My name is Helen Stephenson, and I have been gardening in the Halton Region of Ontario for over 20 years. For the past 10 years I have tried to plant mostly native species. I am on the northern edge of the Carolinian eco-region, which is an area that makes up just 1% of Canada’s total land area but contains more flora and fauna species than any other ecosystem in Canada. I believe it is my duty to preserve this little bit of heaven on earth!

My husband and I put in a rain garden swale not long after we moved in to deal with the periodic flooding that was occurring during the spring melts and after heavy rains in the summer. In this garden we have blue flag iris (Iris versicolor, Zones 2–7), turtlehead (Chelone obliqua, Zones 5–9), and switchgrass (Panicum virgatum, Zones 3–9).

We also added a pond, which is surrounded by anemone (Anemone canadensis, Zones 3–8), cranesbill (Geranium maculatum, Zones 3–8), monkey flower (Mimulus ringens, Zones 3–8) and an Ohio buckeye tree (Aesculus glabra, Zones 3–7).

I took this photo of a marsh marigold plant (Caltha palustris, Zones 3–7) earlier in the spring.

Now the Michigan lilies (Lilium michiganense, Zones 4–8) are in full bloom.

Elsewhere in the garden, columbine (Aquilegia canadensis, Zones 3–8) are blooming . . .

. . . while the beautiful seed heads of prairie smoke (Geum triflorum, Zones 3–7) sway in the breeze.

Beyond the flora, we get all sorts of wonderful wildlife visiting the garden. I am sure gardeners with a keen eye noticed the two very overgrown apple trees in the background. The trees produce a lot of apples, but each and every one of them gets gobbled up by the wildlife that visit my garden. Foxes, the occasional heron, raccoons, many different bird species, and more all contribute to my tiny, thriving ecosystem.

I hope to share more photos later in the season as more plants come into bloom!

Have a garden you’d like to share?

Have photos to share? We’d love to see your garden, a particular collection of plants you love, or a wonderful garden you had the chance to visit!

To submit, send 5-10 photos to [email protected] along with some information about the plants in the pictures and where you took the photos. We’d love to hear where you are located, how long you’ve been gardening, successes you are proud of, failures you learned from, hopes for the future, favorite plants, or funny stories from your garden.

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