As this issue of Ottawa At Home magazine hits the stands, spring has officially arrived, even if we've only recently said goodbye to a little patch of snowdrops in our gardens. A true harbinger of spring, a Toronto garden blogger recently wrote that snowdrops really are "a psychological necessity in Canada." She even went so far as to suggest the government start issuing bucket loads of snowdrops to its citizens every fall.
Fortunately, the appearance of flowering forsythia shrubs not only announces the arrival of spring -- they positively scream it out with their dazzling display of yellow blooms. They are known to cause a gardener's heart to beat a little faster; green thumbs begin to twitch. Something is blooming. Something is full of life.
While colourful spring flowers are enough to make most of us forget winter ever happened, the gardening bug is so firmly entrenched in Vera Cody and Hilary Kemsley that even the winter months can't completely bring them down.
It's generally believed that flowers contribute to feelings of well-being -- it's why we send flowers to people who are sick. But Vera Cody has taken that philosophy to the next level. To say that she surrounds herself with flowers is an understatement. There is no surface in her home that doesn't have a floral theme. Whether upholstery, art, decor, dishes, bedding, or potted blooming bulbs, the flowers are everywhere. "I sit here and try to be glum -- and I can't be!" says an exuberant Vera.
Not even talk of her "lost" garden, the pride and joy of Vera's life, can dampen her infectious energy. After moving to her New Edinburgh condo last fall, she remains resolute in her happiness despite giving up her stunning Rockcliffe Park garden. "It just means I have a new challenge with container gardening for my many terraces," she laughs.
Gardener Hilary Kemsley survives the non-gardening months by eagerly planning for the return of the planting season. Whether it's seed catalogues, garden magazines or any number of garden-related websites she checks on regularly, the sources of hope abound.
Though Vera and Hilary have never met, their ideas about and passion for gardening are uncannily similar. Neither one can draw and both profess to be unable to sew. Yet, the artistry these two self-taught gardeners have been able to achieve via living plants is at once inspiring and beautiful.
Both women discovered the true joy of gardening as young children, when they were taught the importance of caring for growing things in their family gardens. They learned first-hand the wonder of picking fresh carrots, the unforgettable sweet flavour of newly harvested peas, and both consider their homes and surrounding flowers to be true sanctuaries.
Hilary's love of gardening eventually grew into a small summer business about eight years ago. When her marketing job at a private girls' school goes on hiatus for the summer, she shares her green thumb with her west-end neighbourhood. At first, the neighbours watched curiously as Hilary went by, wheelbarrow, dirt and tools in tow.
It wasn't long before her sign "Hilary's Gardens" began to pop up more frequently. Some summers, she has hired as many as seven young people to help with the operation. They enjoy working the odd day at "head office." This is when they do a quick touch up in Hilary's own backyard oasis of colour and living design, as they eagerly anticipate the treats she's likely to bring out from her kitchen.
Vera also felt the need to share her love of gardening with those around her. To list all of Vera's volunteer activities would fill this entire magazine, however, she joined the Rockcliffe Park Garden Club many years ago and soon became an executive member and eventually its president. Without a green space of her own anymore, she still finds plenty of dirt to dig in, whether it's at Rocklciffe's beautiful community Jubilee Gardens, the Library or Community Hall gardens, or the Rockcliffe Lawn and Tennis Club, where her name appears as Club Manager.
So if you have a front garden worth admiring, don't be alarmed if you see a car outside your house with a small, smiling woman inside who looks like she's studying something in your yard. It's probably Vera -- and she is. "Sometimes I just sit there and look and wonder why they planted what they did."
Both women say gardening is therapeutic; that there's something calming about having your hands in dirt. But it's about more than the actual work. It's about the patience you acquire as you wait for the results of your labour. It's about overcoming failure through knowledge and trial and error. It's about expressing yourself with living ingredients. It's about sharing a passion with others. And it's about bringing a smile to a face.
And let's be honest. When we saw those first flowers start poking out of the ground this spring, who amongst us didn't smile?
