction Techniques to the Master Gardeners there. Meryl and I had lots of fun with the students - great group! I then wandered over to see the new Koalas. If I'm being honest, it was a little depressing because the two koalas didn't seem to be all that happy. Couldn't even get a picture of them since they were huddled in the back of their cages. Maybe they are still adjusting to their new environment. Anyways, it was a little disappointing...
Today I am going to read more from a book a good friend gave to me - 'TheOutliers' by Malcolm Gladwell. I spend most of my time reading garden magazines, but once in a while I pick up a non-fiction book as I continue on my search for the meaning of life. One of the interesting excerpts in this book is about something called a divergence test. In a nut shell, it talks about measuring intelligence in ways other than knowing the exact answer to a question. For example, one of the questions asks you to list all of the uses for a blanket. Academic thinkers would have completely different answers from creative thinkers. I encourage you to give it a try with a friend and laugh at the different answers you get! ENJOY!
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