Dion O’Banion – Chicago’s Famed Florist Revisited
By Wes Porter Wednesday, February 8, 2012
Last November, we wrote of the life and death of Dion O’Banion, Chicago’s famed florist – and mobster. A correspondent and descendant residing in the southeastern U.S. has written to question whether O’Banion was indeed both a Roman Catholic and son of a recent Irish immigrant.
Winter half over: Green thumbs are twitchingBy Wes Porter Wednesday, February 1, 2012
Halfway through winter and down in the valley the willows are indicating spring is on the way. Twigs of our native black willow, Salix nigra, have turned orange, while those of introduced weeping willows, S. babylonica, from eastern Asia are a bright yellow. Just a minute there – didn’t you just say weeping willows are from eastern Asia? So why does the botanical name suggest they originated in the fabled Babylon?
Questions We’re Often Asked: Something’s Bugging My Plants!By Wes Porter Wednesday, January 25, 2012
First you notice something is amiss with your indoor plants. The foliage is becoming mottled. Eventually it dies and falls to the floor. As you pick up the leaves, you notice a strange substance like soot there. The remaining leaves are sticky with glossy patches and again, perhaps spotted with black powder.
It’s the End of the World, Baby!By Wes Porter Thursday, January 12, 2012
Yes, indeed: it’s the title of the 2012 Campari calendar featuring Hollywood actress and model Milla Jovovich in various fetching poses. This will make it the thirteenth edition of said calendar. But then if you suffer from triskaidekaphobia you will not want to have been counting to that dread number.
That Was the Year That Was
By Wes Porter Monday, January 2, 2012
Unfortunately the editors of Bartlett’s and similar standard reference books seem singularly uninterested in quotations pertaining to horticultural affairs. In an effort to correct such erroneous exclusions, we have collected a few made over the past year by those either engaged or otherwise in gardening and associated pursuits.
Gardener’s healthBy Wes Porter Sunday, January 1, 2012
“The money for these delights I earned in the winter by shoveling snow in our driveway and various sidewalks in the neighbourhood.” Katherine Hepburn: Me: Stories of My Life (1992)
Then Again There Are Other Ways . . .By Wes Porter Thursday, December 22, 2011
A Christmas gift for that favourite gardening relative or friend? No problem if you are close enough to visit Richters in Goodwood, Ontario, a short drive northeast of Toronto. Through until 22 December, visitors to the gift shop can select wonderful herbs, seasonal greenery, stocking stuffers, books, herbal ideas and much more, all the while sipping mulled cider, nibbling on herbal goodies and enjoying festive music. Richters is located on the south side of Highway 47 a kilometre east of Goodwood.
Simple, Inexpensive Garden GiftsBy Wes Porter Friday, December 9, 2011
Kate, Duchess of Cambridge, chose a gift to get her out of a jam. What could she give her new husband’s grandmother, the Monarch who has everything, as The Mail on Sunday phrased it. She apparently solved the problem by opting to give the Queen jars of her very own strawberry jam and plum conserve – Her Majesty prefers simple, homemade gifts such as these.
Decorating for Christmas 2011
By Wes Porter Wednesday, December 7, 2011
Just as the rest of the western world is bidding a fond adieu to the remains of the festive fowl, merry merchandisers meeting in Frankfurt, Germany, will be dictating what they fondly believe will be next season’s decorating trends.
Christmasworld show features six trade floors filled with the latest in floral supplies, ribbons and packaging, seasonal decorations, party items, and yet more must-haves for the fashion-conscious host.
Celebrate the season ouside and insideBy Wes Porter Thursday, December 1, 2011
It was Ogden Nash who summed it up with: “Oh, give me an old-fashioned Christmas card/With mistletoe galore, and holly by the yard/ With galumptious greens and gorgeous scarlets . . .” Yup, that will just about do it before we return to the more mundane things in a gardener’s life.
Golden OpportunitiesBy Wes Porter Tuesday, November 15, 2011
All that glisters is not gold, oft have you heard it told ~ William Shakespeare,
The Merchant of Venice
True, but there’s still gold in them there hills – and elsewhere. At prices today, mines long believed played out are being revived near and far. When gold reached $1,063 an ounce Toronto-based Romarco Minerals Inc. reopened the historic Halle Gold Mine near Kershaw, South Carolina, the only gold mine east of the Mississippi.
Questions We’re Often Asked: Easy Indoor PlantsBy Wes Porter Sunday, November 13, 2011
Urban folk are becoming more and more inclined to apartment living. Half the population of Canada’s largest city, Toronto, now live thus and condominium construction shows no signs of slackening. Neither though does the desire to green the indoor environment, removing pollutants without mechanical filtering systems. Additionally, increasing numbers of office administrators are realizing that indoor plants have practical benefits, encouraging efficiency and reducing absenteeism.
Next 12 Columns - >>
