On word WOW.
I loved everyone of your roses so healthy. The seating area is stunning. Enjoy this summer.
What are the names of the roses planted along the east side of the house? So healthy ...

The "Bloom" sign is great! I should get some of those for the plants in our garden unofficially known as "timber". :)))

I also envy you that tidy plastic border, it looks so good. I wish my work in progress would be half as tidy.

WOW------I'm speechless------your gardens are amazing---

You have done a wonderful job----

You will love Lyda Rose---mine was also from Heirloom and even here in the northeast she gets quite large---

I bought it because of the song from The Music Man and I love it

Can't wait to see more pictures of your progress---

Florence

well, I feel like a dud. I'm so bad about starting a new flower bed and NOT putting in edging material. Then I fight the grass. Recently I took one section and decided that one rose deep wasn't enough, so I am adding a second row of (shorter) roses. Since I had no edging material I guess I was lucky, but pulling out all that grass by hand is a pain.

Are you in Austin? I live in Round Rock.

Wilo, I live in Hutto, black prairi land dirt. The property used to be corn fields, so I hope this means roses will do well here.

Roses on East bed, in order starting from potted Improved Meyer Lemon Shrub:
A Shropshire Lad with purple clematis
Queen of Sweden
The Anwrich Rose (spelling?)
Lyda Rose
Unknown Name of Fountain Tree Rose, miniature red blooms
Princess Alexandria of Kent
Heather Austin
HT Heirloom Rose (will be SPd soon)
Louis Odier with Sweet Autumn clematis
Heritage
Jude the Obscure
The Generous Gardener
The Fairy Rose sporadically placed to eventually be a ground cover

Since we have intense heat in TX, I tried to place light colored roses on the East side to minimize burnt petals or (gasp) shattered blooms upon touch. As you all can see, my current rose inventory are Austins (70 plus plants), so please see my separate thread seeking suggestions for old garden roses for Central TX climate.

You are off to an outstanding start; the pergola is lovely on it's own but it will be even more so when you get your roses going. You look like you have started from a pretty blank slate. Sometimes that is the hardest to work with because there are too many options of what to do and if you are like me, you get overwhelmed!

I think the thing that strikes my eye, more than anything are the thousand bags of.....dirt? mulch? I hope you didn't have to unload those yourself :)

wilo - you don't need to put edging material down if you don't want to. On some of my beds, I dig what is called (I think) a "victorian trench". All you do is dig a little trench, 4-6 inches deep and wide, around your bed. Amazingly, the grass stays pretty much out of your bed and the trench too. It really isn't hard at all and your beds have a crisp line to them. I do this also even with some of my beds that do have edging material. It makes it sooo easy to mow around your beds and weed eating is easier too. I HAD to do it to even more of my beds lately because the yard guys kept ruining stuff and I needed them to stay even further away from the plants in my beds with their weed eaters.

Lynn

Very nice! Love, love, love the pergola - it will be so impressive with climbing roses growing up the posts. Now the hard part comes - waiting for everything to fill in! lol

Oh, and hydrangeas do very well in Texas - if you plant them on the North side (in other words, full shade) and keep them well watered. Never have seen the hydrangea trees before, though!

vuwu, what an incredible amount of work you have done, and your pergola is absolutely perfect. You are well on your way to having a grand garden. It's beautiful already even before blooming.

I've seen that Victorian Trench locally and didn't realize it had a name. I wonder if it works with St Augustine.

Sherry

Here is a link that might be useful: Victorian Trench

I'm so impressed with the amount of work you've done. What a difference in the back yard from your first photo to the later pictures. As stated before, your pergola is beautiful. Having a centerpiece like that really makes your yard. It's starting to look very good, but I think it's going to be amazing after a year or two.

By the way, love your humorous way of writing.

Ingrid

Lynn, could you come and show me how it's done?????

I saw the directions, but, uhm, maybe I need to SEE it being done. . . .

Your garden has so many lovely roses; I really like the dianthus as a companion for roses, very charming.

Hi Audrey, I hope you don't mind that I bring back this thread to celebrate your triumphant conquest o'er the evil garden trolls. Smell the roses, rose lovers ROCK!!!!!!!!!!

( I love all those compost bags plied up like a barricade against the enemy, too appropriate)

Congratulations, it is good to hear happy news in these troubled times.

Oh, greybird, you're so sweet! See, I'm not a crazy rose lady, with roses all over my front yard (well, not yet anyway). In this post the shasta daisies have gone wild in the front -- I will post an updated picture soon to show you all what I've done since this post.

The neighborhood biddies have not had a chance to see the backyard. If they did, they would probably have a heart attack, knowing my plans to use every piece of land for garden beds.

Teehee, it feels good to win, even though people say it's not always about the winning -- I don't know those people :)

Er..hummmm jezz...it doesn't look like everyone else's yard...I mean it's a bit eccentric..you are a Californian after all. Perhaps you have brought your gardening style from California..after all this is Texas and we like...hum er...COWS..yah Cows in our front yard. TEE HEE. Oh it looks so nice..congrats

Absolutely lovely!!

I did get a kick out of the "last chance" sign; we've all had some plants like that. At least it looks like it listened!

Good work, and hurray for your victory over the evil biddies! About the slow-to-bloom roses...they're adolescents. You have to practice patience.
Keep it up: your neighborhood looks like it really needs plants.
Melissa

So that beautiful little garden caused the Devil Women to go around the bend?
I hope I never run into them. I'm the sorta person that grows deadly nightshade for fun.
One time my nephew was walking around and says, "Soooo-got any deadly nightshade?"
"Right there." He was standing on it, and he jumped.

Looks great! I'd bet most of your neighbors appreciate it.

This is the yard they were complaining about? Girl, get yourself a few copies of 'Gardening for Dummies' and give them out next time those biddies come complaining.

Great job. I also have a shasta daisy invasion, gotta thin them out.

Very pretty, I love the little white fence like edging, that gives definition. I laughed at your "Bloom" sign.
Thanks for sharing your garden here.

Lux.

Your yard is lovely. It won't take long before the entire neighborhood will be planting, and those women will have to conform to meet the HOA codes.

Sammy

Your pergola is superb. May I be nosy and ask what are the roses (or candidates) that will grow up on that pergola? I loved your sign!!! And I truly loved your front garden and share Kaylah's amazement that this front yard caused such a hysteria among those busy bodies.

Yeh, you have to take out the shasta daisies, they are very aggressively spreading. Look so nice and good in the first year but...

Amazing though what you could accomplish in such a short period of time! Congratulations!

Hi Ceterum,

Please prepare yourself when you hear the candidates for climbers within the pergola beds. I went a little crazy, buying and planting. :)

Since the roses were small upon arrival, I thought I put whatever is supposed to be climbers in the ground and see who does well by Spring 2011. The "losers" will be replanted along the fence line.

Facing the pergola, from left to right:

Corner 1:

The Generous Gardener
Peggy Martin

Corner 2:

Crown Princess Margareta
A Shropshire Lad

Corner 3:

Teasing Georgia
Mme. Alfred Carreire

Corner 4 (facing master bedroom window):

Sombreuil
Gertrude Jekyll
Excellenz von Schubert

Now of course the other roses planted within the area are only planted 2 feet apart..lets just say there will be a lot of revamping to do in that area. If a rose doesnt impress me, itll be moved to the fence line.

Thanks for the compliments...hope everything works out as planned in my head :)

Audrey

WOW!!! and again WOW!

I think it is easy to guess who will be the winner at corner 3.:-)))

As to Corner 2, I know nothing about the size of A Shropshire Lad but Crown Princess Margareta is very beautiful, nonetheless does not show any intention to grow very tall in my garden - it stays wrapped around a 4 or 5' tall teepee while Laguna planted at the same time outgrown its 10's tall structure and I have no idea what we will do with that monster next year. Please do not discard Crown Princess Margareta because of her lack of height but give her another place in your garden on a smaller structure. She is a beauty.

You have a lot of great roses to look forward to. But, if you don't mind, I would recommend a few for your pergola in case the Austins don't grow tall enough or don't flower all summer (Gertrude Jekyll is infamous of that). My best rose for my pergola is the Noisette Crepuscule: it starts blooming in early April and does not stop till Thanksgiving or early December, that is, till we get the first hard freeze. I just planted Reve d'Or along the fence a few weeks ago and it is already growing beautifully; I am sure that would also be a good rose for a pergola. I would also recommend Laguna, if you like sinfully fragrant and Austin-like blooms (but opposed to the Austins this one is extremely healthy) and grows like crazy. (You should get Laguna from Palatine or Pickering nurseries, that is from Canada, and order early, in August or September. Well, if you start browsing Pickering's website you may start cursing me :-((). Palatine says that Caramel fairy tale is 2-4' tall, maybe so in Canada, it is 8' tall here with enormous blooms all the time. Lion's rose is a climber here, fortunately I noticed its tendency on time and we replanted it fast from the front row of a flower bed to the trellis at fence. It is packed with very double white flowers and spotless foliage.

Here is Laguna right now:

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and a bloom or Caramel fairy tale

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OH MY GOD! I love your Laguna! That is one show stopping rose!

Where in zone 8 are you? Do Palatine and Pickering have own root roses or are they grafted (if they're grafted, I believe their root stock will not do well for my location).

I love your photos...how come I've never noticed your postings/pictures? Hmmmm, I must have been blind to miss your roses!

Please share more of your beauties when you get a chance...I'll look for you on the Gallery :)

Thanks for all the climber suggestions. I will do some research and may end up buying some of the suggestions...I know for sure Laguna will be on the top of that shopping list!

Audrey

I rarely post on the rose gallery. My photography is not that good.:-(( Furthermore I was not around the forums in the last two years due to accidents, illness, surgery, etc.

I am in coastal east in NC.

That is true that both Palatine and Pickering graft on multiflora but in case your soil is alkaline, you can help to lower the pH in that particular location where you plant their roses by broadcasting garden sulfur twice a year - that would lower the pH. Hoovb did that and her Laguna, as far as I know does very well by now (2nd or 3rd year, but for a big climber you must give that much time anyway) she has a bud packed monster. Also, you can plant the bud union deep and then the plant will probably will grow own root in a few years. Or, you can buy a 1 gallon own root plant from RU and wait a few years till the plant reaches that massive canes and height that the grafted plants reach in 1 or 2 years.

Here are a few photos for you about other options.

Another favorite of mine, Colette from Meilland's Romantica series, said to reach only 4-6 feet. Judge it for yourself:

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one bloom of Colette - not worse than an Austin is it?

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By the way, Colette is grafted on Dr. Huey - she does not let me forget that because this is the only rose I have that still suckers every 2-3 years after 12 years!

Finally you cannot escape from seeing my Crepuscule:-)))

Looking down from the bedroom window:

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south side of the pergola (shows that I could not prune or tie up properly after the car accident, so a bit unruly, but...
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I'll have to re-read this one later - it's always a treat to find info and pics from someone "close" (tx is a little big to call everyone close, hehe) I'm centered between Houston and Tyler (Chamblee's home)with enough room for about 10 roses, tops (I know I know... how do you chose!)

The mention of planting instructions being for England and not TX made me LOL!!! "Ain't" that the truth! I had a young Cardial Hume that I put in a huge pot used to keep trees at nurseries so I could take it w/ me when I moved but the ants got in it bad and I had to let her go... but that first yr I learned that "everything really IS bigger in TX" except short little me... The "4x4" little thing sent out a 5ft runner immediately and promptly followed up w/ another 1/2 doz. a bit longer. I've since learned to double just about all the tags sizes and expect monsters.

Your garden looks wonderful. You are off to a great start.

Thanks for posting the pictures. It makes it much easier for us to dislike your neighbors.

ceterum, I think your photography is superb. No need to be shy :)

The first photo of Colette is beautiful! It looks like it's leading to a secret garden...

I will be adding Laguna and Colette into my garden asap! Now I just need to find the Vintage 1/2 off promotional offer email to get a custom root of your suggestions.

Thanks for posting the lovely photos! You should do it more often :)

P.S.

I'm sorry to hear about your health issues after the accident. I hope you're doing better...hopefully getting stronger day by day :)

My best to you,

Audrey

I admit I tend not to look at user names when there are a lot of pretty photos, so I only now realized you're the same person who was being harrassed by the grumpy people who wanted to get the HOA mad at you.

After seeing these photos, those busybodies must have been out of their mind; how could anyone dislike your beautiful garden? Yeesh!

You are off to a fantastic start and it will only get better and better as you learn new things and the quirks of your microclimates.

One suggestion, make your garden beds wider. The standard rule of thumb is to make foundation beds at least 1/3rd the width of the height of the house. For example, if your house is 18 feet tall, your foundation beds will look proportional to your house if they are a minimum of six feet wide. Wider gives more possibilities, for example--10' gives you room for:
1. space between plants and the house, for house maintenance without plant destruction
2. a row of tall narrowish roses
3. a row of shorter roses
4. space for perennials that complement the roses.

Use strategically placed stepping stones to move around in wide beds. Wider beds will give you adequate room for lush plantings and designs. Beds that are too narrow look like an afterthought to the house, with plants stuffed into a space that becomes too narrow as the plants mature.

I was also amazed at the photos of all the water. I don't think I've seen actual standing water for a long, long time, unless it was a swimming pool!

Thank you for your kind words both about my photography (LOL) and my health. I will post a few photos directly for you.:-))

I doubt that Vintage will custom root Colette since they are, as far as I know, very good friends with the owners of Garden Valley Ranch who offer this rose every year grafted on Dr. Huey. By the way, GVR offers very good quality plants. So I would rather opt for buying from GVR and bury the graft union deep (not like silly me) and then in all probability the plant will go own root in 2-3 years. Most of my Dr. Huey roses did that but Colette was too big to dig her up and replant her deeper by the time I wised up.

Or, you can check out Northland Rosarium if you want a good band size plant and if they didn't sell out Colette by now, and you can start growing this rose right away. Northland shipped me excellent quality roses and they guarantee to send virus free plants.

I have no idea what's the story with Laguna,it all depends on whether Vintage bought the right from Kordes to propagate it. But if you want it own root, order it early, let's say, right now from Roses Unlimited for fall planting or early next spring.

By the way, according to Helpmefind, Northland has Laguna, too, kind of surprising, because they are specialized in Meilland roses, in Romanticas in special. I got my wonderful Bolero and Rouge Royale from them. Both have fragrance to die for.

They also have Jasmina, another Kordes climber. Too bad that I cannot report on that rose as yet, mine was planted this spring (came from Pickering, along with Aloha Hawaii)and has a lot of buds but hasn't bloomed as yet. Northland has Colette's sport, named Lunar's mist, but you have enough white or close to white roses for your pergola. Hooverb says it is a very gracious plant. But I also have too many white or almost white climbers by now.
Do you have New Dawn? That would be great for a pergola and it is sparkling when it is blooming. I have never seen a pale pink rose with that kind of silvery sheen. It is a great and huge healthy rose and it is vigorous enough to climb up on any pergola.

OK, I better shut up.

ceterum, you are too funny -- you don't need to shut up :)

hoovb, thank you for the suggestions on making the beds wider. I am revamping the entire yard -- I know, crazy, huh?

As you saw in the before pics, my backyard becomes a lake when it rains, so after fixing the drainage problems on the property, I was sooooo excited to start gardening that I just carved beds and installed bedding materials without really calculating the mature size of the plants.

Let's just say that I will have a lot of transplanting to do if all my plants continue to grow as large as they can in warm climates like mine. Gotta love gardening in the South!?!

I am taking it slowly this year, researching and calculating the bed size and location. For example, in my garden the roses that get morning sun only are much healthier than the ones in all day sun. Our Texas sun is apparently too hot for the modern roses, so I'm switching to OGRs for the remainder of the garden. Apparently OGRs can take the Texas sun and heat without skipping a beat -- I hope this is true...

Those trees that someone wanted you to take out will come "handy" providing some shade. Many roses do surpisingly well in some shade.

Tchaikovsky bloom behind the Japanese maple:

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