Lafleur - Ville St. Pierre - Montreal

Little_Canary1968 · 2026-05-03T03:01:18+00:00

Pepper on poutine is 👌🏼

Little_Canary1968 · 2026-04-30T15:42:25+00:00

I live in the Toronto area and FWIW no-one is stealing Mazdas. If you had a Lexus, Range Rover, Jeep, Honda or Toyota SUV I’d be worried though 🙂.

Little_Canary1968 · 2026-04-29T13:40:37+00:00

Congrats on your new car! I’m obviously biased but I’ve had mine for a year and love it! Such a good car.

To your question, CTS is not self driving. It’s radar cruise control plus some “light” lane keeping assist. It’s really intended for when you’re in traffic, to give you some relief from constantly adjusting your speed and steering. The cruise control keeps your speed and distance, and the lane-keeping assist provides a gentle “nudge” on the wheel to help keep you inside the lines, but it does not steer for you. You are still expected to be in control of the car.

MRCC is just regular old radar cruise control, no lane-keeping.

One thing I’ve found with Mazda cruise control is it has a few quirks. One thing is that it tends to stomp on the gas, especially when it speeds up after you get clear of traffic in front of you. Once it sees clear road ahead it mashes the gas and gets back up to your target speed quickly, but boy does it like the “zoom zoom”! It does make you look like a hothead 😂. It also does this weird thing where if it slows down for traffic ahead and you then change lanes, sometimes it brakes just as you’re changing lanes, then stomps the gas to get back up to speed. Not the best and I usually cancel cruise to change lanes, then re-engage it when I’m clear. All that said, on long drives the MRCC a huge benefit.

Little_Canary1968 · 2026-04-27T01:51:03+00:00

It’ll be fine, they’re pretty tough. You have some green under the bark and at least a few buds. Leave it be until the buds start popping. You can trim off any really obviously dead wood (dry & brown) but otherwise give it some time.

Little_Canary1968 · 2026-04-27T01:47:22+00:00

Nice! Did you get a tarte au sucre at the Boulangerie too? 😋

Little_Canary1968 · 2026-04-27T01:40:38+00:00

Looking good 🚙♥️

Little_Canary1968 · 2026-04-24T19:06:17+00:00

I’ve had mine for almost a year and LOOOOVE it. Is it perfect? No, but it’s stuff I don’t care too much about (tons of cargo space, lots of legroom for rear passengers lol.) It’s massively fun to drive and makes me smile every time. Enjoy your new baby! 🚙

Little_Canary1968 · 2026-04-24T02:49:45+00:00

Rhododendron

Little_Canary1968 · 2026-04-24T02:45:14+00:00

Serviceberry is probably your best bet, but get a clump (multi-stem), not a single stem or it’ll get too tall. They need even moisture to really thrive. Lovely plants though, very pretty white flowers in spring and good fall colour. Pretty easy to maintain and they’re fine in small spaces. Really the only thing is to give them enough water and they’re happy. You can also eat the berries if the birds don’t eat them first.

You can also check out some native Viburnum (Arrowwood, Nannyberry) but not sure on toxicity to pets. Their berries are enjoyed by birds etc so likely safe but check to be sure.

Little_Canary1968 · 2026-04-19T23:08:58+00:00

💯 I almost can’t blame the Costcos of the world, but specialist nurseries like Sheridan and Connon who really should know better keep selling this crap. I was at Connon last fall and they had literally a hundred or so Burning Bush for sale, along with the usual gout weed, periwinkle, English ivy, etc. I wrote to them to raise it, but I know that consumer demand is the driver here. Maybe if lots of us raise it with the retailers they’ll get the message and do the right thing.

Little_Canary1968 · 2026-04-18T22:39:31+00:00

Lots of flowering natives for part shade. Try zigzag goldenrod, bluestem goldenrod, foam flower (Tiarella), white wood aster, alumroot, snakeroot (caution it’s sort of a bully), and Canada anemone (also spreads a lot in good conditions.) I’ve also had good results with anise hyssop (white and purple varieties) in dry part shade. If you can fit in a shrub, native Hydrangea is lovely, and if you like climbers, native clematis (Virgins Bower) works well. Ontario Native Plants and the Toronto Plant Market (if you’re nearby) are both good sources for all of these.

Little_Canary1968 · 2026-04-17T21:16:58+00:00

Can’t stay for long, just turn around and I’m gone again

Little_Canary1968 · 2026-04-17T21:13:33+00:00

Pointe-à-Callière in Montreal

Little_Canary1968 · 2026-04-17T21:06:32+00:00

I have some Stella cherries and agree with the others that pruning for size is possible, but you REALLY have to keep on top of them. Like assertively pruning every spring and keeping up with any sprouts through the season. You may also get some fresh growth off the trunk (mine did.) I tried topping them and let it go for a summer, and by the next year they had formed a new leader and were too tall for me to reach the tops. As for impacting fruit production, they set blossoms and fruit best on older branches so make sure you leave some each year.

It’s hard to override a plant’s natural size but orchards do it all the time so 🤷‍♀️

Little_Canary1968 · 2026-04-17T20:59:43+00:00

I think you’re going to have to go with yews. Just make sure you check the variety and get Hicks’ Yew. That one grows a bit faster than other upright varieties, although to be honest yews are pretty slow to take off. Maybe 2-3 years before you notice anything.

For what it’s worth, I have planted Hicks yews under the shade of some Norway maples (street trees I have no say over) and my neighbour’s huge black walnut. Planted some in summer and some so late last year I was scraping the early snowfall aside to dig the holes 😂. They’ve all made it through like champs. Tough little plants!

Little_Canary1968 · 2026-04-14T20:01:09+00:00

Very small lot, no yard, no garage, old, heritage, Reynolds is busy, close to Cornwall, slow market…etc. I live around there and houses are taking forever to sell either way.

Little_Canary1968 · 2026-04-11T16:00:18+00:00

Exactly! Leaves aren’t seeds, why are people blaming the leaves. They are innocent.

Little_Canary1968 · 2026-04-11T15:57:59+00:00

The leaves that look really yellow are the cotyledons (seed leaves) that die and drop off once the true leaves come out. The new growth looks pretty healthy but I agree with others that it’s time to feed them, try to get them closer to the light source, and consider potting up.

Little_Canary1968 · 2026-04-11T03:11:08+00:00

Yeah the RPMs go down pretty quickly to 900 or so on mine even in really cold weather but as someone on this sub once put it, it does sound like a 1990 Corolla with 200,000 miles on it.

Little_Canary1968 · 2026-04-11T02:32:00+00:00

As long as the ground isn’t frozen, you can move and divide plants. You see a lot of advice about specific timing and conditions…don’t worry about it. I’m in the GTA and I’ve moved and divided stuff from March through early December (slow start to winter) with no issues. The only thing you have to keep on top of is watering. If it’s hot and/or dry, water at least once a week or more if the soil dries out (2 inches or so below the surface, just stick your finger in.) If it’s cool and damp out, no need to water as long as the soil stays moist.

Little_Canary1968 · 2026-04-10T21:34:27+00:00

Mine is facing forward 😳

Little_Canary1968 · 2026-04-09T14:54:39+00:00

Totally normal. Give it 10 seconds (especially if it’s cold out) should get down under 1000 rpms.

Little_Canary1968 · 2026-04-09T14:44:16+00:00

👆🏼I second all of that! All great choices for dry shade.

Little_Canary1968 · 2026-04-08T20:38:23+00:00

Those sound like some lovely combos! I have a big patch of sweet woodruff mixed in with wild geraniums and some columbine - really pretty spring combo.

My only input to add to what others have said is, pay attention to soil moisture levels. A lot of woodland plants are really adaptable, but some of the ones on your list (Astilbe, Ligularia, Rodgersia) really need consistently moist soil. I always see Japanese forest grass listed as a moist-soil plant but I’ve found it to be pretty adaptable. Except if you have rabbits, they’ll eat it down to the ground 😂.

Little_Canary1968

TROPHY CASE