Hi Scarlet,
all of the things you have mentioned will grow here. If you are in the arctic, you will need to take extra measures, as the season is shorter, but the days are a lot longer. Most commonly used vegetables will grow, and ripen here. One needs to be mindful of when things are planted.
In my garden I plant peas, beans, corn, tomatoes, various lettuces, swiss chard, several annual herbs.

There are cold hardy and short season cultivars of some plants.
We can grow some things which are difficult in the south.
We can grow Holland bulbs of all kinds by just planting in the fall.
Many of us do "wintersowing".
Gardening may be different here,but it is just as much fun as in the south.
Tell your friend to keep in touch with other gardeners through the forums.
Caroline

Thanks for the replies! I found a website showing how to grow garlic, is that a Holland bulb? It says to plant the year before like you describe. How about beets, sugar beets, turnips, onions, carrots, and kohlrabi?

What about taking seeds over the border, do they let you take your saved garden seeds and purchased ones if you are an American citizen?

I read of a woman who gave her seeds away to move back to England, so I wonder what the limits are on taking things over the border.

Also what about the herbal thing going on, unless you manufacture herbs to sell, there is no reason to regulate certain herbs is there? What herb is not allowed to be grown in Canada accept Marijuana because for one, I know it's illegal anyways, but I mean is there any herb outlawed in Canada? I know that may sound strange, but since they will search and seize your house and charge umpteen millions of dollars if caught with something illegal. All that is for manufacturers only, not organic gardeners for home?

Thanks again!

The lower zone numbers reflect colder winter temperatures. More important for growing vegetables is frost free days and daylight hours. In my location, there was overnight freezing well into May. I expect a hard frost before the end of September. However, there are reports of frost from higher zones already. Also, I'm in Edmonton and the surrounding region has had frost already.

To get good answers for your question responders need to know where your friend is going to be. Canadian zones range from 1-6.

A few links

"Plant Hardiness Zones"

"Hardiness zones and frost dates"

"Prairie Scapes Ltd"

The border thing is an issue. You can have packaged seed sent here from a seed house, but not plants. I don't think you are allowed to bring saved seed into the country and I know you are not allowed to bring in plants. This is the same for most countries including the States. The reason for this is to keep disease, pests, and invasive species out of the country. Obviously some is snuck in because we both have problems with foreign invasive species.

Most herbs are allowed in Canada but they must be grown here and if they are grown here then obviously they are legal unless you are buying them from a crook.

What you grow depends on where you will live. One thing that will change unless you live in BC is you will be more concerned about keeping your plants warm than shading them to cut down on the heat. You will look at the days to maturity and buy the varieties that have a short maturity date. Some plants that you grow now will need some extra care and some will flourish in the cooler climate.

No matter where you go in Canada you can grow a garden. You may just have to learn different ways of doing things.

I've included a zone hardiness map for Canada--I hope it comes through

Here is a link that might be useful: {{gwi:541789}}

You've got to be kidding me :) First of all, Canada is a huge country with varied climates. Southern Ontario is not much different from MN, WI, MI, and coastal B.C is much like coastal California but with cooler winters and warmer summers. Almost everything can be grown in Canada, except things like fruit trees that are not hardy to the local conditions. Okra can be grown easily in ON and interior B.C.

Where I live in SK, which has a relatively short and cold growing season even by Canadian standards, tomatoes and squash are easy to grow outdoors. We are giving away squash because there's too much. Peppers, melons and eggplant need some coddling (raised beds, greenhouse or hoophouse).Okra needs a lot of coddling to the point of being annoying but it can be done. Okra is my project for next summer. I grew eggplant this summer with reasonable success in an unheated greenhouse. Although days are warm (70s-80s), nights are always chilly (45-55). So, protection is very helpful.

San Francisco summer days are colder than those in the Yukon! The only populated Canadian place to compare in terms of horrid summers is Newfoundland.

I just had a general question about what would not grow, like tomatoes, peppers, beans, squash, okra, and melons and I thought they would not grow at all unless under cover the whole growing season in all of Canada. The person is applying to work in various areas of Canada, but has not been hired yet. Doesn't some areas of Canada have 6 months of light, 6 months of dark just like Alaska.

I'm not asking specifics for an area, but I see most fall plant to get theirs in the ground for next year. I wrote the Canadian customs office and the reply was clear. It's required to have a name of a company, a certificate to prove their right to sell, the variety name, so it's too much bother with saved seeds. It's too much work and most seed packages, the little plastic baggy ones, just say "Green Peppers", or "Spinach". If they are sold that way, then each company would have to be called back to get the scientific name.

I got the answer straight from the horses mouth, but I do thank people for answers. Drhorticulture that is the questions exactly what I was asking about and the varieties like melons and okra too. A raised bed is probably the best way to get things done, with hoop houses or sheets. I've read plastic isn't as good as old sheets due to the moisture condensation, dropping on the plants, then freezing just as if there were no covers over them.

Thanks again!

scarlet, it seems there's a lot about Canada that you are wholly unaware of. It's only in the most northern zone that the areas are dark for most of the year. If you have a chance to look at a globe you might spot Alaska to be higher than most Canadian cities. Much of the population of canada are in the southern parts. We enjoy a climate similar to Seattle, to Chicago, NY, Main, Washington, etc. Canada is a huge country and like any large country we have cold zones and warm zones. You shouldn't think all of canada has one zone or experiences very harsh long winters. It varies. Vancouver for instance is so warm, palm trees grow outdoors. Toronto is akin to NY in weather. Our Niagara regions are filled with vineyards and orchards.

Can I ask from which part of the US you come from? I was just curious because it seems you don't much Canadian climate.

Also with regards to seeds. Anyone bringing seeds into canada must have purchased seeds from a known seed company who can provide you with phytosan(??) certificate.that costs money by the way. In anycase, it would be more prudent for your friend to purchase their seeds within canada. Afterall seeds from the south may not thrive as well as local seeds.

Believe it or not I grew up in Detroit, Michigan, across the border of Toronto, Ontario, Canada. My grandfather was raised in Delhi on a farm, but left at the age of 17, and I regret never going over the border to visit.

I asked a hypothetical question just to get information first and know that to plan for and was looking into the caregiver citizenship arrangement. I'm a Certified Nurses Aid and applied there. I don't have an area that I prefer. I'm kicking myself for not applying for citizenship before I turned 24 due to my grandfather's citizenship. His whole family eventually moved to America, so I might find a cousin or two there, but none are left.

It was a thought and it looked like an easy one to fulfill, but paperwork and all would take a long time anyways. I'm disappointed about the seeds. I spent too much last year to lose them. They will be good for one or more years, I spent way too much last year on seeds, plus bought more in the middle and end. I'm not losing my seeds!

scarlet, so you are just a stone's throw away from London, Ontario. you should visit that city and you'll find it no different in climate from where you are. I've passed your area to get to Chicago (a much colder city I might add).

As for caregiver programs in Canada - there's no such thing as a caregiver citizenship program. There are programs to recruit caregivers for a working visa and after a certain period, the person can apply for permanent residency, and after which the person can apply for citizenship.

Ianna

I moved to Northwest Tennessee in 1994, so I haven't been to Detroit accept in 2001. I miss cold weather so bad you don't even know. One summer I swear I was getting stomach aches from the heat. I never did like hot weather. I could be happy in Ontario!!!

I'd be happy in Quebec, learn French and learn to cook French cuisine!! My brother still lives in Detroit and I know a friend who lived in Saginaw years ago. I visited there once, thought it was pretty. I would imagine the weather must be the same in Ontario as Saginaw.

Most of what I like to eat are cold weather crops. You don't realize that until start to read the back of the seed packages. I may miss some watermelon, but a dwarf apple or cherry tree will replace them just fine and they grow in a big bucket.

There are tons of other fruits to grow from bushes like gooseberries I'm sure grapes are tolerant of cooler weather, or I hope so.

Canada doesn't look so good in 50 below zero weather, but it looks real good on high humid 110 degree days with hot air blowing. I don't know how these people get anything done. I'm wringing wet after a half hours work. I work at 6 o'clock at night or later most days during the growing season. Now it's looking good outside to me, but getting chilly at night.

Interesting posting. Yes, we can grow warm weather crops like pumpkins but one either has to be sure to plant at the correct time or use transplants. I have grown the Atlantic giant pumpkins. For fruits like watermelons, however, usually they are shorter season varieties or smaller size types. I don't think our growing season is long enough for sweet potatoes (never tried though) but regular potatoes do just fine. One fruit the prairies can't grow (without extra measures) is peaches, but there are varieties of pears, apricots, plums that do well as well as apples.

"The only populated Canadian place to compare in terms of horrid summers is Newfoundland."
It seems that there are also Canadians who doesn't know much about other parts of Canada as well!