May 17, 2010
Q&A: Native plants for balconies
Q. Could you please recommend some native flowering plants that will climb a wire grid on a west-facing, 6th floor balcony wall.
A. There are two native climbers which come to mind. Virgin's Bower (clematis virginiana) can often be found in your local nurseries. The other, Groundnut (apios americana) is more difficult to find. Groundnut plants (with very pretty flowers) can be purchased from grow-wild.com, a supplier of native plants in Claremont, Ontario (just north of Pickering).
You can also find an independent Green for Life garden centre on the Landscape Ontario website by using the Find a Professional page on our website. Simply choose Garden Centres from the pull-down menu and click Search Using Your Location. You will then need to enter your postal code to get a list of garden centres closest to you.
Linda Hugli
Master Gardener