It’s been such a long time since I’ve written a post and the garden has marched along without me. This is a few weeks overdue recap of the rose garden. It was more lovely this year than ever before. I am attributing that to all the rain we’ve had, and continue to have this growing season.
This is a Pink Double Knock Out rose. I have tried this very same rose by the side of my garage and they don’t die, but they also barely live. I’ve often come close to pulling them all out. Giving it one more chance, I bought this rose several years ago for $10, and only because it was on sale. Not expecting much of anything at all, it has surpassed all expectations (which were low), and grown to nearly 4 feet tall and wide.
This is David Austin ‘Mary Rose’ and she is a beauty, maybe my favorite. Words can hardly do her beauty justice, so I won’t try.
Here is ‘Purple Pavement Shrub Rose’. What a horrible name for such a beautiful lady. She blooms off and on all summer, is deliciously fragrant, has lovely rose hips (lips), and is large and very thorny. Sounds like a true woman to me.
This is ‘Peach Lemonade’. Her blooms begin a soft lemon yellow that fade to blush pink. She was doing very poorly, being overshadowed by the towering Pavement rose. At the end of last summer I transplanted her over beside the greenhouse, where she benefits from the sun bouncing off of the walls. She immediately perked up, and rewarded me this year with generous blooms.
My ‘New Dawn’ climbing roses adorn the arbor over the greenhouse entrance. They are always spectacular in a subtle way. Her pale pink blooms are so close to white that her extravagant performance is downplayed by her lack of color. I’ve always wished she was a deeper pink, but true ladies know how to make a statement in a quiet kind of way.
Thriving beside the garage are two roses many years ago purchased from the grocery store for $3 a plant. Names are long forgotten, but every year they outdo all the other roses, blooming in the most spectacular way with no extra care or attention. Their long stems bowing from the rain, they usually end up in a table arrangement every year.
Sadly, they have now all gone over, but will bloom again in 4 to 6 weeks. In the meantime, the wildflower meadow experiment behind them, is starting to put on a show. More to come soon . . .
How I wish I had roses that did so well! Even in better years (i.e. years with “normal” rain), I haven’t had a display as prolific as yours but now I’m mostly getting a single bloom, or in the case of the ‘Pink Meidiland’ shrub/groundcover rose, a small cluster of flowers here and there. With only a couple of exceptions, the roses were here when we moved in 10 years ago so they’re well-established. I think the abysmally low rainfall combined with water restrictions is the key issue. I’ve considered trying roses with a reputation for being tough, like the ‘Knock-out’ and ‘Iceberg’ varieties, but I’m not sure it would make a difference. I expect succulents will continue taking over my garden in increasing numbers, displacing many of the pretty plants I treasure.
Roses do well in England, and rain and moderately cool weather are the key words there. We’ve had an abundance of rain this spring and early summer, which to me is why they have done better than ever. I have not fertilized them in over a year, so it can’t be that. They are looking rather spent now that they have finished blooming. I will give them a trim and some rose food so they can recover. It was 98 yesterday and the humidity is horrific, so I doubt they’ll like that combo. Hopefully it won’t last. It feels more like July than June.
They are all absolutely gorgeous Cindy and you clearly have a knack with how to get them to bloom so well. I especially love Peach Lemonade for her simple elegance. I have never invested any time or money in roses, being put off by bad experience with an inherited one (I pruned it too hard and it died!) and thorns! So it is lovely to see them in your photos with no responsibility attached! 😉
I love roses, but they don’t do very well in our climate. Too many extremes I think. But they have loved and responded to all the rain we’ve had this year, and it is really nothing I’ve done to make them happy. Right now they are looking rather spent and need some rest and fertilizer since most of them will bloom again later this summer, although not nearly as well. They were beautiful and I feel blessed that at least once they bloomed to their potential. Let’s hope it wasn’t just a happy accident of perfect weather.
So beautifully written and photographed, Cindy! Weather plays a most important part in our gardens, right!? How glorious that you were gifted the perfect conditions for this fabulous rose-year! I’m curious to see if the second flush is more lush than usual also.
I have such admiration for rose growers. Of which, I am not. Tried…failed.🙃😉
Thank you for sharing your success!!!👒🌹🌿
I keep trying even though our extreme cold and hot conditions don’t jive well with roses. We got lucky and had the rainiest spring that kept them perfectly watered. Everything flourished. The blossoms have since dropped and the bushes look very tired and spent. Now we’re having extreme heat for June with very little rain. I’m just hoping they will rebound and hang in there since we have a lot of heat ahead of us yet. Looks like it’s going to be a hot summer.