Did you ever imagine that you could grow an orchid - in Calgary - in the garden - and it will survive the winter?  I am here to tell you that YES you can.  

I first saw these beauties at the Reader Rock Garden.  The large yellow lady slipper orchid is actually native to all provinces in Canada.  This perennial terrestrial orchid is most commonly found in moist forests across the region. This plant prefers a semi-shaded site that is cool and not exposed to hot mid-day sun.  Conditions suitable for ferns are suitable for hardy orchids.  An organic mulch will assist the plant in maintaining moisture and keeping the roots cool.  

Here's a photo taken at Weaselhead Park in Calgary:

Another orchid, the showy lady's slipper or Queen's lady's slipper is my favorite.  This variety is found in nature in Saskatchewan and eastward in Canada.  Each stem can have 3 flowers and the plant approaches 1 m tall!   The purple-pink lip of the flowers are gorgeous against the crisp white petals.  What a beauty.

Here's my own personal Queen's lady's slipper orchid.  I plan on adding additional plants to my garden next year.

This summer I started a new hobby -  I introduced mason bees to my garden.  My initial purchase of 20 bees gave me the opportunity to learn about these efficient pollinators and I plan on breeding more for my garden in future years.

Why mason bees you ask?  

Bees pollinate one-third of our food supply.  These particular bees are highly efficient pollinators as one mason bee can pollinate 12 lbs. of cherries.  In contrast, 60 honey bees are needed to complete this same task.  Mason bees will increase crop yields by pollinating spring plants, fruits, and nuts.    

Mason bees are early spring pollinators able to emerge when temperatures are only 10 degrees Celsius.  The males only live for two weeks which they spend trying to mate.  As each female can mate, these bees are non-aggressive since they are not protecting a queen and hive.  Females spend six weeks gathering nectar, pollinating and building their own nest.  She is able to select the sex of her offspring and will produce both male and female eggs. Then the mason bee season is over and we wait for a new generation of bees to emerge next spring.

I am looking forward to bee-keeping in my garden and thereby protecting our food supply.