Hi Everyone! I know I've been missing in action lately. Sorry about that but I am slowly coming back from a major surgery I had back in February. One more surgery to go this year and if that goes well I am good to go. Enough of that. I've missed you all but have peeked in here and there, to see what you are all up to. I haven't done much in the garden this year, but am finally able to get out and at least smell the roses, literally, so am happy about that. The sun has been shining on and off, but we are expecting some rain needed this coming weekend. Today I managed to make some fragrant Vanilla Chai tea this afternoon that is so good with sugar and a spot of cream--yum! Have any of you ladies tried it? It's made by Bigelow and is my new favorite tea!!! Also made some individual shortcakes using a package of Hostess shortcakes that I filled with fresh fruits and drizzled a little cassis over them........ so yummy!! Hugs to all my cottage garden friends. XX Becky

Atreelady, something ALWAYS eats my seeds when I direct sow into the ground, and when I try to raise them in pots for transplanting later, I have problems with damping off and other, more mysterious, conditions. The seeds germinate just fine, but somewhere between popping up those first two leaves and being ready to go into the ground, I usually screw it up. (I'm quite sure it's ME. I mean plants have been growing from seeds forever, so it can't be THEM.) I still try them out from time to time, with occasional successes, but generally, I will buy the 4" pots of herbs and annuals instead. It's worth the 88 cents not to go through the aggravation. Plus, I really love the instant gratification of something full and green going into the ground. Marcia

Not only do we have the "in commerce" Beales Parks Yellow (BPY) in the Sacramento cemetery, we have Lamarque, Jesse Hildreth and Westside Road Cream Tea, so you can compare them when you come to visit us. I've been surprised at how short and twiggy our JH has been, after about 4 years in the ground, and how small the flowers are. I asked Jeri to confirm that we had the right label on our JH, which she did this year, since it grows so differently than I expected based on the photos of the mature plant. Since Westside Road Cream Tea has quite large flowers, I did not connect the two as possibly the same or closely related - although I agree that the growth habit for both is similar (short and wide).. If they bloom at the same time in the future, I will compare further. One thing I wonder about is the fragrance. If WRCT and JH smell different, they aren't the same rose. JH is in full sun in the cemetery - WRCT is in partial shade. Paula, it's good that you are putting yours side by side. Anybody who wants to see BPY needs to come early in our spring flush. It has a luscious grapefruit scent. It blooms early, and only once, with an incredibly romantic display of full, fragrant flowers dripping from cascading canes. It and Lamarque are true climbers. Truly humdrum found names (#42, anyone?) are not good. Far better to describe where it was found, such as the road or gravesite. Also not good is putting a class in the found name. Once we've had a chance to grow and observe it, a "mini" may actually be a giant Tea-Noisette (Fred Boutin originally collected "Le Pactole" as "Sonora Lemon-White Mini" and was stunned when it grew huge) and a "centifolia" may repeat bloom. Anita

Romogen, your Polka is clearly much happier in your garden than mine. It never looked like that here. In fact, nothing I plant in that spot has ever thrived. I think it is too close to an established oak tree. While there is light and water, and no sign of oak root fungus in the area, I suspect that the oak tree gets all the goodies. I'm okay with it. I planted another oak nearby so the space won't look naked, and am leaving it as an extension of the oak grove. Catspa, I'm heading out to check Florence Bower. If it has a rose, I'll be sniffing for a reference point. I don't grow Mrs. B.R. Cant anymore (mildewy here). Glad to hear everyone is out sniffing their roses. Even if you don't get the same thing I did, it is a good habit to cultivate as Melissa said. The WRCT I harvested on Friday is in a vase on my desk - still quite beautiful so a reasonable cut flower - and is back to tea. That is, I smell a kind of faint something I can't identify, which is all I ever get of tea scent. To all, a Happy New Year! I wish that 2018 will be the best year so far. But not the best year ever. I am not quite ready for us to start slipping downhill.