Paw Paws and the Urge to Grow

I'm very familiar with the feeling that comes from growing plants with great intentions to do things properly, only to find that circumstances lead to neglect. Often, the plants surprise me by responding well anyway.

Case in point: the paw paw seeds I planted in pots last autumn and then promptly and totally ignored through drought, squirrels and every other hardship thrown their way.

Last week, after 10 months of neglect, I happened to notice that not only had the seeds sprouted, but the young paw paws were flourishing.

Care is always best, but it's good to know that sometimes the urge to grow is unstoppable.

Sedges Instead

I’ve long wanted to do a demonstration planting of native sedges—gorgeous, totally undervalued plants—as a low-maintenance alternative to lawns. So when an opportunity for a public space arose, I jumped at the chance.

Say hello to a boulevard in the west end of Toronto that is now home to the project Sedges Instead!

I solarized this bed for about a month and a half to suppress the abundant weed crop prior to planting.

The first small bed has now been planted with awl-fruited sedges (Carex stipata). Thank you to Lara Mrosovsky (of Miinikaan Innovation & Design) and Ryan Godfrey (of World Wildlife Fund—Canada) for rescuing these plants and passing them along.

Seeing the awl-fruited sedges sway in the wind, with their graceful blades, is a delight.

Awl-fruited sedge in the small, unsolarized bed to which I added new soil.

A bigger bed is being solarized in preparation for a mid-summer planting of many more great sedges and native pollinator plants!

The beds will be a “seed orchard” and the seeds will be collected for distribution to community projects and growers in order to propagate more sedges and make them available for plantings. Not only are sedges rare in gardens, but they’re also rare in the nursery trade. This project is a small part of trying to encourage the growing of sedges! Especially if you’re looking for an incredibly low-maintenance and ecologically valuable alternative to lawns.

(Many thanks to WWF-Canada and the Pollinator Partnership for supporting this volunteer project.)