BellaOnline Forums Home and Garden Roses What are you doing with your Garden/Roses?

What have you done in the garden this week with your roses or other garden plants?

I tackled/pruned the huge overgrown climbing rose on my picket fence. It looks so much better now and is all ready to produce some great spring flowers.

I'm going to install some brick edging around my front rose beds. If you'd like information on edging your garden check out my article: www.bellaonline.com/articles/art27517.asp

Hey, Charity. Long time no talk. I've been a busy little bee with my landscape business but took time out around the middle of February (the perfect time here in Texas) to prune my hybrid teas. I mistakingly got too happpy and pruned my climbing rose that blooms in the spring. Ooops!

Anyway, after pruning them, I put some fresh compost (mushroom compost is best for roses) around them and watered well. Already as of this week, they have beautiful burgandy foliage preparing for blooms.

All of the summer shrubs have been pruned too. Can't wait for their display either. Take care of your garden and good article on edging. Gotta' go, Bye.

Wow Kimmie you've gotten a lot done in the garden for spring.

My poor golden retriever died last week very suddenly. He was only 7. He had a rare type of endocrine cancer that had very few signs and was difficult for even the specialist our vet recommended to diagnose. It was very aggressive and there wasn't anything they could do for him.

Needless to say I've been so depressed that I haven't gotten much done. In VA we are starting to just finally get some better weather. Now it if it would just quit raining for more than a day or two!

I did order daffodil bulbs and some wild tiger lily bulbs from a man on e-bay. The daffodils are dug up from around the property of a historic home that is being torn down. They look very healthy. I'm excited to see how they all do.

Sorry you pruned your climbing rose too much. I did manage to go to town on the crazy overgrown one on my front picket fence. I removed the older canes, any crossing canes and just really gave it the once over. It looks really great now. I'm excited to see how it will bloom in a month or so.

Happy gardening. I bet your garden is looking great. It's always great to hear from you.

I'm so sorry to hear about your retriever. I'm such a sucker for animals, especially dogs. Why not do a memorial garden in his honor?

You could get his picture on the flags they sell with photos and put it into the garden as an accessory. Plant flowers to enhance the beauty surrounding his photo. It's an idea one of my clients did in honor of their beagle. It's heart touching. Take care and take this time out to be sad. It's okay, we're only human AND dog lovers.

By the time the weather breaks, you'll be better prepared, perhaps, to exert some energy and nostalgic moments and let your mind wander as you create a new bed in honor of your dog. Just an idea.

Have a wonderful weekend. I'll chat with you more after landscape season (around end of May/June). Bye.

Charity, I'm so sorry to hear about your dog passing on. That must be so hard to bear. You have my sympathy ...

I've been busy with my roses in the front garden - got 5 potted roses planted outdoors. 2 are yellow and 3 peach. They grow to about 1 foot high. A special variety from Denmark.

I live in The Netherlands.

Susan

Susan Kramer, Learning Disabilities Editor

Thank you so much Susan and Kimmie for your kind thoughts.

Kimmie, I really like the memorial garden idea. We actually went and bought a beautiful dwarf weeping Japanese maple and planted it in our front flower bed for our golden retriever Iggy. It would be a nice idea to get a little golden retriever statue/flag/marker to put on the spot as well.

We couldn't stand not having a dog and so went and got a new little girl. Her name is Flora is and she's half golden retriever and half st bernard. We still cry missing Iggy but Flora makes us laugh and keeps us busy.

It sounds like you've both been busy in the garden this year. Susan what is rose gardening like in the Netherlands? Do you have fungal diseases you have to watch for like I do on the east coast of the US?

Hello Charity - I've just discovered Bella Online and quickly found your forum on roses. This is absolutely delightful to me. I have a small rose garden with only scented English roses. Does anyone else have these? I also love the hybrid teas, but didn't know how well they'd do in a damper climate (mushrooms do very well in this neck of the woods). One of my roses is "Just Joey" a yellow-y-orange charmer with good fragrance and his blossoms are just huge - they're actually 6-1/2 to 7 inches across on strong stems! And I can't believe how many blossoms he's putting out all at once. I know I'm blabbering on, but just wondering if anyone else has experience with these David Thompson roses called "Just Joey", "Fragrant Cloud" or "Jude" or one of their climbers called "Gertrude Jekyl"? Happy to have found your forum,

I'm sorry I don't have any of the roses you listed. I can tell you that with your climate you probably will have problems with hybrid teas. I live in the humid mid-atlantic region and my favorite rose right now is an unnamed antique climber that never needs sprayed. My hyrbid teas are all a disaster.

I've seen "Just Joey" for sale. Yours sounds so great I might have to get one for my garden!

Hi Charity, You're right about the hybrid teas ... they prefer a bit sunnier location ... so had my dad chop down one of the many tall pines blocking sunlight to the rose garden ... and they're doing much better. "Just Joey" doesn't like his feet too wet. "Fragrant Cloud" is noticeably more robust - and it's deep red-pink coloration is also spectacular. Asked my boyfriend why he never brings me flowers since he knows I love them so well ... next time he came by he had a big bouquet of them ... plucked from my rose garden! What a rat! (-_-)