Summer has arrived; I guess rose season is almost done...

6 years ago

last modified: 6 years ago

Sad to say, it's become hot here.My garden has been at it's peak, but the heat is taking it's toll. I hate summer!!!!!!! Being outdoors is so unpleasant,I've got no energy...boo hoo.

I shouldn't complain. Here at least we haven't been tormented by drought,at least up until now. And as glorious as my garden is, it is indeed exhausting trying to get out there as much as possible just to be with the roses. I wind up staying until dark,because it is at sunset that the roses are at their most beautiful; in the low light the colours just glow,and you don't notice the defects such as fried blooms,etc. But this means that I get home between 10 and 11PM,still have to shower and eat,so I get to bed at 1AM or later! This is a very tiring lifestyle,and it is in this period of the year that I most wish that we had a little cottage or something out there. That way I could instead aim for a more traditional (healthier?) gardener's rhythm : get up early, stay outside until 11AM or so,then rest indoors all afternoon,only going out again in the evening. Ah, well...people always want what they don't have, and I'm no exception, so it's better just to try to take it philosophically...

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El Jardín de la Alegría en Madrid

6 years ago

Bart, you do not know how well I understand you. My climate is desperate in summer. We usually reach temperatures above 95º F. But the worst thing still being very bad are not the high temperatures. The worst thing is dry air. There is nothing damp in the air !! Rose bushes suffer from these conditions. Leaves dry. They get burned, literally. Suddenly one afternoon, the leaves appear as burnt smoking paper. You squeeze them in your hands and they crack in a thousand pieces.

I envy both English gardeners !! With that humidity in the environment, that green grass. Your roses last for days in good condition. Mine, especially the roses of David Austin, barely open in a couple of days or three begin to deteriorate. Some varieties even less.

Striving to maintain a leafy garden in a climate like mine is really difficult. I protect my soil with layers of fairly thick padding formed by crushed bark. I contribute a lot of organic matter to the soil to favor the retention of moisture.

Another thing Bart would tell you is that you should consider growing more trees in your garden. That's what I did. When I arrived there were many oaks, juniper and pines but I have been incorporating more trees. The idea is to create more shaded areas that protect the plantations from the high temperatures we reach in summer.

I show you a couple of amazing photos. It is a Rose 'Pierre de Ronsard', So I put my rose in a single day of extreme temperature and drought in the environment. Look at those roses like burnt paper.

Sorry Bart for posting these photos on your forum. I hope I'm sorry.

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Comments (24)

Margaret Gauthier
6 years ago
What zone are you in? Here, in SW Ontario, temperatures are still in the upper teens and lower twenties (Celsius) and the roses are only just starting to bud, at least on my plants.
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Sarah z8
6 years ago
i would give you this if I could. We could have a Gardner's Retreat from the Heat!

Things are just getting blooming here. Yes, we always want what we don't have. I get the blues sometimes with our short summers and 8 months of gray and rain. The grass is always greener.....
User thanked Sarah z8
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Original Author
6 years ago
O, that is so charming, Sarah! Thank you for your sweet thought. Margaret, I'm in Tuscany, Italy; I guess my zone would be about 8.The sun here is so relentless! Even when I first moved here, back in the 1980s,I noticed that the sun just seemed hotter and more intense than it was in Maryland, where I grew up. And now, with the climate changes, it has become even hotter.
Margaret Gauthier
6 years ago
I'm in Canada. We will be happy to take some of that heat off your hands for you ;)
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ljsemar
6 years ago
Rose season isn't over, it's just on break until the real rose season: fall
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Jasminerose, California, USDA 9b/Sunset 18
6 years ago
For me, summer brings heat and fall brings chilli thrips. I think of my roses as once blooming now, because spring is the only time they look good. Roses are still worth growing, although I was quite down about the chilli thrips when they first arrived to my area in SoCal. I enjoy seeing the flowers on the gardenweb at the times when my garden isn't at its best. I have also made space to grow other things. I'm hoping a well balanced garden will bring the predatory insects. We will see what effect they have on the chilli thrips this year.
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titian1 10b Sydney
6 years ago
bart, I was in Tuscany around 4 years ago at the end of June, and I was amazed at the fierceness of the heat. Much greater than we get in Sydney. It can be pretty hot here at times (high 30's, even low 40's on occasion), but the intensity of the sun in Tuscany took me by surprise. I really don't know how you do it. I'd love to see photos of your plot.
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totoro z7b Md
6 years ago
Still cool and rainy here in MD. I too am trying to enjoy the outdoors before it gets too hot. I like your idea of a gardeners rhythm.
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User
Original Author
6 years ago
Thank you one and all for your replies; somehow it makes me feel better. O Margaret, how I wish it were possible for us to exchange weather excesses amongst us; those who get "too much" of one element sending some over to those that get "too little"! Ljsemar, since I can't irrigate,I only get fall blooms if it rains in summer, which, sad to say, has become extremely rare anymore in our area. That, too, is one of the things I hate about most of the summers here: the stultifying monotony of the weather; every day the same, for months on end.Titian, sometimes I don't know how I do it either, lol, or even WHY at times!!! I am taking photos and if myself and my hard-working DH ever get a moment to spare in which we can just "mess around"I will try to remember to ask him to show me how to unload photos from the camera and help me figure out how to post them here. This is a thing that irks me about the electronical world: I'm not good at this stuff, but was learning how to do the photo stuff with our old computer. But then it keeled over, and the forum switched over to Houzz,and by now I've completely forgotten...It's hard to feel motivated because a cynical little voice in my ear keeps whispering" sure, bart, go ahead and learn how to unload photos...as soon as you start getting the hang of it, you know perfectly well that something will throw a monkey wrench into the pot and you'll have to start all over..." Jasminerose and tortoro, thank you for the solidarity.Rose season SEEMS all too brief,because it's so beautiful,I think! Whereas nasty weather and bugs seem to go on forever. I think my next gardening phase is going to be companion planting. I'm really pretty satisfied and pleased with my roses as a whole,and I've begun adding trees and shrubs,but my garden does need more flowers of other kinds...especially evergreen groundcovers.
Sheila z8a Rogue Valley OR
6 years ago
I can't wait for your photos Bart. I also find it a bit tricky to post photos because the i photo page has the roses so small it is hard to find the right one to post. I really admire and appreciate people posting photos because it is more work no doubt.
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myermike_1micha
6 years ago
Same here..Today is 49 degrees and grey skies. We can't seem to shake off the COLD and every time we get a sunny day, it's followed by days of cold and grey skies. I don't get it. My roses don't even have buds yet. They should, but they are a month behind. June is looking no better. God July will be here then back to fall again...Much too short
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bryony88_zone10a_england
6 years ago
It's strange, living in England I always daydream about moving somewhere like Tuscany!
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mustbnuts zone 9 sunset 9
6 years ago
El and Bart, I have to agree with you. My temps get over 105 in summer and at times are over 110 for a week or two or more. Hottest I have recorded is 116. Yes, it is dry air as well and it doesn't cool off at night unless you call the 80's cool. I have three or four inches of mulch on all of my plants and I have to shade my roses in the afternoon or otherwise they end up burnt to a crisp. For a month or two, it is too hot for them to even bloom! I just let them rest as it is too hot for me as well and as long as they survive, I am happy. I look for roses that were bred in my climate or that have good ratings for withstanding heat. So, I totally understand what you are saying but I for one, am so thankful for the folks in Tuscany and the weather otherwise I would not have the great Italian food that comes from that area! We can commiserate on our lousy weather in the summer!
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User
Original Author
6 years ago
O, people, it's nice to know that I'm not alone. This time of year is so depressing; seeing the roses fry, the heat and length of the day increase...Maria, I am planting trees in my garden,for the very reason you mention! but I find it hard to guess where to place them etc, especially since my garden is on a sharp slope downwards, facing the south-west. I also work as constantly as possible on adding organic matter and trying to mulch,but it seems like an Herculean task,and now that it's so hot I can't get much done.But thanks to mikerno's post, I know that those in notherly climes have their own set of woes,and thus I am urged to quit the self-pity, lol! And bryony...guess what? I dream of having a summer house in Ireland, to escape the heat!!! LOL!!!
El Jardín de la Alegría en Madrid
6 years ago
Bart, in my blog there is an article whose title is: "Calculator of shadows and other systems to know where to plant a tree that protects a plant at noon"

If you want to visit, this is the link:

http://eljardindelaalegriaenmadrid.blogspot.com.es/2016/11/calculadora-de-sombras-y-otros-sistemas.html

In this article you will find a tool that I find very useful. It is a "shadow calculator". You put the geographical latitude to which your garden is located, the height of the adult tree, and the day and month of the date you want to calculate. It will give you how much the shadow of that tree you will imagine on the date you have entered (The shadows projecting any object in summer are much shorter than in winter).

Maybe I'm not the one to explain it well using the translator. But if you visit the page you will understand what I say. It is a very valuable tool to know where exactly to locate the tree so that during the summer it projects its shadow towards the zone that you want.

I think you should use as measures meters and centimeters (there are pages on the web that will translate your unit of measurement that you use meters and centimeters)

I hope that helps.

I also speak in this article of another design program that is free and you can download the web. It is very easy to use and is in your language. Easy to use and very useful to know how the shadows of the trees will be planted in a certain place. The program is SketchUp.
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User
Original Author
6 years ago
Wow, that is fascinating, Maria! It's a shame I'm so dopey about Internet stuff, but maybe my DH can help me download that Sketchup thingie!!! it looks great. I will check out your blog, too. Thank you!
Anna-Lyssa Zone9
6 years ago
last modified: 6 years ago
bart! I'm with you! It's pretty depressing right about now isn't it?

I've been deadheading since I got back from London on Monday.... all week long just chopping off the last of the spring flush :(

titian, it's true! The sun in Tuscany is intense.... but I still love it despite the garden heartbreak. I do miss Canadian winters though!

I've been mulling over the idea of converting everything to a proper Mediterranean garden, but can't bear the thought of getting rid of most of my roses, and I'm sure my partner doesn't want to give up "his" lawn.....
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mustbnuts zone 9 sunset 9
6 years ago
last modified: 6 years ago
Believe it or not Anna, I have combined both and I believe that roses belong in any garden. I have put my roses in "zones" so they get more water than my drought tolerant plants. Other items I grow in my yard, I have in pots so they also get a different watering then the rest. Hate lawn and got rid of it years ago. Sorry your partner doesn't want to give it up. Perhaps if you show your partner what can be put in place without having a lawn, they will change their mind. I am fortunate to get compliments on my front no lawn yard all the time.
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User
Original Author
6 years ago
I agree with Mustbnuts,Anna-Lyssa. I went out to my land yesterday and there is still a lot of beauty provided by the most stalwart roses, plus the late bloomers. But I am so impressed by the fact that, of the new plants I put in last fall/winter,the roses seem to endure the heat and lack of water much better than the new trees!. I clearly put off watering too long for the new trees; a couple were wilted badly,others just look a bit peaky. But most of the new roses (all potted or moved older plants, however, NOT baby bare-roots!) look pretty good.

However it's hard to find the strength of will to force myself to drive out there and cope with watering, etc,what with the heat and the sun, which to me is terrible. I guess that after working so hard for so many months out there I'm just worn out! Maybe NEXT year I'll manage to control myself during planting season, so when wretched summer rolls around, I won't have so much to worry about...but that's what I said last year,lol!!!
mustbnuts zone 9 sunset 9
6 years ago
Well, Bart, if I remember correctly, you have had pictures of your yard on here before and it is stunning! Would love to see more.

Got to scoot and water my roses in the pots before work today. Only getting to 97 degrees this afternoon! Could be worse!
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User
Original Author
6 years ago
You're so right,mustbnuts; it really could be so much worse....because it has been! Still, I do hate summer; so, so tedious. A few days ago they were forecasting rain for Monday and Tuesday and up go my hopes,but as each day passes the probability goes down.Now it's Sunday and they've taken it off the forecast completely for our area...and this is so typical, happens every summer here...they predict rain,my hopes go up, only to be smashed,lol.I'll have to drag my exhausted self out to the country tommorrow and water. O well, at least it's kind of cloudy today. And considering what others have to put up with, I really should not complain.
Anna-Lyssa Zone9
6 years ago
It's cool and cloudy here! I hope you're getting that too bart! But I'm with you hoping for rain. First I need to finish deadheading (all the irises now). Hopefully this cloud cover makes the lilies last a little longer. I was worried they'd be done already....
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jjpeace (zone 5b Canada)
6 years ago
Well rose season hasn't even begun where I am. I expect my first flush to show in a week or two. It is also very cool and rainy over here as well. I feel like I am in scotland or england. It is ironic considering of my friend told me that her brother is in england and they have warm and sunny weather for more than a month now. Lucky us...lol.
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Summer has arrived; I guess rose season is almost done...

El Jardín de la Alegría en Madrid

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