SHIFTING ROOTS

home, garden, food, and prairie lifestyle

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53 Favourite Perennials to Plant in Zone 3

May 23, 2019

You asked for it and you got it: a list of the most-loved perennials for Zone 3.  These perennials are the stars of the garden, blooming year after year and delighting their owners every time.  Pick these winners up at your nearest garden centre, or ask a friend with a more established garden if you can dig up a few.

A huge thank you and shout out to the gardeners in the Gardening in Saskatchewan Facebook group!  This post would not be possible without you.  If you’re in Saskatchewan and not in this group already, you need to join.  I’ve learned so much from the more experienced gardeners there who are so generous with their time and advice.

And finally, if you’re someone who prefers to watch a video, here’s a shorter video version of this post:

Best Cut Flowers

1. Asiatic Lilies

Asiatic lilies come in every colour and combination and are easy to grow.  Put them in a sunny spot and they’ll flourish year after year.

[Read more…]
Kristen Raney

Kristen is a former farm kid turned urban gardener who owns the popular gardening website, Shifting Roots.  She is obsessed with growing flowers and pushing the limits of what can be grown in her zone 3b garden.  She also loves to grow tomatoes, but oddly enough, dislikes eating them raw.

www.shiftingroots.com

71 Comments
Filed Under: Backyard Florist, Gardening, Outdoor Life Tagged: cut flowers, flower, flower arranging, Flower Beds, Garden, Gardening, ground cover, hardiness zones, perennial, shade flower, vines, zone 3

How to Create a Stunning Bouquet with Annuals from Your Backyard

November 12, 2018

I recently interviewed urban flower farmer and artist Danielle Fulawka and she gave me so much flowery-goodness to work with that I needed to split up her interview into two posts.  If you haven’t read how she transformed her rocky city yard into an urban flower farm for $2000, you can read that here.  In today’s post, Danielle shares her favourite flower varieties and the rules you need to know to make a beautiful bouquet with your own homegrown flowers.

Wish you knew how to make a Floret style cut flower arrangement like a flower farmer? Wish no more! Danielle Fulawka gives us tips, trick, and ideas for beautiful and easy bouquets from annual flowers you can grow in your own backyard flower garden. #growingflowers #bouquets #annualflowers #flowerfarmer #flowergarden
[Read more…]
Kristen Raney

Kristen is a former farm kid turned urban gardener who owns the popular gardening website, Shifting Roots.  She is obsessed with growing flowers and pushing the limits of what can be grown in her zone 3b garden.  She also loves to grow tomatoes, but oddly enough, dislikes eating them raw.

www.shiftingroots.com

1 Comment
Filed Under: Backyard Florist, Flowers Tagged: annual flowers, bouquets, cut flowers, flower arranging, flower farmer, Flowers

The Secret Posts of Shifting Roots

April 23, 2017

I’ve been keeping secrets from you.

Sometimes I have posts that sit in the draft box forever.  Why do they never come out?  Sometimes I’m not sure if they’re exciting enough or I think they will do better on Pinterest.  I’m also not sure that you want to be subjected to my recipe making jags.  Citrus or zucchini?  Anyone?

Today I’m releasing all my secret posts.  Happy reading!

[Read more…]

Kristen Raney

Kristen is a former farm kid turned urban gardener who owns the popular gardening website, Shifting Roots.  She is obsessed with growing flowers and pushing the limits of what can be grown in her zone 3b garden.  She also loves to grow tomatoes, but oddly enough, dislikes eating them raw.

www.shiftingroots.com

2 Comments
Filed Under: Fun, Uncategorised Tagged: birthday, citrus, flower arranging, Flowers, fruit water, secret posts

Easy White Peony & Yellow Lily Bouquet

July 8, 2016

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I wasn’t going to do any more floral arrangements for awhile, but a trip to my Mom’s proved otherwise.  The lilies were in bloom, there were a few good white peonies left, and I simply couldn’t resist.  Do you have some peonies, lilies, yarrow, and ferns in your yard?  If yes, go cut some stems and make this easy bouquet!!

[Read more…]

Kristen Raney

Kristen is a former farm kid turned urban gardener who owns the popular gardening website, Shifting Roots.  She is obsessed with growing flowers and pushing the limits of what can be grown in her zone 3b garden.  She also loves to grow tomatoes, but oddly enough, dislikes eating them raw.

www.shiftingroots.com

Leave a Comment
Filed Under: Backyard Florist, Outdoor Life Tagged: backyard florist, Bouquet, Bridal, bridal bouquet, bridal flowers, ferns, flower arrangements, flower arranging, lilies, peonies, yarrow

5 Easy-to-Make Peony Floral Arrangements

June 18, 2016

5-ways-with-peonies

Our peony week has come to an end!  If you missed any of the posts, here’s all the links.

Plenty of peonies in your yard and no idea what to do with them?  You’ve come to the right place!  Here’s 5 Easy projects you can make with flowers you likely already have in your backyard.

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Peony in a teacup

This is one of the easiest arrangements you could ever make.  One peony, a few sprigs of leaves or flowers, and you’re done!

Related: DIY Coffee Filter Flowers

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Peonies in a mason jar.

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A table centrepiece sure to get the conversation started.

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A beautiful bouquet for a blushing bride.  Check out this bonus version with lilies and white peonies!

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A country-style showstopper.

Like your peonies in a form that lasts forever?  Check out these great gift ideas from Sarah at Pretty Simple Ideas.

Did you try any of these?  Show me in the comments or tag me on Instagram @shifting_roots.

Kristen Raney

Kristen is a former farm kid turned urban gardener who owns the popular gardening website, Shifting Roots.  She is obsessed with growing flowers and pushing the limits of what can be grown in her zone 3b garden.  She also loves to grow tomatoes, but oddly enough, dislikes eating them raw.

www.shiftingroots.com

2 Comments
Filed Under: Backyard Florist, Gardening, Tutorials Tagged: easy, floral, floral arranging, flower, flower arrangements, flower arranging, peony, simple, tutorial

Grow roots with us

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Welcome!

Hi, I'm Kristen and I help new gardeners learn to grow their own vegetables and beautify their yards. I also share recipes that use all that delicious garden produce. Grab a coffee (and your gardening gloves) and join me for gardening tips, simple recipes, and the occasional DIY, all from the lovely city of Saskatoon, Saskatchewan.

P.S. First time gardener? You'll want to download the quick start gardening guide below!

Recent Posts

  • How to Grow Eucalyptus for Cut Flowers (Even in a Short Growing Season!)
  • 26 Best Flowers to Grow for Dried Flower Arrangements
  • 17 Perennial Flowers That Love Shade
  • How to Design a Cut Flower Garden in Raised Beds
  • How to Start a Cut Flower Garden

Welcome!

Hi, I’m Kristen and I help new gardeners learn to grow their own vegetables and beautify their yards. I also share recipes that use all that delicious garden produce. Grab a coffee (and your gardening gloves) and join me for gardening tips, simple recipes, and the occasional DIY, all from the lovely city of Saskatoon, Saskatchewan.

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Find What You’re Looking For. . .

Privacy Policy

Growing eucalyptus for the first time this year? Growing eucalyptus for the first time this year?  A new post is on the blog to walk you through it.  While in theory eucalyptus is easy to grow, it's challenging in my zone 3 garden for three reasons: ⁠
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➡️It needs a long time to mature⁠
➡️I have a short growing season⁠
➡️I live in a cool climate, and eucalyptus grows better when its warm.⁠
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That said, you can see by this picture that it can be done!!⁠
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Are you growing eucalyptus this year?
Oh friends, if any of my nice, curated photos sums Oh friends, if any of my nice, curated photos sums up how this last week went, I think it's this one.  Babies crying, trying to stay calm, outwardly looking like it's all under control, but feeling very overwhelmed.⁠
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This post isn't gardening related, so feel free to scroll by if you're here only for the gardening content.⁠
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Thankfully it's January, and I keep reminding myself that the Internet will not break if I don't keep to my self-imposed posting schedule.  But it doesn't make a week full of teething-and-not-sleeping baby any easier. ⁠
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Felicity slept through the night for the first time ever last Monday, then proceeded to punish us with frequent wakings and terrible sleep until Saturday.  And as tough as this is in regular times, in Covid times its extra frustrating because I don't have my village.⁠
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I can't just call up another Mama friend and go for coffee at her house.  I can't take my son out for a Mommy-and-Dominic date because everything he'd want to do isn't really much of an option.  There's no playgroup or play place to just drop in on.  And forget just taking everybody out to get groceries just for a change of scenery.⁠
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I know people have way more serious problems than this, and I hope I don't sound whiny and entitled, it's not my intention.  Please know that I'm very grateful for my family and job and that so far we've been healthy. ⁠
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A lot of you who follow me do so in part because you are also juggling life with very little people through this strange time.  I hope that in occasionally sharing my struggles, it makes you feel better about your struggles. (You're struggling too sometimes. . . right?)
Do you tend to plan out your garden to the nth deg Do you tend to plan out your garden to the nth degree, do you just wing it, or are you somewhere in-between?⁠
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I tend to plan it all out, and then when I actually get out in the field, so to speak, the plan changes a little bit. ⁠
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If you need a garden planner that's both pretty & practical, my garden planner is available in the ebooks section.  It's only $9 and has lots of upgrades from the previous planner.  Use code CANADA if you're Canadian to account for the exchange.⁠
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P.S. You can see exactly what you're getting in the video--no surprises. ⁠
P.P.S  I get my planner bound and printed at a printing place.  Lots of people just print their own and put the sheets in a binder.
Are you gardening in containers this year? When y Are you gardening in containers this year?  When you're shopping for vegetable seeds, look for varieties that have names with words like patio, tiny, small, etc.  While lots of vegetable varieties will do fine in a container, you'll have an easier time with ones that are specifically bred for that situation.⁠
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📸 by @blushbrandphotography
I'm living the pepper dream in this photo. While I'm living the pepper dream in this photo.  While these ones are a bit on the small side, who doesn't want ripe peppers in July in zone 3?!?! ⁠
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Over the years I've gotten better at growing peppers, and I promise I'll spill my secrets in February when it's actually time to start them.  Until then, get yourself all or one of my four favourite varieties: ⁠
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🌶️Carmen⁠
🌶️Escamillo⁠
🌶️Candy Stripe⁠
🌶️Hungarian Hot Wax⁠
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Do you have a favourite pepper variety?⁠
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Have you flipped open a seed catalogue lately? It Have you flipped open a seed catalogue lately?  It's so easy to get completely overwhelmed, especially if you're new to gardening.  Why are there so many varieties of everything and which ones do I choose?⁠
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Here's how I try to narrow it down.⁠
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🌤️ Short growing season like me?  Try and prioritize varieties that have short dates to maturity.⁠
🥗 What do you or your family actually eat?  While I think you should always try a couple of new things, there's no sense in planting a giant garden filled with vegetables that you're not going to cook with. ⁠
🥒 Do you care whether your vegetables are heirlooms or hybrids?  Heirlooms are the kind that have been around for 50+ years and you can save seeds from.  Believe it or not, this year we're prioritizing hybrids for some of our garden.  The Hermit @mgsraney is obsessed with production this year, so anything that's going in "his" greenhouse better be able to produce a lot.  I'm using more heirlooms in my "glamour garden" as we call it, because I want things that are pretty and I can save seeds from.⁠
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What do you prioritize when you're picking out seeds?⁠
Last week we started thinking about our plans for Last week we started thinking about our plans for cut flower gardening, now this week we start thinking about plans for our vegetable gardens.  Unlike cut flowers, there's not as many vegetables that need to be started ridiculously early.  However, it's still fun to plan and dream and get your thoughts sorted.⁠
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I'm curious--what size of garden do you have to work with?  Are you on an acreage or farm, city backyard, or do you have a couple of pots on an apartment patio?⁠
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As for me, I have quite a mix.  I have my container garden on my backyard deck, the small cut flower garden in my yard, then vegetables in raised beds.  We also garden at my Mother-in-law's acreage, so there's a giant garden over there where we're figuring out how to grow food on a larger scale.  Then finally, sometimes my Mom grows things for me in her garden if I'm nervous that I'll ruin them in my own garden--call it a backup garden if you will.⁠
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📸 by @blushbrandphotography
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