What a wonderful tribute to a very special person. Thanks for sharing this with us. I have always loved hearing (or reading) "the rest of the story". Sandy

That's certainly a beautifully fitted post joint, but I'm still inclined to think that insistence on quality can be overdone. It isn't that I don't admire fine materials and fine workmanship - I do admire them. What really bothers me is that here in the west almost no householders are practitioners of the Tea Ceremony. That makes me feel that no matter how fine the workmanship or materials of a tea house - if it has no other purpose than to look like a Japanese tea house, then it lacks the authenticity needed to make its presence legitimate. It becomes a mere ornament. It puts me in mind of a nouveau riche man who insists on having a big library in his house which he fills with beautifully bound books - which are there only for their appearance because he never reads them. Or somebody who imports a Rolls Royce, intending never to drive it. I don't have room for a tea house complete with its own separate tea garden, but if I did, I'd certainly want a structure that resembled a tea house from the outside - but I'd want it to have some function that was useful to me. As for the quality of its construction, I'd be very much inclined to follow the principles Jeepster mentions in his May 31 post. I hope this doesn't make me a Philistine.....

Good Sunday afternoon to you all! THANK YOU for your enthusiastic comments! I do so enjoy growing so many different types of plants, and wanted to show off some of them. (However, ROSES are my FAVORITES by far!) I am glad that you all appreciated seeing some of them. I will be posting more soon, as my picture vault runneth over! Phyl, this was my first year growing Razzmatazz...I have always grown the single coneflowers and they did so well I decided to try this one...so far, so good. That bloom pictured is representative of what they look like...I was pleased with mine. Its still young, though, so I hope it will be as nice next year. Leslie, My Nicole stays around 3 1/2 feet, but remember I am in zone 4 and it does get some winterkill every year. In a warm climate I believe it grows much taller. I understand that there is some confusion in that this rose goes by several other names: Tabris, Hannah Gordon & Raspberry Ice...or that actually these are all seperate roses bred by Kordes but are nearly identical, so if you are looking for this rose you may find it under any of those names and they all resemble one another. I like how this rose blooms in sprays of 3 - 10, so the plant always seems covered in blooms. I will post another photo of her in a new post soon. Regards to all, Celeste

It looks like someone cared a lot about the garden and then no one did anymore. It is really sad. The roses look pretty good despite the neglect. I hope some rosy gardeners find it again someday and bring it back to its former glory. Maybe if you posted the name of the town someone living nearby will be motivated to go and tend it?