Just Do It!

Gardeners do it.  I do it.  In fact, I've been doing it all week.  And I'm going to keep doing it this weekend!

What is it?  Planting bulbs!

I purchased lily, crocus and allium bulbs in July for delivery now (they're sometimes on sale then).   I picked up daffodil and tulip bulbs at the garden center (just couldn't resist).  I got some irises and daylilies from fellow garden blogger Marcia (thanks, Marcia!).  And I had an entire bulb bed to transplant!

The bulb bed last June

Remember the bulb bed that was in half shade last year?  Well, all those bulbs will be finding new homes.  I've planted pansies there now.

I'll see their little smiling faces all winter long.  They're smiling because they know.  They know that in the spring they will see all those bulbs burst forth as flowers, heralding in the arrival of spring.  I'm smiling, too.

What about you?  What bulbs did you plant this year?

Brand New Blooms!

Surprise!  My garden has some brand new blooms in it!

If you look closely, you'll notice there's three blooms!

The first camellia blooms of the season!  This one is 'Hana Jiman'.  I just love camellias!  Just when you get ready psychologically for the garden to go dormant, they start blooming.  As if to say "Here we are!  Don't forget us!  We want to make you happy!"  Those sweetie pies!  They do make me happy.

My Ice Plant has its very first bloom on it, too.  I planted it this past spring.  Who knew it would flower now?  I didn't!  Just when I least expected it!  I'm not certain this is the right timing for this plant to bloom, but I'm thankful for the smile it brought to my face anyway.

My Cotoneaster has berries!  Wahoo!  It had lots of little flowers on it this spring, and now it has sweet little red berries.  I love this plant.  I love all plants with berries.  They're like winter blooms, only harder, and smaller, and - well, ok, I guess they're not really like blooms, but they are colorful!

And the hollies have the most beautiful red berries on them, too.  It's beginning to look like Christmas!

I thought the guara was through blooming this year.  Instead, it decided to cheer up this part of the garden by putting out a new bloom.  That was a fun surprise!

And what have we here?  An iris bloom!  I guess this one just couldn't wait for spring.  It's like a child that blurts out what's in the present before you open it.  Sweet thing, thanks for letting me know what's coming this spring.

Of course, the roses are still blooming.  (You know I can't leave out the roses!)  Gruss An Aachen is loaded with buds.  See, I'm not the only one - even the plants aren't ready for winter!  (Except the hollies!)

My Favorite Austin - So Far!

If you don't grow roses, you may not know the name David Austin.  But when you start growing roses, you will start noticing that people mention him a lot.

David Austin began breeding roses about 50 years ago.  His roses are also referred to as English roses.  What sets his roses apart is the fact that David Austin makes scent a priority, in roses filled with petals.  You could say he put the romance back into roses.

Last week, I took pictures of almost all the Austins in my garden.  And I'll tell you my favorite, but don't let the other roses know!  They each think they are my favorite!

James Galway

 James Galway was my first Austin rose.  I'd heard about David Austin and just had to have one of these roses.  But James and I have had a rocky relationship.  I've moved him around quite a bit, and he's not been too happy about that.  He has quite the pretty face, but he's not my favorite.  I think he may suspect that, too.

Heritage

Every time I post a picture of 'Heritage', people ask me its name.  Heritage does have a lovely form.  And a lovely fragrance.  And I don't know why I'm not more taken with this rose.  She certainly tries hard to be my favorite.  But she's not.

Pat Austin, from August

Pat Austin eats dirt!  I've heard others tell of Pat's tendency to have her blooms end up face down in the dirt, but still it's quite disconcerting to see.  After a year or two, her stems become strong enough to hold up her blooms.  She had just started holding up her blooms when I transplanted her.  Life as a rose around here is not easy!  She was in too much shade, so I'm now expecting much more from her.  Go, Pat, go!

Abraham Darby

I have several other Austins that are fairly new.  Abraham Darby (above) is small and lost behind some other roses.  Honestly, I often forget he's back there.  Grow, Abe, boy!

I probably shouldn't have bought Glamis Castle (below) at all!  I've heard it gets blackspot quite often.  Like a fool in love, I chose to ignore that information when I saw its pure white blooms.  Don't let me down, Glamis!

Glamis Castle

Recently, I've seen a picture of Sister Elizabeth.  Wow!  Just the picture took my breath away!  If I remember to get Sister Elizabeth, and her blooms are as pretty in real life as in her photos, she may easily become my favorite Austin.  I'm writing her name down here so I won't forget her name.

Tamora

So, which rose is my favorite Austin?  Tamora.  She has enchanted me from day one.  Her blooms stay upright on the bush.  She stays small, and she blooms quite well.  I love the color.  And I love the form.

Tamora

I've heard others brag about Tamora, too.  She seems to be universally loved.  I guess you could say she blooms where she's planted.

Tamora

Tamora stays around 3 ft tall, is disease resistant, fragrant, and grows in zone 5 through 10.  I definitely recommend her.  Give Tamora a try.  She just may end up being your favorite Austin, too.  Of course, I won't tell your other roses!

Do you have a favorite Austin rose?  I'd love to know its name.  If not, which rose above do you think is the prettiest?

The Big Bloom

There is a certain rose in my garden that I love to see blooming.  Of course, I love to see any of them bloom, and they each have a special charm, but this rose amazes me each time it blooms.  It's so amazing because the blooms are giant!  And they are interesting.  And it has a fun name!  Don't you just love a rose with a fun name?

This rose is 'Gee Whiz'.  It was named Gee Whiz because the breeder, Dr. Griffith Buck, noticed that every time someone walked by this rose, they exclaimed "Gee Whiz"!  Yes, it's that surprising.

You see, the rose is speckled.  Like a trout.  The official description is "streaked and freckled".

And the blooms are huge!  I actually got the ruler out and measured the bloom below.  It was 6 inches across.  Now, that's one big rose!  In fact, 'Paul Neyron' is well known as a rose with one of the largest blooms, and they are also generally 6 inches across.

I couldn't find a lot of information on Gee Whiz, so I'll give the information on this rose in my own experience.  Remember, your experience may be completely different.  Not the most prolific bloomer, when Gee Whiz does bloom, it's worth the wait.  It definitely stands out, and its bloom is unmistakeable. It does seem to get a bit of blackspot on it, but I don't spray, so I generally overlook that.  It has a soft, sweet fragrance.  It will withstand Iowa winters, so try it if you're in zones 4 or 5.  It took the Texas heat this summer, so I'd give it a try in zones 9 or even 10.

The photos that have more of a pink tone to them were taken this week.  The ones with the more orange tone were taken this past summer.  You can see how the color fades in high heat.  This is not unusual, and most roses will fade if temperatures are very high for a sustained period.

So, if you want a rose with a big bloom, try Gee Whiz.  If you want a rose that's different - speckled, and spectacular - try Gee Whiz.  If you want a rose that will definitely get noticed, try Gee Whiz!

Gee whiz, what have you got to lose?

What Was I Thinking?

This is a tale of woe.  A lesson learned.  A big mistake.  "They" (who are these "they" anyway?) say the best lessons come from experience.  Well, I've just learned a big lesson!

My lesson comes from radishes.  Yes, those seemingly innocent vegetables that are a tasty and delightful addition to a salad.  And when radishes give you a lesson, it's not subtle!

I planted radishes this past spring.  They were quite productive.  But the timing was a bit off.  They ripened  well before the lettuce did, so I realized that I needed to actually read the dates that are listed on the back of the seed packages to coordinate the ripening of the lettuces and the radishes at the same time.

So, that was a little lesson, but not the big one!

You see, since my lettuces weren't ripe at the same time my radishes were, I left the radishes in the ground.  I wanted to learn how to gather seeds anyway, so I just let the radishes go.  And go they did!

They got quite large, grew tall stems and flowered.  I was so proud!  But, as those famous "they" say:  Pride goeth before a fall.  Or, according to Proverbs 16:18, Pride goeth before destruction.  Destruction!  That doesn't sound good!

Since the radish flowers were so attractive to the butterflies, I just let the radishes stay.  And stay.  And stay.

You can barely see the Checkered White in all the radish flowers!

Yes, I did get radish seeds.  But I got something else that I wasn't expecting!

When I planted this year's fall garden, I didn't plant any radishes.  But - and this is where the lesson started manifesting itself - radishes started coming up all over.  I mean ALL OVER!!!  Radishes where the lettuce was planted.  Radishes where the broccoli was planted.  Radishes where the cabbage was planted.  Radishes - well, you get the picture.  Radishes everywhere!

All radishes - none planted (by me, anyway!)

The radish plants that I let go to seed did just that.  They went to seed and seeded themselves all over my vegetable garden!  They are completely taking over!  I never dreamed I would have mutinous vegetables!

So, now I'm pulling radishes, eating them as fast as I can - raw, steamed, baked, microwaved, you name it - before they crowd out everything else in the garden.  And certainly before any of them go to seed again!  This is one mistake I don't want to repeat!

Ephemeral: Why I Blog

"So much of what we do is ephemeral and quickly forgotten, even by ourselves, so it's gratifying to have something you have done linger in people's memories."  ~ John Williams

Gardens are ephemeral.  Blooms come and go.  The most ephemeral of blooms, like day lilies, last only one day.  Some blooms, like spring bulbs, last for a very short while.  Even roses, whose blooms last for quite some time, still seem to fade hauntingly fast, especially as winter looms on the horizon.

The garden changes through the year.  Bulbs pop up, then back under.  Annuals give one year's worth of pleasure.  Even plantings, like roses, that may last for years, change with the seasons.

Vegetable grow and ripen.  How fast they mature - from seed to bloom, produce, and seed again, in such a very short time.  It becomes a daily ritual to check on the vegetable beds in order to pick the produce when ripe.

And the creatures that visit the garden are probably the most ephemeral of all.  Butterflies seem to stay around for only a few minutes before fluttering off.  Other bugs, like the firefly below, only live long enough to mate and lay eggs.  The mayfly has one of the shortest lifespans, living only a few hours to a day, and is appropriately named - Ephemeroptera.

How to record all this?  The garden changes daily.  Hourly, actually.  How would I remember what happened in the garden last year, last month, or even yesterday?

Someone suggested I keep a blog.  I thought I'd try it.  I'm not a journal keeper.  Organization is not my strongest suit.  But I can take a picture and write about my garden.

I didn't start this blog because I thought it would "linger in people's memories".  It is, after all, just a rose garden blog.

I simply wanted to capture the garden's many ephemeral joys.

I'm joining GardenWalk GardenTalk for Word 4 Wednesday on ephemeral.

The Horror!

I am going to tell you a horror story.  The horror of this story is that it may happen to you!  If you grow just one rose, please read this.  If you grow more than one rose, be certain you know this!

Normal new growth

Red on new stem growth of a rose is not a bad thing.  It's one way the rose protects its new, young, and tender growth from becoming sunburnt.  It's a rose's sunscreen, so to speak.  So don't panic if you see red stems and leaves.  But if the growth is abnormally small, numerous, and usually red or even black - what is known as 'witches broom' - then you need to take a good, hard look at that rose.  Or ask a knowledgeable rosarian to look at it.

What causes witches broom in different plants varies.  It can be fungi, bacteria, viruses, or mites.  Sometimes, a witches broom can be used as a dwarf cultivar, or desired by bonsai propagators.  But not in roses!  In roses, it is usually a symptom of a deadly, spreading disease called Rose Rosette Disease, or RRD.

Normal new growth

RRD is spread by a tiny (microscopic) mite.  These mites travel by gusts of wind.  When they land on a rose, they burrow down into the rose and the rose will show signs of the infestation.

RRD is usually deadly to the rose.  Unfortunately, while an affected rose lives, it is a host to the mites, which continue to spread to other roses by the wind.  It won't just go away on its own.  There is no cure.  If you have a rose with RRD, you need to remove the rose.

Normal new growth

Now, don't panic!  You don't want to get rid of roses without cause!  All the pictures shown here are of new, normal, red growth on the roses in my garden.  These pictures are not of RRD!  (Thankfully, I didn't have any pictures of infected roses to show you!)

Also, herbicides may cause damage that mimics RRD.  Overspray from Round Up is notorious for causing abnormal growth in roses.  Because of this, I have learned to never, ever, use Round Up near my roses.  Be aware of any herbicides sprayed around your roses.

Ann Peck, of www.rosegeek.com, has written an extensive e-book on RRD.  Please click HERE to look at it.  She has lots of information, including pictures, and other symptoms of RRD.  I believe this is the best source of RRD information you can find anywhere.  Ann, we are grateful for your work.

Normal new growth

My intention is certainly not to dissuade you from growing roses.  I love my roses and take delight in looking at them daily.  But I am also aware.  And if any of them should ever show symptoms of RRD, I would take action immediately.

I hope this horror never comes to my garden.  I hope this horror never comes to your garden.  But I do hope you are informed.