Prairie Shore Botanicals

29/08/2024

What's new at the nursery? Soft millet (Dichanthelium acuminatum)! I'm so pumped to have this "miniature switch grass" available! It's not common in MB (it's ranked S3, or vulnerable) so when I happened across a patch with just a few seeds remaining on it, I collected about a pinch worth and prayed they'd grow. This little cutie flowers early in the year, dies down over the summer and then produces new furry rosettes in the fall, when it often flowers again. It likes full sun to light shade and can grow in a wide range of moisture levels and soil types but does best where vegetation is on the shorter/sparser side. Soft millet is a larval food source for the tawny-edged skipper and its seeds are loved by small birds. I only have a small number of these available, so if you'd like one, shoot me a message! https://psbotanicals.com/nursery/grasses/soft-millet/

13/08/2024

Oh, man! This morning I was biking down the road past the Manitoba Tall Grass Prairie Preserve and the air was filled with the smell of peaches! Who would ever guess that the origins of such a wonderful aroma would be a flowering grass?! Prairie dropseed is, hands-down, my favourite grass for this reason alone, but I also love its perfectly circular clumps of fine leaves that turn a gorgeous golden yellow in the fall. If you have a native plant garden, prairie dropseed is a must! And if you've never seen native prairie in the fall when it's a beautiful show of red, bronze, orange and yellow, you really ought to! https://www.psbotanicals.com/nursery

04/08/2024

Pssst! Want a deal on Take Root Fest tickets for next weekend? Enter the code "TakeRootPSB" at checkout for 10% off any ticket! https://www.takerootfest.ca/

If you purchase an all-access pass, you can choose from a large variety of amazing workshops - including my Mini Willow Basket and Basket Materials Walk. As usual, I'm packing a lot into this workshop! First, we'll head out on the land to harvest our willows. After we've made our baskets (a mini version that can easily be scaled up), we'll embark on a search for local plants that are suitable for all styles of baskets. Space is limited!

30/07/2024

The Take Root Fest is less than 2 weeks away! If you haven't gotten your tickets yet, be sure to head over to
https://www.takerootfest.ca. There are ticket options to suit all financial and interest levels.

If you're new to the festival, it’s hard to describe, exactly, but if we had to do it in a few seconds or less, we’d say… if a festival, a conference, and a summer camp had a baby, Take Root Fest would be that babe!

🏕️Set up camp in the beautiful pine forest, and plan your weekend of re-skilling workshops (with an all access pass) based on the skills you’d like to learn. There are over 30 great workshops available to choose from! I've devised a new class - Mini Willow Baskets and Basket Materials Walk -that I'll be teaching on Sunday. I'll also be leading a plant walk.

… be sure to leave plenty of time to do all of the things included with a General Admission ticket:

✂️ pop into some complimentary DIY activities & demos
🎶 tap your toes to the lunchtime live music
🥪 savour some delicious local food and coffee (pre-order lunch)
🕯️ shop local goods
🧶 hit the kids’ area
🌳 walk the forest labyrinth
🌸 visit the herb garden
🐓say hi to the chickens (please don’t feed or handle)
😅 and more!

For those of you who feel a little tired just reading all of that, rest assured (literally), the flexible schedule leaves plenty of time to lounge in the herb gardens or nap in the woods. After all the learning fun, watch the sunset, share stories by the fire, and doze off in your little spot in the campground...

29/07/2024

Taking orders for golden sedge (Carex aurea)! This sedge has a feature that’s unique to all North American sedges – the round to egg-shaped fruits turn bright orange when ripe! Golden sedge prefers moist sandy, rocky or calcareous soil, hanging out with the likes of tufted hairgrass, prairie dropseed, alexanders, wild strawberry, many-flowered aster and golden ragwort. https://www.psbotanicals.com/nursery/golden-sedge

25/07/2024

If you want to make reed baskets (a great winter project), now is the time to collect the materials. Cattail, bulrush, baltic rush, iris, and day lily all make great baskets. Choose the longest leaves (for bulrushes, choose the thinnest and longest) and be sure to harvest sustainably - plants before baskets! Irises only have 3 or 4 leaves each, so find a large patch and only take one, MAYbe two leaves per plant. Lay the materials out in the sun to dry, flipping them now and then. Then bundle and store in a protected place. (The dry leaves are fragile and don't take well to roughhousing.) When you're ready to use them, soak them in a bucket, bathtub or even a wet towel until they're pliable.

24/07/2024

I'm excited to have scarlet paintbrush available in my nursery again! These paintbrushes are attractive to both insects and hummingbirds. Because they are hemiparasitic and need a partner, I've paired them with either black-eyed susan or smooth aster (you can take your pick). Supply is limited, so if you're looking to add a splash of brilliant colour to your native plant garden, be sure to order yours today! https://psbotanicals.com/nursery/flowers-medium-soil/scarlet-paintbrush/

17/07/2024

It's not too late to put native plants in the ground! In fact, they can be planted right into fall. All of the plants in our restoration project were planted in August and, as you can see, they're all doing wonderfully. The plants on the right were put in two years ago. Those on the left were planted last year. (The latter were mostly selected for their shorter stature.) I'm looking forward to expanding this site further in the next few weeks! If you're looking for unique species for your native plant garden, be sure to check out my native plant nursery catalogue! https://www.psbotanicals.com/nursery

04/07/2024

Flowering rushes are so beautiful! Often overlooked, they play an important role in wet prairie and wet meadow habitats. The leaves and roots of some make excellent basket materials, too. Long-styled rush, Juncus longistylis (second photo), will soon be available at my native plant nursery! I'll be adding more rushes as I continue to expand the selection. You can browse my catalogue at https://www.psbotanicals.com/nursery

26/06/2024

Just a reminder... the registration deadline for my July 6 "You can eat that?!" Wild Edible Adventure is this Saturday!

In this fun, hands-on workshop, you'll learn

- how to break through the “wall of green” with simple plant identification tips
– how to tell edible plants from their poisonous look-alikes
– when and how to gather various species and plant parts (roots, tubers, shoots, leaves, flowers, seeds)
– how to incorporate wild edibles into simple, everyday meals

Don't miss out! There are just a couple spaces left!

Get ready for a fun adventure in wild edible plant identification, harvesting and preparation! These one-day workshops will give you the confidence you need to incorporate a variety of common wild edibles into everyday meals. With Laura’s guidance, you will prepare a full-course meal with a variet...

21/06/2024

The position for Summer Assistant on the Manitoba Tall Grass Prairie Preserve has opened up. This is an amazing opportunity for budding biologists/ecologists, or anyone who wants to immerse themselves in nature and help caretake an endangered ecosystem.

20/06/2024

14/06/2024

Only 4 spaces left in my July 6 Wild Edible Adventure!

Get ready for a fun adventure in wild edible plant identification, harvesting and preparation! These one-day workshops will give you the confidence you need to incorporate a variety of common wild edibles into everyday meals. With Laura’s guidance, you will prepare a full-course meal with a variet...

11/06/2024

Coming soon to my native prairie and woodland plant nursery... self-heal and starry false solomon's seal! Self-heal (Prunella vulgaris) is a low-growing mint of medium to moist prairies with a long history of medicinal use. Starry false solomon's seal (Maianthemum stellatum) is a woodland inhabitant whose showy flowers become berries that start out green with dark stripes and eventually turn solid red. Stay tuned for availability!

07/06/2024

I wish I could bring everyone to the Botanical Garden Market in Dominion City tomorrow, but there's not enough room in the car, so be sure to place your orders by sundown tonight!

06/06/2024

Sweet! I found some beautiful, fresh orange caps this morning while wandering the woods. As you may know, I'd given up on these mushrooms because they turn black almost as soon as they're cut. They taste great, but talk about unappetizing! No thank you. Well, I finally decided to test the piece of advice offered by a student in my mushroom classes. He said, "put them in salt water and they won't turn black". I didn't believe him, but agreed to try it. A couple years later... I cut the mushrooms straight into a pot of boiling, salted water and cooked them for a few minutes. That's it. Some of the pieces are tinged with black because they floated and I didn't push them under fast enough, but it clearly worked! I wish I could remember who to thank for this advice because it re-opened a closed door. Time for another walk!

05/06/2024

Here's a dandelion you can love without raising the ire of your neighbours! Prairie dandelion (Agoseris glauca) is native to Manitoba's mesic upland prairies. It can flower a few times a year, producing striking white seed puffs. The leaves are long and narrow, smooth-edged and rubbery-feeling. It's often found in the company of big bluestem, June grass, purple prairie clover, heart-leaved alexanders, stiff goldenrod and blue-eyed grass. These guys were just waking up when I snapped their photo. https://www.psbotanicals.com.nursery

04/06/2024

I'll be in Dominion City with my native prairie and woodland plants this Saturday! I've got so many unique flowers and beautiful grasses it's tough deciding who gets to bring along. So if there's something you're looking for, let me know - I take requests!

31/05/2024

What a beautiful addition to a Winnipeg boulevard! Canadian lousewort is perfect for this site, which is featuring all low-growing species (1 foot or shorter). The idea is to have all of the plants visible throughout the summer - not hidden amongst their peers as the season progresses. As a hemiparasite, Canadian lousewort makes its own food while also usurping nutrients from its neighbours. It's not particular about who's roots it taps into, though it's more likely to find fibrous roots than tap roots. It also attaches to softer, first-year roots that are easier to pe*****te than the older, hardened roots of perennial species. Canadian lousewort does not kill its hosts but may stunt their growth, opening the grassland canopy and creating space for species that do well with less vertical competition. You can find Canadian lousewort at my native prairie and woodland plant nursery https://www.psbotanicals.com

28/05/2024

What a neat plant! Smooth rattlesnake root stands tall in wet prairies, thickets and along shorelines. The entire plant is smooth, save for it's densely hairy flowers. Also known as glaucous white lettuce, smooth rattlesnake root has milky sap and grows from a thickened tap root. It prefers full sun, associating with stiff goldenrod, meadow blazingstar, tall meadowrue, big bluestem, northern reed grass and bog birch. I'm thrilled to have it in my native prairie and woodland plant nursery, both alone and in combination with meadow blazingstar or tall meadowrue! https://www.psbotanicals.com/nursery

24/05/2024

Tomorrow I'll be taking my native prairie and woodland plants to the seedling sale and artisan market at Swallowtail Farmstead in St. Anne! Of course, I can't take EVERYTHING, so if there's something particular you'd like me to bring, put your requests in before the sun goes down! The sale, market, seed swap and baby goat cuddling will be going on rain or shine! Check out the great list of vendors below. It's going to be a great day!

This Saturday is THE DAY!! May 25 from 10 am-2 pm Pop-Up Seedling and Plant Sale here at Swallowtail Farmstead. UPDATED vendor list shown here! See story for photos and more.

Cash or ET (some vendors may accept card)

Location: 44041 PR 210 Road, Ste Anne
(30 min SE of Wpg)

🌱Find plants for all your gardening needs including veg seedlings, heirloom tomatoes, herbs, dye plants, permaculture plants, perennial plants, berries and fruit plants.

🌱Garden amendments like wool pellets! And NEWLY ADDED vermicomposting kits, worm castings and worm Tea for your gardens!

🌱Mini artisan market with local woolen goods, pottery, beeswax candles, lino cut prints, handmade goats milk soaps, seeds, herb collections, and more!

🌱Free demo workshop:
10 am - Soil blocking with local wool pellets
11 am - Mushroom log inoculating
12 noon - DIY pollinator seed ball making
1 pm - Intro to Botanical dyes

🌱Tea, lemonade, bread and other baked treats available. Bring your own mug if you can.
🌱Baby goat cuddles!
🌱Seed swap table

Enjoy a visit at our small farmstead this Saturday and come out to support our local talented farmers and makers!



borealis

21/05/2024

The Summer Student position for the Manitoba Tall Grass Prairie Preserve has re-opened. Get those applications in!

17/05/2024

Things are shaping up in my native prairie and woodland plant nursery! https://psbotanicals.com/nursery

17/05/2024

Have plants, will travel... to St. Anne! Swallowtail Farmstead is hosting a wonderful little pop up plant sale and seed swap! If you're in the market for pollinator (and everything) friendly plants, pop by my "portable" native plant nursery for a selection of plants from every soil moisture and light condition. (I take requests.) Be sure to check out the the other plant-based vendors, free gardening workshops and a seed swap, too!

15/05/2024

Here's another great opportunity to work on the Manitoba Tall Grass Prairie Preserve! Have I mentioned how beautiful this place is and the wealth of knowledge you'll gain?

14/05/2024

What's new at the nursery? Long-beaked sedge! I'm excited to add another tufted sedge to my native plant nursery! Long-beaked sedge is a very ornamental woodland plant with unique pendulous seed heads bearing large, beaked fruits that dangle from the main stem. It does great in medium to moist, partly shaded to sunny sites and grows well with other woodland plants such as sweet-scented bedstraw, downy wood violet and star sedge. One of my fave sedges!