continued:

What a lovely, lush garden you have, how quickly it has recovered from the drought. What part of Africa do you live in?

Last few :-) Sorry for taking up all this space! I am just so excited about all my blooms!

Hi Smithdale! I live in Pretoria (Central South Africa). I tried to irrigate once a week with in the allowed hours for this past year. We live in one of the areas with slightly higher rainfall in South Africa which is, for the most part, still an arid country. In the Cape province, circumstances are still dire with water supplies drying up and almost no irrigation allowed at all (I think you can water once or twice a week for an hour with buckets :-(. It is however a winter rainfall region so not much rain although they had some during the week. Over here we have summer rain. My spring flush was almost non existent with normally huge blooms the size of coins and all shriveled up. Since mid December we did however have abundant rain but this is my first real flush so to speak of in two years. (So... about six to seven weeks after the rains started). We still have water restrictions but no need to irrigate with the abundant rain for which I am so so thankful of:-)

Thanks for posting your photos; I've never even heard of several of the roses pictured. Perhaps cultivars that are only available in Africa? Congratulations on the rain as well; now THAT is a reason to celebrate! Drought is so, so awful...

I think you garden the way I like to LG, in another time and another place... I do enjoy your use of bluey conifers in the background too..

Great to see photos from another country we don't see often enough..

LG your garden is a pleasure to see! Please don't ever apologize for more photos! I could look at your photos all day! I am especially excited to see a few roses in your yard that I also recently chose from Ludwigs.... since they look so outstanding in your garden!

Droughts are awful, but they force us to get creative. I loved Jeri's idea about hand washing dishes and using the rinse water. I have done that ever since I read that she does it. And of course all the other basics, pitchers to catch water warming up, drip irrigation, etc. I have thought about adding a gray water system.... but after our rain this year I may put that off.

I am so happy for your rain and hope it continues, with sunshine and rainbows.

Please post more photos! I absolutely love your choices in roses.

Noone will complain about rose pictures here! Lovely! Where in Africa are you?

Great to see plants & pics from Africa- I've always wanted to explore there.

LG, I could look at your garden all day. What an absolutely gorgeous garden! So happy that you are getting well deserved rain. What a pleasure your garden is and it is wonderful for us to be able to see it.

I love the different roses and there were a couple that I am considering getting from Ludwig's as they are the only ones to carry them in the US. How is your threads and crafts? I also want Lago Maggiore and Thula but unfortunately, those are not available here.

What a treat for the eyes!! It goes so well with my morning coffee! What a lovely garden. Thank you for the beautiful photos LG.

Oh, thank you, thank you, for those lovely pictures! We are in the midst of a very LOOOOONG spell of gray gloom and these were a delight to see!

What beautiful roses and companion plants you have. You sure can't tell you had a drought. Everything looks so lovely!!!

So glad you are getting much needed rain! I know all too well about the drought situation here in CA. Thankfully Northern CA (at least) is officially out of the drought now. We've had tons of rain. They originally told us last yr it was going to take several yrs to recover from it, but boy were they wrong!! Looks like this is going to be a great yr for all of us!

I love your roses, especially the oddball ones, like UNIV OF PRETORIA, LEWIE HEKSIE, AMNESIA and TANNED BEAUTY. I was able to snag TB from Ludwigs here this week. Can't wait to see it! I hope Anja finds a new location here in the US soon so we can get more of those lovely SA roses. I really hope she will consider bringing over those other oddball ones! It's wonderful to see more pics of these beauties, even tho we can't get them. Don't ever apologize for sharing your photos with us! We love it! In fact, please share more! We've been doing the alphabet of roses in the Gallery section. We'd love it if you'd add more photos over there as well!!

Oh, just wanted to mention also, I love Athybecca... which I purchased yrs ago from Hortico as REBECCA SUSAN. OMG I love that rose. It's one of my favorites!

LG... if I could ask your expertise on Just Imagine since I have it coming soon... do you think climbing on an obelisk like one of these would be enough for it?

(Photo credit: Marian Boswell landscape architect http://www.marianboswall.com/portfolio/brede-valley-3/)

Or do you think it would benefit from something larger and more arched, like a garden archway (since Ludwigs says it has arching canes)?

Thank you again for sharing your photos!

You have a much larger collection than mine. I wish I have the space and time! It's great to see someone with a passion.

I suspect that some of my favorites of your roses are Ludwig's introductions. I can only hope that if Anja gets the US Ludwig's up and running again that she will eventually introduce them here! Thanks so much for the eye candy.

John

Beautiful garden!!!

What a lovely garden you have. I'm glad you got rain, so that you, and all of us, can enjoy it looking so lovely. I especially like the photos showing garden shots.

South Africa is beautiful. Thank you for sharing your wonderful roses. Your garden looks like the perfect place to enjoy summer.

So beautiful!!!! We are having a snow storm right now, dreaming about spring after seeing all these wonderful photos. I am glad I ordered some of the roses in your photos from Anja! :-)

Thank you so much for all your kind comments. Having followed all of your posts and photos for some years. they have greatly inspired me and taught me a great deal! :-) In fact, it is so addictive reading about all your gardening endeavours that I started limiting myself to reading on weekends only - otherwise I would never ever get through all my patient reports . Bart, yes several of my roses are probably available in South Africa only - either because they have only been released here after trialling them (I know there are several such Kordes roses) or because they are home-bred by Ludwig. Others are renamed for the South African market as German, French and Italian names will not necessarily sell as well over here. Marolena, your garden have LONG been an inspiration to me! Yes, that garden I would have loved in another time and place as you put it. I worked in Scotland on a working-holiday visa many years ago before I started my university studies and the Brittish are truly masters of gardening! I remember how I envied your constantly green hills, muddy pathways and beautiful cottage gardens. I am trying to create a semi-formal cottage look and all the plants I love just flourish in your climate - the whole tranquil picture enticing me to push plant zones beyond normalcy (e.g. trying to create a 'cold' winter for my peonies by pampering them with ice cubes :-) ).

Cori Ann, I love seeing all your garden's progress and your plans. We started this garden from scratch when I was 7 months pregnant with my second daughter in 2013 and it was (and still is) one of my greatest joys to plan, dream about rare plants, scout for bargains and add to the already full garden as all the spreadsheets on my computer will testify. We were still sowing wonderlawn in the front yard on the day my daughter was born. Regarding Just Imagine: the canes are pliable but not extremely lax. I have a photo somewhere...

At Ludwig's nursery close to our home it is espaliered in a fan shape on the fence which is ideal. Mine is currently a year in my garden - so still young. I have planted it in a big pot as there is a possibility that we will be moving later in the year and I want to take it with. My plan is for an obelisk similar to the one you are considering. From the more mature bush I've seen this should work although it is a fairly new release here as well so there are no older plants to compare notes with.

Mustbenuts: I love threads and crafts. It is planted in front of Eglantyne and John Claire and next to Princess Aexandria of Kent and blends beautifully with them. About hip height over here with blooms spread out all over the bush. It has a slight lavender tint and lasts well on the bush and in a vase. It is one of the plants that I intend to dig up and take with me if we move. The buds have a slightly more modern shape before assuming a more old-fashioned look.

Beth, you know my weakness :-) The odball ones. I always drool over yours - all those ones that I will probably never see in real life. From grey-lavender to muddy pink to brown. Nice and murky and with colours changing the whole time. Or my other love: hundreds of frilly or serrated petals. Wish I could get one the colour of koko loco or a real murky, dirty pink with an antique shape and long lasting blooms. Will try to post on the alphabet thread some time. For now, a stripey for you :-)

and an odball:

Marsala Panarosa - similar in colour to black tea or Mama Africa but greater variety of different hues and huge blooms.

Fragrancenutter. The pots slightly obstructing my bedroom door with Augusta Luise and Evelyn are entirely your fault! As well as the gloomy feeling when I realized that Sonia Reykel will never grow in my garden if I do not import her. I looked at those photos more than a million times (ok, slightly exaggerated but you get the picture). You have excellent taste in roses and showing them off!

Felicity, sabalmatt, towandazz, seil, prettypetals, john, titan, sweetmonkey, summersrythm, kittymoonbeam (and anyone that I accidentally left out): thank you all so much for your kind comments. I can't wait to see all your spring gardens again although I would not mind to experience a good snow blizzard once or twice. Our winters are very dull with just brown grass and often burnt fields. I only experienced snow a 3-4 times where we live in SA and it has never been more than a light dusting. Al in all - yes South Africa is a beautiful, diverse and enriching place to visit - with unrivalled scenery, plant biodiversity, wildlife, magnificent beaches, lots of sunshine and great people. Come and visit!

Liezel

Still lots of brown patches where the lawn has to recover - I lost a couple of young roses as well.

Liezel I totally agree that Marlorena's garden is totally inspirational. It's funny how well we seem to get to know each other on rose forum isn't it? I just recently found this forum, but I could go back years and see everyone's gardens develop over time and it's amazing! Seeing everyone's gardens here really helped me design my garden years faster than it would have taken on my own through trial and error. It's still always a bit of trial and error, but now I have a committee of experts to help me along and it's just phenomenal!

I agree that this forum can be almost addicting too! I often find myself wanting to read about one of the members gardening adventures instead of doing what I probabaly should be doing. ;)

I can imagine you gardening up until the day you gave birth. Too funny. I have a funny story. Decades ago, when I gave birth, I had this strict nurse. Like nurse ratchet. I was young and not nearly as confident and clear as I am now, so she intimidated me a bit. At the time it seemed important that I did it all natural with a midwife and no meds or IV (I probably would do it differently now). But, I had a wonderful birthing room with a jacuzzi tub and had brought a cooler of all my favorite foods and drinks. I thought a nice bubble bath sounded good along with some snacks and refreshments so I prepped a bath and had my cooler brought into the bathroom. Once I was in the bubble bath, I thought it would feel good to turn on the jets. I was in labor, so not thinking clearly. Of course the jets fizzed up the bubbles immensely and within moments the whole bathroom was covered in a huge amount of bubbles billowing over all over the place. I was young and terrified nurse ratchet would come in and I would be in "trouble." It was like a Lucille Ball episode. I hopped up (in labor), locked the door, emptied out the cooler refreshments into the sink, and started scooping bubbles into the cooler to hide them. Naked. In labor. My hubby (at the time) and family was outside and must of heard the commotion because they were all knocking and asking if I was ok. I just screamed out "don't come in here I'm taking a bath." Hilarious. I hid all the bubbles in the cooler and nurse ratchet was none the wiser. Not the relaxing bath experience I had imagined. ;)

Now, of course, I would be a totally different person and handle it very differently. But it sure does make a funny story.

I will look forward to the weekends when I can see your wonderful garden photos and read all about your gardening adventures and experiences.

Wonderful to get to know you Liezel. :)

I am fairly new here and I can tell you that your photos were much needed for me..What a beautiful area you live in to grow anything you want. Stuff that I can only grow here in Massachusetts, and stuff that will only grow in Florida and yet all go hand in hand there...Awesome!

Wow. Your garden and roses are beautiful! Those ROSYCOLA and MARSALA PANAROSAs are lovely. Sorry you aren't able to get some of our oddballs! I would've thought you could get KOKO LOCO by now, but maybe not? Are you able to get the Meilland rose ACROPOLIS? That's an interesting rose that goes from bright pink to pale beigey-pink and warm apricoty-cream to a light mauve and ends in a light green if you leave the blooms on long enough!

Gorgeous gardens and pics. Thanks for sharing. I would love to be in South Africa right now enjoying the heat and gardens.

A welcome sight for sure! Great photos! :-)

Gorgeous Garden thanks for Sharing .PLEASE PLEASE post more pictures ,South Africa is indeed beautiful

LG question for you on Towering Rose Magic. Would you try to put it over an archway or arbor?

Ludwigs lists it as getting to head height and that it is stiff, but could be trained over an archway.

In the U.K. and here in the states it is listed as getting to only 3 feet under the aka "Soeur Emmanuelle."

In California I imagine it will be more like Ludwigs height. Just trying to figure out its growth habit. Thank you!

Cori Ann, that was a pretty funny story, bubble girl. lol

Liezel, Claire Rose looks like pom poms. Love it!

Cori Ann, that was a hilarious story, I could not stop laughing! By the way, I posted some pics of TRM climbing over an arch on your post, hope it can help in answering your question. By the way, I also saw you ordered Figaro Panarosa - you will looooove that rose - it is one of my favourites with very little thorns (I have it espaliered on the fence between Claire Rose and John Claire). Please update us later on how it is growing in your garden!

Beth and Cynthia: Acropolis is very pretty! We don't have it here but I wish I could see it in real life. Koko Loko is not in commerce here either but I obtained one plant from Ludwig (I actually had two but one did not make it). I rarely see the brown colouring on it but I love the grey tones as well. I do however wish I could get a rose with the same colouring in a nice old fashioned shape.

I will try to post some more photos soon but will do it on the rose gallery :-) Liezel

LG Thank you for posting the photos of how TRM looks over an archway. We are so lucky to have you on this forum to guide us on all these roses that are fairly new to the US! Thank you so much for sharing that Figarosa Panarosa does well with espalier and has few thorns. I think I have figured out the best spot for that one now too. Can't wait for my Ludwigs roses!

Gosh, Lago Maggiore looks gorgeous! The photo certainly suggests a very bluish shade of lavender. Oftentimes, when someone posts a photo of a distinctly bluish lavender, it is obviously photographed in diffused light or the shade of the afternoon - lighting conditions which pump up the bluish aspect. Obviously this is not the case here, so if the colour reproduction of your camera is accurate, it is indeed a very special rose (photographing the colour violet can be tricky, perhaps because violet is a spectral colour which monitors cannot reproduce, so they approximate it by mixing blue and red wavelengths, i.e. creating purple).

Purple Fragrancia looks gorgeous as well, but on my screen it shows up as a very lovely rosy pink rather than a true purple. Oh well, rosarians and other flower fanatics have always been rather liberal when describing the colour of flowers.

L G, please continue to post pics of your beautiful garden. We are in the dead of Winter here in Zone 5 NW Illinois, although next week is supposed to be a high of 47 degrees on one or two days. That's like Spring time here. I love all of your flowers and look forward to more. They make me dream of my garden which I miss terribly. Thankfully, I have a garden project that I will be working on next weekend - winter sowing seeds. It's a lot of fun to do and when the seedlings come up in March/April and its a great feeling! It's the little joys in life that make me happy. Take care. Bellarosa.

Greetings LG from the Western Cape, where we're still in the middle of a drought ☹️. Your garden is soooo beautiful and inspiring! Question: what is your experience with Spiced Coffee? Would you recommend this rose? I had a conversation with Talhat from Ludwigs Roses and he recommended Spiced Coffee for the wonderful fragrance. I'd love to hear from someone who grows this rose before I buy it. Thanks so much, blessings Donna