When I was in Kingston my friend took me to a couple of good garden centres. She felt sorry for me, because I am always complaining that there is not as many of them in Owen Sound.
The first one was GardenNet. They are north of Trenton, and have a beautiful setting. Based at the owners house, there is display gardens all around the house and nursery area.
Cedar Arch
You walk into the display garden through a cedar arch. I took a picture to make sure that my husband gets a look. Tools are always at the ready!
She has an amazing sense of colour and plants a lot of containers. Look how the colours in the container pick up the paint colour on the window trim and door.
A few more.
Part of her display garden near the road. Who says they don’t like red?
GardenNet
GardenHouse Perennials is another great nursery.
They used to be based in Coburg, but moved up to Morganston.
The building was an old cheese factory that they renovated and turned into a shop. The outside has a huge display garden that the owner built in one summer, just him and his trusty dog.
As well as selling plants from the shop they have a mail order business for daylilies and peonies. They also have a garden design and consultation business.
I am a floral designer living in a tiny condo in downtown Toronto, Canada's largest city. But on the weekend, I am a gardener/frustrated architect trying to keep up with a 3/4 acre garden in Owen Sound, Ontario, a warm (to Canadians, Zone 5b, and a cold (to Americans, Zone 4b) garden.
Green Theatre 
Racquel said,
September 21, 2009 @ 9:42 AM
What beautiful displays! I like how they have the pots elevated with stools & hooks, makes a great background to the building.
kilbournegrove said,
September 21, 2009 @ 6:52 PM
We do this all the time at the flower shop where I work, elevating pots so you have different heights makes a display so much more interesting.
wendy said,
September 21, 2009 @ 9:51 AM
I was going to say the same thing about the stools. What simple idea that never occurred to me. I guess it’d be really easy to find some stools at a yard sale!
kilbournegrove said,
September 21, 2009 @ 6:50 PM
It would be very cool to paint them every year, co-ordinating them to your planting!
fairegarden said,
September 21, 2009 @ 11:24 AM
Are we all getting the same vibe from those stools? What a difference it makes to have some of the pots at different heights. And you have been having fun visiting places, Deborah! Thanks for taking us along. 🙂
Frances
kilbournegrove said,
September 21, 2009 @ 6:52 PM
Frances, you can come visiting with me anytime!
Barbarapc said,
September 21, 2009 @ 5:02 PM
I hadn’t heard of either of these nurseries. Sounds like you had a really good day. Tradewinds works with small designers as well as the larger outfits – if you’re doing any design work at all – or thinking of setting up – I’m sure they’d be happy to work with you. Good luck!
kilbournegrove said,
September 21, 2009 @ 6:55 PM
The nurseries are very small, and I wouldn’t have heard about them either, but my friend has made it her lifes work to scout out every nursery possible, within a 2 hour drive of her house. Thanks for letting me know about Tradewinds.
The Garden Ms. S said,
September 22, 2009 @ 2:13 AM
The red display garden is stunning. This time of year red really comes into its own.
Lovely photos 🙂
kilbournegrove said,
September 22, 2009 @ 7:06 AM
Isn’t it beautiful, I look at this and wonder why I don’t have more red in my own garden.
Thanks for visiting and I hope to see you soon.
GardenJunkie said,
September 22, 2009 @ 9:23 AM
Yup, those stools sure do add “oomph” to the display. Now I’m thinking about how I can incorporate stools into my perennial borders – without my neighbors thinking I’ve finally gone completely over the edge…
I lived in Kingston for 5 years (a long time ago – before moving to the US) and never knew of the many fabulous small nurseries in that area. You’re lucky to have a friend who knows them!
kilbournegrove said,
September 22, 2009 @ 6:36 PM
Or you could just turn a large terra cotta pot upside down, and put another pot on top. This will give you some height and you won’t even be able to see the pot.
I love my friend, but she will drag me down the path to financial ruin, (of course, if I just knew how to say no!).
LINDA from EACH LITTLE WORLD said,
September 23, 2009 @ 9:00 AM
There is nothing so inspiring as a nursery that is located at a house or interesting old building. Two of my faves outside Madison are both located on the owner’s home property with fabulous display gardens. You get a much better sense of scale when there is a home nearby.
Nothing prettier than a sunflower seed head but I never thought of giving it a helping hand by pulling off dead petals — great idea. I have a nice cabinet and a set of shelves in my garage to use as a potting space but Mark gets the long worktable for saws and construction projects. Tough having to share!
kilbournegrove said,
September 23, 2009 @ 10:34 AM
Linda, I have to agree with you, I love it when it is at someones house, probably the voyeur in me. And from their point of view, handy for lunch, repairmen, kids etc.
Pulling the petals off really extends the longevity of the flower, the centre lasts for eons.
Thanks for visiting my blog, hope to see you again soon.
Deborah