One word can have so many meanings, can't it? The word "gothic" can mean a period of time, a style of architecture, a genre of fiction, and more lately, a fashion and lifestyle. Gothic is dark, mysterious, but it can also apply to gardening! That's right, I recently read an article that talked about "gothic gardeners" and their favourite plants in the garden.
Forget about bright and cheery: gothic gardeners stride boldly to the dark side, with black flowers being their color of choice. And for all of us gardeners, black flowers can make a very striking statement in the garden. My research into the "dark side" of gardening began when my sweet hubby heard a story about black petunias on the radio. I thought this was something interesting that you and I would be interested to learn about; who knew that many gardeners deliberately sought out black flowers? And who knew that there were so many?
I learned that the term "black" doesn't always mean the inky black the immediately comes to mind. In gardening terms, "black" often means the darkest blooms that are available to us: they might be a very dark, sultry red or a smouldering purple. Black flowers are very rare in nature, but dark blooms are treasure by gardeners because of the delightful contrast they provide in a garden. Like fashions, black goes with everything!
While "gothic gardening" might be a fairly new thing, many of the plants chosen by gothic gardeners have been cultivated since the Middle Ages, and even more cultivars since Victorian times. For us regular gardeners who want to ignite our spring plantings with something new or different, some of the black flowers I read about were "Black Prince" snapdragon; black pansies and violas; black cornflower (bachelor buttons); black dianthus; black hollyhock; black mourning bride (scabiosa); black peony poppy; black nasturtium (doesn't that sound intriguing?) and of course, the plant that started my research, the "Black Velvet" petunia. Black roses have always been one of those mythical beings, like the unicorn, always sought but never found. The thought of them holds great romance, and indeed, black roses often appear in fiction; but in our gardens we will have to settle for very dark red roses, for now, anyway!
The Yorkton and District Horticultural Society will be holding their next meeting on Wednesday, May 18. We will meet at 7 p.m. at the Sunshine Room in the SIGN building on North Street; we'll have a very short meeting then head over to Young's Plant World where Kevin Young will talk to us about evergreens and new trees for 2011. We're sure to get lots of inspiration for some exciting landscaping, so do try and join us! Everyone is welcome!
Then on Friday, May 20, it's the Spring Plant and Bulb Sale at the Parkland Mall, Yorkton. Hours are from 9:30 a.m. till 5 p.m. or while stock lasts. Be sure to come early for the very best selection, especially if you are searching for a certain plant. That's Friday, May 20.
And one more quick note: if you were one of the gardeners scheduled to go on the road trip to Regina on April 30, it was very disappointing that the trip was postponed because of a blizzard! But hopefully the trip will be rescheduled. Further details will probably be available at the next meeting. Have a great week!
