September Garden Bouquet

Whew! The rain finally stopped. “Baby Bear” Turtle (my rain gauge) measured just over 3 inches. But, south of here, places like Owatonna and Amboy got between 8 and 10 inches. Schools and roads were closed today and people were evacuated from their homes because of the flooding.

I thought everything in the gardens would be either drowned or shredded after having been pelted with heavy rains for two days, but when I went out this morning, the roses and lavender were still looking fresh and lovely. So, I cut a few blooms and brought them to the office with me! It’s been a while since I cut a bouquet for the office and it turned out to be just the thing to perk up a dreary day. The fragrance of the roses and lavender periodically wafted across my desk and for a few moments, it wasn’t 56 and blustery, it was 85 and sunny. Ahhhhhhh.

I’m sure these will be the last roses of the season. Tomorrow, I’ll cut the rest of the lavender for a sachet. Who knows what will be blooming in the gardens a month from now? I’m guessing asters and maybe some hyssop, which seems to be making a comeback.

Thanks to Noelle at Ramblings from a Desert Garden for hosting the Monthly Garden Bouquet.

Growth Spurt

Both of my nephews are on Little League teams. It’s the highlight of my spring to go and watch them play. (I keep score, too, which adds to my experience.) On my younger nephew’s team, the boys are still the same height and weight. But, on my older nephew’s team, some boys have had a growth spurt. This means that even though they’re all 12 year olds, some of them are almost a head taller than others and weigh a few pounds more.

I know you’re wondering what Little Leaguers have to do with gardening. Well. Some of the roses in Auntie K’s Garden have had a HUGE growth spurt in the last few days. Yikes! I went out to do the Japanese Beetle check the other morning and had to bend some canes gently toward me because they are now taller than I am! These new canes are three feet taller than the rest of the plant. I’m sure that when I checked the night before I didn’t have to bend them! (I know the boys will be taller than I am one of these days, too. They’re almost there now!)

Not all of the roses have had this growth spurt. I bought three bare root Liptons at the same time. Two have spurted; one has not. I bought three Magnificas at the same time and only one has spurted. Go figure. Julia Child, Crown Princess Margrethe, and Graham Thomas are all still “normal” sized. Some of the wild roses have suckered (I’m leaving them) but have not shot canes wildly into the stratosphere.

I don’t know what causes the growth spurt in some roses and not in others. The two Liptons that have sprouted are in the Fragrant Garden and are now at window height. So, when the flower buds open in a few days, the sunroom will smell fantastic!

Everything's Coming up Roses!

The heat and humidity earlier this week made me melt, but the roses LOVED it. It was just the thing they needed to burst into their full glory. I love roses in the garden. These days, I’m partial to the shrub roses. Don’t get me wrong. I love the Hybrid Tea roses and the Floribundas, but I don’t love digging the trenches in the fall and burying them so they can survive our cold, cold winters. Shrub roses are hardy to our zone and don’t need a lot of fuss and muss.

I mentioned Sir Thomas Lipton in an earlier post. I can’t remember how I stumbled on this one originally, but I loved it immediately and love it still. There are three in my current garden.

Rosa Magnifica is the second hardy shrub rose in Auntie K’s garden. Bright fuchsia blossoms re-appear all season. I have planted this rose in many gardens of “non-gardeners” and they’ve all survived. I have three of these as well.

Morden Blush was a new addition last year, and it’s a keeper. As is Crown Princess Margrethe (an English rose). Graham Thomas, another English rose, has been struggling, but is making a comeback. The rabbits ate the canes down to the crown, so I had to put a cage around it. I thought I’d have to start over, but noticed a small green shoot last week. So, we’ll see how it goes. Last year, I inherited three unidentified shrub roses—all of which are in full bloom now.

And, I do have Rosa Julia Child, a floribunda, in honor of my grandmother. (They both cooked with a lot of butter.) I don’t bury it, but did use a cone last winter. It worked well.

If you like roses, but have avoided them because of the fuss, try a hardy shrub rose. You’ll be glad you did!

Check out this great list of hardy shrub roses from the University of Minnesota Extension Service.