A few Austins after a cool week
We've had pleasant week in the low to mid-80's, perfect weather. My roses are starting to show a lot of new growth, getting ready for a third or fourth flush. Here are four of my best Austin photos from the last few days.
Charlotte rose standard
Tamora rose standard
Sharifa Asma
Lady Emma Hamilton
I think Fall is already on the way! I'm noticing a slight chill in the morning air. The birds that stopped coming for food in the spring are starting to return. The morning sun's angle is a little lower, and my September Charm (Japanese Anemone) is starting to bloom. Not looking forward to saying goodbye to the roses so I'm trying to enjoy every day with them before winter comes again.
Ann
Comments (19)
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A few of my Austins and . . .
Comments (16)Thanks, all of you, for the nice comments. The photos of the amaryllis are of the same plant variety, as far as I know. The darker pink one is just opening and not faded as much. They are really neat in that the foliage dies back to nothing in early summer and you forget about them til these odd stalks appear in August. I do think there are two kinds and mine seem to be the less common ones. They seem to take a couple of years to establish and bloom but once they start, they are really fun. Hoov, my Sharifa has grown tall and wide and has lots and lots of blooms. The blooms come in clusters of 3 or 4 on the end of long thin canes and don't last more than about a day each. Because there are so many buds, the blooms are pretty small and the bush involves tons of deadheading. They are nice, I suppose, for that day or so, but I am really not impressed by them. Too muted for my taste. Kathy...See MoreMarch 2018, Week 1, Time to Plant Cool-Season Plants
Comments (100)The only thing I am afraid of on the general forums is when people pop in and say something even I know is totally not true, and they usually pronounce it dogmatically, as if it is gospel. Sirens go off in my head and I think, "Oh MY. How many people are going to glom onto this bit of gospel and run with it?" The phrase "First, do no harm" always comes to mind. That, and what Amy said. And what Dawn said. I bet you can predict what's coming, Bruce! Totally believe that. And what Jen said. Brr today. Since it will be cool for the next few days, I'm in no hurry to run and get raised bed soil. But am looking forward to the present forecast of really warmer temperature in 4-5 days. I shall be prepared. HJ, I had that happen, only cardinals up in Minneapolis (I'd like to think ONE cardinal, and it very likely WAS the same one as they were extremely territorial up there.) The first time I was standing outside after it had snowed, marveling at the beauty, and thinking of Russ while shoveling the driveway. Glanced up when I got out there, and there was a cardinal,stark red against a white background, on the light pole across the street, directly opposite me on our narrow street. My first thought was how beautiful the scene was. As my mind was occupied with thinking of Russ, how goofy he was and how I wished I could be visiting with him, I'd glance up. There he sat, just watching me. This continued until I was through, and then he softly flew away. Then I actually keyed into him when I'd be out in the winter, or spring or summer that year, and he often would be sitting fairly nearby, oh, say 15-20 feet, and just watching me. And so I came to associate him with Russ, after that first time. I never though it WAS Russ, but I didn't discount the possibility that it might be a messenger carrying messages about Russ or from Russ. Or maybe he just found me interesting. haha As we know, birds are no different than humans. Each one an individual, with THEIR own little quirks. Now down here, the cardinals don't appear to be quite as territorial, and further, none of them has shown the slightest interest in me, nor have any of the other birds. :) The ticks and chiggers, on the other hand, they think I'm magic. I suspect you had a riveting movie to watch last night, Dawn. That was OUR deal at sleepovers. Big batch of popcorn snuggled up together on top of the quilt, not under, with our OJ, watching one of the marvelous movies. Beautiful memories. It is proving to be an extra special day here today, full of thankfulness and love for gardening, nature, and people, and the source for it all. The only gardening I'll do today is potting up, no small thing in itself. Hope you all are doing well!...See MoreWhich rose house: Jackson & Perkins, Weeks, Austin, Kordes, Meilland..
Comments (19)Goodness, Moses! You really spurred on my curiosity! I went through and counted all my roses and their breeders to find the winner and it's exactly as I thought. I could have saved myself some trouble! ; ) The top spot was close with Kordes followed by Austin and then Weeks if I count the distributor and Pemberton if I'm looking at the breeder. Weeks' breeders were evenly split between Bedard and Carruth. The rest are all onsies twosies withe Meilland at three, Boerner, Lambert, Turbot, LeVavasseur, Shoup, Basye, Bentall and Buck all coming in at two a piece. I do look at Breeders and hope to grow my collection of Jerabek and Bagnasco roses and try some of the Lens Hybrid Musks. I would think being bred in Belgium where I barely recall the sun shining, that they would be healthier. Although, I hardly associate England with year-round sun. I do really like my Kordes roses that I've had for three seasons. They have really changed in terms of blooming with the exception of Fire Opal which was a winner from the get go. With the exception of Munstead Wood and Molineux, my Austins were cheap impulse buys from Lowe's. I'm happy with them, but do feel they would prefer a slightly more acidic soil, much like the Pembertons. The Weeks roses mainly came from a Springhill Rainbow of Roses sale and they are none too healthy in terms of Black spot. We'll see if they improve next year. They do bloom alot, however. I've been meaning to do this, so thanks for the push! ; )...See Moreit is so hot and humid after such a nice week last week.
Comments (6)I like your seedling, and Sugar Magnolia is very pretty in pink. But I think Tune the Harp takes the prize this time. I often wonder if high heat does any daylily any good. Your cool weather did nicely for yours..............Maryl...See MoreAnn9BNCalif
7 years agoAnn9BNCalif
7 years agoHi Malorena - I've only had Charlotte since February, so I don't have a long history with her but she seems to be an upright, bushy rose. Here's a bush shot from last week. It seems that DA has selected their mostly non-floppy roses for standards based on my experience now with Mary Rose, Charlotte, Tamora, and Lady Emma Hamilton. My LEH is not growing as a standard but I can see why it's a tree rose option - it's very upright, always has buds and keeps a neat shape. Charlotte has a lovely fragrance, perhaps better than The Poet's Wife which I also started growing in February.
Thank you Dave! Charlotte is very healthy but LEH can get a little black spot, even in my warm, dry climate. I snip the bad leaves off and wait for the new growth which is healthy. But I'm not sure what would happen in a more humid climate, you might be snipping a lot. Excellent fragrance for both.
Good luck!
Ann
Ann9BNCalif
7 years agoHi Helen - sorry to be a DA tree rose enabler! I have Mary Rose, Charlotte and Tamora which I planted in Feb of this year. Of the three, Mary Rose is the healthiest and most prolific bloomer. Based on this performance, I plan to get a tree rose of Mary's sport, Winchester Cathedral next year.
Here's Mary about two months ago, late June in her second flush. Just today she started her third flush, Charlotte and Tamora are currently on their second flush.
The photo below was taken on Feb 29, about a week or two after being planted. DA shipped all three standards in one box. They are pretty small and I can see how they can be put in planters.
I think the growth has been slow but the standards aren't in the sunniest spot. They get great morning and early afternoon sun, then partial shade after that. I planted them against a fence to brighten up the area but also because they are protected from harsh winds that can snap the standard. I saw Facebook photos earlier this year from Arizona where someone had a huge, fully blooming standard after only one month. So I'm not exactly sure how to measure my progress but a lot of my DAs take a year or two to mature. The only exception is Molineux which never went through a baby stage, it became a full shrub virtually overnight, and it happens to be offered as a tree standard. Hope this answers your questions!
Ann
Ann9BNCalif
7 years agoAnn9BNCalif
7 years ago
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