Outdoor Plants

Just visit your local garden center in the spring and you will see the enormous amount of flowers and plants available to you! By May long weekend, it should be warm enough to start planting your garden. From bedding plants, bulbs, hanging baskets, patio planters to perennials; Ontario outdoor plants are readily available. Over 150 greenhouses in Ontario produce outdoor plants and this does not include all the garden centers that keep busy every spring so that you can plant your beautiful garden! Many indoor potted plants and flowers can also add to your patio during the summer months. However, it is important that you bring these plants inside before the frost hits!

Beyond the health benefits of having flowers in your home and the beauty that flowers and plants add to your garden, there are also many health benefits of gardening.

• Physical activities (like carrying water to plants, pushing a wheelbarrow, or moving large potted plants) not only strengthen the heart and other muscles, but also strengthen our bones, by increasing bone density.
• Gardening can be a nice, low impact work out. Weeding or cultivating can burn around 200 calories an hour. Doing more strenuous garden work such as clearing weeds or hauling rocks can even burn as much as 600 calories per hour.
• Thirty minutes of moderate exercise each day reduces risks of heart disease, diabetes, high blood pressure, and colon cancer
• Physical exercise releases endorphins, which help to alleviate stress and its negative results.
• Gardening is a form of self-expression; developing creativity, building confidence and allowing a healthy outlet for emotions.
• Gardening promotes a sense of achievement when we step back and see the difference we have made, and a sense of wonder at the small, important things in life.

When planting your garden this year, remember to choose Ontario grown potted and bedding plants. Quality, Variety and above all, FRESH!
To find a garden center in your neighbourhood, click here!