September 24, 2013

This past weekend, I took advantage of our newly cool weather and did LOTS of pruning and moving of plants around in the garden.  When I first put new plants in the garden, I like things to look lush from the start so I tend to space plants fairly close together.  I use the plant card's recommendations as a guideline but I usually select the closest allowable spacing.  And what happens several months later is the plants start crowding each other so I have to move them to allow each plant more room to expand.  The nice thing about this is I get to shop my own garden.

In early spring, I planted two romantica hybrid tea roses on the west side of our swimming pool (the only place in our garden with full sun throughout the day and no automatic sprinklers).  I had good intentions of hand watering them regularly with a nearby hose and sprinkler head attachment but once our Central California temps reach the 100's with great regularity during the summer, I tend to stay indoors so my poor beauties got neglected and they show it.  I decided to get real with myself and move the suffering roses to better locations.

On a side note, I have The Alnwick Rose, Heritage and Janet in the same bed (they were planted last year - April 2012) and they are doing fine.  I must have been better about providing them with regular hand watering while they were getting established.

The roses I moved and their new locations:

• Michelangelo.  Originally planted to the left of the rosemary, which is to the left of The Alnwick Rose, it is now located in the south facing bed on the left side of the garage - where my future "blue, purple & yellow" garden will be).  I will eventually have to move Sophy's Rose, Kimberlina and Winsome out of this south garden to new locations because they are not blue, purple or yellow.

• Yves Piaget.  Originally planted to the left of Michelangelo, I moved YP to a new location in front of and just to the left of Eden Climber.  This area gets full sun all day but is shielded from the scorching afternoon sun.

•  Belinda's Dream.  Originally planted in front of and slightly to the right of Brilliant Pink Iceberg, it is now situated in the east facing garden in the front of the picture window.  I'm not sure how it will do here as it only gets filtered morning sun.  I may rethink its location.  Side note, I put a lavender that was looking sad (originally planted to the right of the fortnight lily) in Belinda's previous spot.  I think it will flourish in this location.

The yarrow I planted in 2012 never really did anything but become a big mound of green so I took it out this weekend and tossed it in the yard waste bin.  No sense letting a non-performer take up valuable garden real estate.  Not sure what I'll put in its place.

I moved an unhappy gardenia (darn thing never would bloom) from the east facing garden in front of the picture window (Okay, I need to come up with a nickname for this garden so I don't have to type out so many words each time) picture window garden (much better) to a spot in front of the potato vine and to the left of the orange tree.  The recycling/trash/yard-waste bins are located to the left of this garden bed so hopefully the gardenia will eventually bloom and sweeten up this spot.

I moved three azaleas from the east facing garden in front of the picture window because they were getting crowded and a little burnt on their leaves.  I put two of them in empty spots in my north facing shade garden in the back underneath the lemon and bottle brush trees.  I already have a few azaleas there so they are welcome additions and will blend in nicely.  The third one is in the gardenia's original spot.

Lastly, I moved my Endless Summer hydrangea (that I previously moved last winter) from behind the Muskogee Crepe Tree to underneath the bottle brush where I dug up and tossed a camellia sasanqua that was getting spindly and didn't have the pretty flowers like my camellia japonicas do.


What's blooming in the garden today:

Yves Piaget

 

Princess Alexandra of Kent

Julia Child

 Julia Child

 Julia Child fades to ivory with pink tips

 Julia Child

South side yard

Under the bottle brush tree

May 1, 2013

It's May Day and after a quick walk around the front and back gardens, it appears that every rose has finally bloomed and many are already in need of deadheading.  Two in the front (Our Lady of Guadalupe and Cottage Rose) were the final holdouts.  They've been teasing me with TONS of buds
but no color until this past week.

But first, here's a recent shot of Classic Woman romantica rose.  Surprisingly, she's turned out to be one of my favorite roses in the garden.  Her blooms are lovely and full (about 4" across).

 

Our Lady of Guadalupe (floribunda)

 Cottage Rose (David Austin)

 

 

 

 

 

April 24, 2012 - Michelangelo romantica

Although yellow roses aren't my favorite (only 3 of my 30+ roses are yellow), I do enjoy their bright and cheerful color.  When I look at them, they give me a different feeling than my pink roses.  And I think they would have a better effect grouped together. 

 

In the winter, I think I'm going to move my yellow roses (Julia Child, Golden Celebration and Michelangelo) to the flower bed on the south side of the garage and make it a "yellow and blue/purple" garden by adding blue and purple perennials.  This means, I will need to find new homes for my Sophy's Rose, Kimberlina and Winsome.  But that's fine with me.  You don't find what truly works unless you try things out.   I feel that if a rose doesn't work in a particular location, move it until you find a spot you love it in. 

 

I think Sophy's Rose will look fabulous in Golden Celebration's current location (back west garden between both Mary Roses).  Mary Rose is a light/medium pink so a deep pinkish red should fit in nicely.  Kimberlina could go in Michelangelo's location on the west side of pool. 

 

 

 Michelangelo romantica

I got my inspiration from this gorgeous garden.  I even have that same trellis in my front garden.

April 23, 2013 - Eden Climber

Eden Climber (aka Pierre de Ronsard) is a Romantica climbing rose.  Romantica roses are, in a nutshell, the French grower Meilland's hybrid version of an old fashioned rose similar to David Austin English roses.  This is my first experience with Romanticas and I think they are a beautiful addition to my garden.

 

My new Eden Climber rose.  I'll be adding a trellis to the fence to give her something to hang on to.

 

 

 

 

 

What's blooming - April 15, 2013

Moving from left to right in my back garden, these are the roses that are blooming today. . .

 

 



 Glamis Castle



 

 

Young Lycidas

 

Classic Woman

 

 Huntington Rose

 

 

Mary Rose

 

 

Golden Celebration

 

 

 

My second Mary Rose

 

 

Pink Traviata

 

 

 

Scepter'd Isle

 

 

 

 

Belinda's Dream

 



 

 

The Alnwick Rose

 

 

 

 Janet

 

The garden's all mulched

 

 

 Lantana and Iris borders the east side of the pool

April 14, 2013 - Out with the old, in with the new!

Lots of valuable real estate was being taken up by these three Wheeler's Dwarf shrubs.  I dug them out and planted four new roses in their place.  Much better!

 

My first bouquets of the season

April 13, 2013

Day before yesterday, Cameron and I took a trip to two nurseries after school.  At the first one, Evergreen, I picked up one of the romantica hybrid tea roses that was on my list, Pink Traviata.  At the second nursery, Gazebo Gardens, I got Classic Woman romantica, Michelangelo romantica, Yves Piaget romantica, Eden romantica climber, and Bishop's Castle DA.

Yesterday, I picked up some bags of soil/compost mix as well as some mulch.  Today, I planted two of the roses and moved one already in the garden to a new location (after removing three Wheeler's Dwarfs, I had available garden space).

Several roses have been blooming over the past few days, but I haven't had a chance to take photos or write about them.  This evening, I cut a few flowers (3 Belinda's Dream, 2 Sophie's Rose, 1 The Alnwick Rose) and put them in vases.  I'll take pictures tomorrow morning.

Tomorrow, I plan on planting Eden and Yves Piaget.

As of today, I am the proud owner of 32 roses!

April 3, 2013

Yesterday, while at the nursery picking up annuals and perennials, I checked out the roses that Evergreen offered as well.  As I suspected, they no longer carry David Austin roses, but they do have a large selection of other roses.  I have been contemplating what to do with the south facing garden (the one where the chimney is).  Veggie garden, cutting garden?  I had almost settled on a veggie garden but decided, local in season veggies are so inexpensive, I'd rather have a beautiful cutting garden.  While DA roses are lovely to look at on the bush, they don't make the best cut flowers for arranging in a vase.  I personally think that although Hybrid Tea Roses are suitable for cut flower arrangement, they are unattractive as far as the plant goes and the flowers themselves are too modern looking for my taste.  The woman at Evergreen suggest I try Romantica roses (a Hybrid Tea with a more shrubby plant and old fashioned looking flowers).  The varieties she suggested I try are:  Yves Piaget, Classic Woman, Pink Traviata, Rouge Royale, and Michelangelo.  Sadly, I don't think I have room for all of the roses listed here.  Decisions, decisions. . .


Here are examples of each:

YVES PIAGET

CLASSIC WOMAN


 
Photo courtesy Regan Nursery

PINK TRAVIATA



Photo courtesy conard-pyle.com

 

 

ROUGE ROYALE

 

 

MICHELANGELO

 

 

Although the nursery didn't suggest this one below, I came across it online yesterday.  I'm going to call to see if they have it.  I really want it.  It's one of the most beautiful flowers I've ever seen.

 

EDEN CLIMBER (aka Pierre de Ronsard)

 

 Photo courtesy Abby