Lovely Lilacs

The Tulip Festival is over, but blooming is not! High season for Lilacs at the Experimental Farm Ottawa, where I shot these photos.

Lilac trees and bushes are very popular in eastern Ontario.
Another great place to see literally thousands of blooming Lilacs in May is along road number 62, south of Belleville, towards the Sand Banks Provincial Park in picturesque Prince Edward County.

DANDELIONS

I love Dandelions, their cheery yellow colors brighten up every meadow in spring. I really love Dandelions. But I do not love them at all in my garden!
The last three days I had an extremely exhausting workout: digging out a million Dandelions, and no, not from my garden beds, they are mulch covered, mainly from the part of my 60x40
rock garden and a dry creek, that have wide parts of river pebbles. My garden is surrounded by a pretty neglected park, the city mows the lawns only twice a year, all the Dandelions seeds fly into my property... It just doesn't look nice having them between the river rocks and pebbles.
I filled 7 huge garbage sacks and I guess if I would get a dollar for each Dandelion I dug out, I could book a nice cruise to Alaska.
This scourge of pure-green lawn lovers, the Dandelion seeds spread around like wildfire. According to some sources they are not even native to North America and have been introduced by the first settlers.

Killing instrument

Do you know of any other flower that has their own killing instrument? The most common garden tool available is the V- shaped Dandelion killer. Regrettably it does not work in rock gardens...
I feel really sorry for these Dandelions and I apologize for killing them. They haven't earned this untimely deaths as they are very healthy and for many generations they were part of the diet, from root to flower. "Don't kill Dandelions, eat them"! Dandelions contain luteolin, an antioxidant and should be classified them as one of nature’s greatest medicine.
Read more:
http://herbalmedicine.suite101.com/article.cfm/dont_kill_dandelions_eat_them#ixzz0FVeLjT9Q&B
Dandelions are higher in beta-carotene than carrots, the iron and calcium content is greater than spinach. You also get nearly all B-vitamins, C, D, E, P, as well as biotin, inositol, potassium, phosphorus, magnesium and zinc - just by using a tasty, free vegetable that grows on virtually every lawn. The root contains the sugar inulin, plus many medicinal substances.
"If you want to take medicine, it might as well taste good!"

The leaves are a healthy salad in spring, delivering the much-needed nutrition's after a long winter, the roots can be roasted and with the blossoms one can make a nice wine or jelly. They are an important source of nectar in spring for bees and butterflies.Read a funny story from
Americas most famous forager and naturalist "Wildman" Steve Brill, who was caught while
collecting Dandelions in CentralPark,NY. http://www.wildmanstevebrill.com/Plants.Folder/Dandelion.html

His website is worth following if you are interested in edible plants.

Recipes

Tons of Dandelion recipes can be found here:

http://www.mountain-breeze.com/kitchen/dandelions

http://www.oldfashionedliving.com/dandelion.html

http://www.learningherbs.com/dandelion_recipes.html

http://www.prodigalgardens.info/dandelion%20recipes.htm

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=frDYIg_-RaI

Tulip Festival Ottawa

If you like TULIPS: mark your calendars for May 1 - 18, and plan for a trip to the National Capital of Canada.

The Tulip Festival has grown into the largest tulip festival in the world.

It began from a gift of 100,000 tulips given to Canada five decades ago by the Netherlands' royal family. This gesture showed their appreciation for the safe haven they were granted in Ottawa during the Second World War, and for the role Canadian soldiers played in the liberation of the Netherlands. Since then, the tulips have become an important symbol of peace, international friendship and the beauty of spring in Canada.
http://www.tulipfestival.ca/en/galleryphotos/gallery_mhp_cs.html

Getting to Ottawa

To make it easier (and a little cheaper), contact ViaRail and ask for their special Tulip Rate to Ottawa. There are several bus routes in Ottawa that can be used to reach the park sites. The bus ($3, or buy a DayPass $7 - exact fare, no change) is easy, planet-friendly, and saves you the hassle of looking for parking!
http://www.tulipfestival.ca/en/tulip_route_map.html

And these are the most popular festival places:

International Pavilion - Lansdowne Park Bank Street, closed to the Rideau Canal

FREE ADMISSION !!!
The International Pavilion is home to 24 participating embassies and local community groups. Enjoy a variety of international entertainment on the Friendship Stage, taste exquisite international cuisine, dip into history, explore traditions, shop for your favorite souvenirs and discover tourism hot spots.
These countries are presented or give several performances: Argentina, Brazil, China, Costa Rica, Ecuador, Germany, Greece, Guatemala, India, Indonesia, Israel, Korea, Kuwait, Mexico, Netherlands, Peru, Philippines, Portugal, Romania, Russia, South Africa, Thailand, Turkey and Vietnam.

Commissioner’s Park - Carling Avenue and Preston Street
FREE ADMISSION !!!
An estimated 300,000 tulips shape and illuminate one of the National Capital’s most prestigious parks in the city. Throughout the Festival, street performers will grace the Park’s grounds, providing a musical and entertaining ambiance. There will also be local painters amongst the flowerbeds. The Tulip Boutique is back, as well as Music in the Tulips, a community and school oriented music program. School bands will serenade visitors as they stroll through the Park. Performances are given daily at 11:30 a.m., 1:00 p.m. and 2:30 p.m.

The National Capital Commission (NCC) will provide a Tulip Legacy Exhibit, which recounts the history of the Dutch Royal family’s refuge in Canada during the Second World War and the contribution of Canadian troops to the liberation of the Netherlands in 1944-45.
While touring Commissioner’s Park, visitors can pick-up a free copy of the “Experience the Beauty! The National Capital Commission’s Tulip Beds” brochure, which provides information on the tulip legacy story, the different varieties of tulips planted in the 27 floral beds, and the location of designated photo sites in some of the Park’s most beautiful tulip displays of flowerbeds.

The Canadian Tulip Festival is also "greening" its practices: Banning Styrofoam, and allowing only compostable, degradable, or 100% recyclable dishes and cutlery on site, providing bike rental and bike parking to encourage bicycling.