You might think a gardening podcast would focus on guests who have a lifetime of gardening expertise and plenty of credentials. But we want to emphasize that anyone can garden, and amateurs everywhere find niches to flourish in. That’s why we invited Amanda Jewell to share her adventures in learning to grow native plants from seed.

Amanda is a vision therapist by trade. In her free time, she uses her postage-stamp urban yard in Northern Ontario to grow hundreds of native wildflowers every year. She describes for us the joy she felt the first time she discovered that her garden was supporting local insects and how the focus on bringing more wildlife to her yard drove her interest in native plants. She also explains how winter sowing has become such an effective technique for her, in spite of mishaps along the way, and how leaning in to nature’s lack of orderliness is both useful and liberating. We wrap up with conversation about finding community among gardeners and about resources and seed sources for listeners who want to try starting their own native plants. 

Amanda’s Shout-Outs:

The Ottawa Wildflower Seed Library distributes free seeds to organizations and gardeners every winter: https://wildflowerseedlibrary.ca/ 

The Butterflyway Project supports the creation of connected patches of butterfly habitat throughout neighbourhoods: https://davidsuzuki.org/take-action/act-locally/butterflyway/ 

The Miskwaadesi native garden is a new garden in North Bay, Ontario created by the North Bay Indigenous Friendship Centre: https://www.miskwaadesi.ca/ 

Timestamps

00:51 Intro

01:25 Gardening in Urban Northern Ontario

03:20 Observe Before You Grow

04:16 Becoming a Disney Princess for Hornets

08:10 A Cheap, Low-Maintenance, Wildlife-Friendly Garden

10:00 Growing Native Perennials Is Beginner Friendly!

11:23 Why Some Seeds Need Cold Stratification

13:57 What is Winter Sowing?

15:22 Organization Not Necessary

17:05 When to Open your Winter-Sowing Greenhouses

18:56 Collecting Native Seeds

21:29 Wildlife Garden With Their Poop!

22:07 Amanda’s Native-Plant Wishlist

23:19 Making a Microclimate for a Southern Plant

25:08 Making a Rain Garden or Pond

26:18 The Miskwaadesi Native Plant Garden in North Bay

28:29 Garden Centres vs. Nurseries

30:41 The Nativar Debate

36:26 Pollination and Genetic Diversity in the Garden

37:23 Understanding Your Garden Ecosystem

38:40 Add Rotting Wood to your Garden

43:40 A Warning about Growing Seeds in Mulch

47:20 Amanda’s Shout-Outs and Tips