It's All About the Roses

While there are many Spring blooms happening in my garden this week, it's becoming very apparent that the next 2 weeks are going to be "all about the roses!"

Everyone who grows roses in Florida knows they are prolific bloomers and they produce the largest blooms in Spring and Autumn due to the warm but mild temperatures. Unfortunately, the summer heat puts a damper on the whole bloom process. But not to complain, because they make up for it in spring, autumn and winter, which all together is as long as summer.

 Don Juan pictured above

 In the front yard the Double Pink Knock-out is the first to get the show started. By autumn she will be 5' tall and covered in roses.

In the backyard her cousin the Double Red Knock-out is not far behind her. She, too, will be coming in around 5' tall by autumn. I have 3 of these (2 new and very small ones) planted near each other and can't wait to see their autumn display (there I go being impatient again). 

One of my old time favorites is Sombreuil. She's a bit behind due to a more radical spring trimming. This French beauty is loaded with buds!

Every garden in Florida should have this Louis Philippe a/k/a Cracker Rose. He's easy to grow and is the most carefree, large growing and practically thornless rose around. He sits below the patio wall but by Summer I'll be enjoying his blooms from inside the house.

Not to be left out by the show-stealing big roses, the "little but mighty" Drift roses are making their own statement.

I was able to find a place for the 9 roses bushes that I brought from my previous garden, PLUS find room for 3 full-size roses and 12 Drift roses in my petit' space. Happy? Yes, I am !!!!

What's Your Dream?

Have you ever thought about what would be your "dream" rose . . . flower . . . or plant? Pictured above is Belinda's Dream. No, I don't know who Belinda is but I imagine her as a rosarian who has a yard full of every rose imaginable . . . kind of like Sherry over at "If Only Sweat were Irrigation" or Flowerlady at "Flowerlady's Musings." I imagine that she learned how to cultivate roses and did so for many years in search of the "perfect" rose. And, eventually she found success and aptly named her beautiful rose - - Belinda's Dream!

Belinda's Dream has become a dream rose for many Florida gardeners as I see it pictured often on other Florida garden blogs. And I agree with Belinda that it is a dream rose. A nice shaped bush with healthy leaves (no black spot) and beautiful  large soft pink flowers. Much to my satisfaction she is singing autumn's praises with a shrub full of buds that are soon to reveal a bounty of glorious flowers . . . some of which I'll enjoy on my kitchen island. Thanks Belinda for sharing your dream rose with all of us!

Oh, How I LOVE Pink!

Pink and green are one of my favorite color combinations, so when I see pink flowers my heart skips a little beat. This double pink Knock-out rose is a fabulous bloomer.

Not only do they bloom well and sport blooms 12 months out of the year...their foliage is also disease resistant in Florida...and that's not an easy achievement in our heat and humidity. You're probably thinking that the Knock-out rose folks are paying me to praise their roses...but that's not so. I'm just a girl who loves roses (and pink ones at that) and these carefree beauties make it easy for me to fill my front cottagey garden with lots of rose blossoms with minimum care and without the need to battle diseases with toxic chemicals.

Aside from the Knock-out roses the only other ones in my garden are the carefree modern shrub or vintage varieties...again because they require minimum care and no chemical sprays. Belinda's Dream is definitely a dream rose. Looks at her large soft pink blossoms...who can resist such a beauty. Right beneath her grows a baby blue native petunia. Two beauties that paint a pretty pastel picture in the garden.

The Bold and the Beautiful

Oh, YES, the orginal Knock-out Roses 'Radrazz' are BOLD AND BEAUTIFUL! And, I can't stop looking at them...admiring them and loving them...especially in spring.

After a later winter haircut...a tasty organic cocktail and lots of Florida sunshine...six weeks later they are showering me with an abundance of flowers that are simply...knocking me out!

Love their bold red color with yellow flowers...simply stunning!

And, now another fantastic rose from the same maker of the Knock-out line. These miniature...yes, they're small little bushes (12" x 12") are small but mighty. This orange variety looks nice paired up with the Florida-Friendly sedum that's blooming in the background.

And, for a few other blooming beauties in the garden. The amaryllis are just now coming into bloom. I'm trying to stay ahead of the little lubbers that love to devour their foliage. Periwinkles are reseeding throughout the garden. They reseed as freely as impatiens. Once you buy one you'll never need to purchase another.

Lastly, my bi-color African Iris are blooming early this year thanks to a mild winter. In fact, even the caladiums are waking up early.

Worth the Wait

Back in February I did a post entitled Anticipation on a handful of buds that were taking their sweet time to open. Thankfully, all the buds eventually opened much to my delight.

This red kalanchoe is a succulent from my late aunt's garden.

Planted in the ground...it survived the winter with very little damage.

My mom shared one of the offspring from her clivia...a member of the amaryllis family...with me.

It's the first time it's bloomed, and it's a real beauty.

The green onions allium planted in the veggie patch burst into bloom this spring.

 I like these unusual blooms so much that I'm planting seeds throughout my sunny garden beds.

Another passalong plant from my mom...this Nun's orchid is a stunning bloomer with it's large flower stalks.

And, lastly, Belinda's Dream has gorgeous, ruffly blooms that grow larger as they continue to open.

Was the wait worth it? You bet!

Gardening is definitely a lesson in patience!

Roses - Another Favorite

Roses are one of those plants that if I'm not careful...I could very easily develop a new obsession over. Many yards ago, I had a small rose garden with probably a dozen or so hybrid roses. I loved the look of the large hybrids for cut flowers, but their downsides all too soon became apparent...blackspot, tall, gangling appearance and no scent. 

In the past few years, I have rediscovered my love for roses thanks to the "knock-out" series. These shrub roses are perfect for the hot and humid summers in Florida. Blackspot is never an issue, and the plant grows into a nice large bushy shrub. And, the color...WOW...the original Rosa 'Radrazz'...my favorite...is a bright cherry red that lives up to its name. It truly is a "knock-out" eye-grabbing, gorgeous color in the garden.

Rosa 'Radrazz'

2000 All America Rose Selection

This spring I decided to add several more roses to my garden...for a total of 15. Uh, oh...15...the number is growing. How many do you have to have before it's considered an obsession?

I'm careful to choose roses that are as carefree as possible. I don't mind trimming them a little in February and again in August, adding fertilizer a couple times of year, but spraying them for blackspot...NO WAY! Since roses are expensive (I never buy them from the big box stores...only from Peterson's -my local nursery), I always mix up a nice cocktail of soil amendments that will make my rose bush very happy. I figure, if my rose bush is happy... it will be healthy and produce lots of blooms...and that will make me happy. :-)

My organic rose bush cocktail includes: 1/2 bucket of homemade compost, 1 cup each bloodmeal and bonemeal, several handfuls of coffee grinds, plus a handful of epsom salts. Mix well, insert rose and cover with more homemade compost and surrounding dirt. 

Once the rose is in place I sprinkle a handful of rose fertilizer around the base of the plant, add a healthy covering of pinebark mulch and water well. This year I added this pink double knock-out 'Radtkopink" to a large flowerbed in my front yard. It already has lots of blooming flowers and looks great next to the yellow African bush daisies and variegated flax lily. It looks like it will be a nice addition to this colorful flowerbed.

Pink Double Knock Out 'Radtkopink'

A second rose bush I added is Belinda's Dream. I've read a lot of good reviews on this rose...it's resistant to blackspot, loves heat and humidity and grows into a nice shrub...it sounds like the "perfect" rose for Florida. I like to incorporate my roses into existing flowerbeds, instead of having them off by themselves in a "rose bed" that contains only roses. And, that is why I only plant shrub or antique (a/k/a old fashioned) varieties. They don't get lanky and they don't need spraying. I planted Belinda's Dream between dwarf viburnum, wild petunias and lady palms.

Belinda's Dream

The third rose bush I added this year is an antique or old fashioned (whichever term you prefer - the new term is "old world") French bourbon rose called Sovenir de la Malmaison (pronounced: Su von yeah day la Mal may sone)...Ooh La La...sounds pretty fancy - doesn't it? Thank goodness the nursery lady knew how to pronouce it. Now, all I have to do is remember how she said it.

I love the look of this antique beauty when her bud is fully opened...it's 5" wide and has an intense, spicy fragrance that you don't want to stop smelling. I know I'm just going to love having her in the garden surrounded by deep burgundy lorapetlum, Shirley Temple hibiscus and variegated flax lily.

A couple of other French antique varieties in my garden are...Louis Philippe and Sombreuil.

Louis Philippe a/k/a the Cracker rose was first registed in 1834. It is well documented in books that this rose was a garden staple in "old Florida." It is one of the few that produces blooms in a partly sunny/partly shady area which is why I have it planted in my backyard. It blooms 12 months out of the year and I enjoy seeing the gorgeous, sweet smelling blooms from inside my home. The bush has grown quite large but I do trim it back slightly each February.

Oh, and then there's Sombreuil (1850)...can you tell I'm in love with this rose. I've had her for at least 12 to 15 years...she even moved with us from our last home. Actually, she's moved twice! Now, that's pretty hardy...isn't it? Her scent...you wouldn't believe how wonderfully fragrant her perfume is. I never miss the chance to place my nose up close to a blossom and inhale deeply. The scent is heavenly. It's been said that a rose is a rose...but a scented rose is far superior to any other in my book.

My Favorite Color Combination

I love soft muted pinks and whites in the garden but I have to say that my very favorite color combination is cherry red, purple and yellow. They're a bold combination of colors that grab your attention, and it works well in our large front yard.


The cooler color (bluish purple) is up front while the vibrant red Knock-out roses and yellow daylilies command you to look deeper into the garden. Orange is also a great color with yellow and purple. I discovered that once when a Mexican petunia came up next to an orange lantana. That was a very eye-pleasing combination.
Even from a distance the roses and daylilies refuse to go unnoticed. For summer purple color I'm going to add some pentas and maybe some lantana.

The Cracker Rose

I've grown numerous antique roses before but Louis Philippe (also known as the Cracker Rose) is only one of four that has survived. I've had this plant for 10 years, during which time I moved it from one home to another. And this winter, I'm going to move her again to our new home. This time will be more of a challenge since she is now quite large.

Once the milder days of autumn arrive she kicks into gear with plenty of beautiful and (much) larger blooms than in summer. She even does well in partial shade. I'm guessing she probably gets about 5 hours of sunlight each day. This French rose is low maintenance - no blackspot - even in humid Florida. I hope she doesn't mind making one more move, as I just can't bring myself to leave her behind.

Now Take A Deep Breath

The fragrance of this antique tea rose known as Sombreuil (1850) will make you want to linger a little longer. She's a tall, leggy French gal with a hint of soft pink blush in the center of her creamy white petals - a real beauty! And, she's one of my favorite roses. I never miss the opportunity to stop and take a deep breath when she's in bloom.

I'll take an antique rose over a hybrid any day. The scent is better, they require less work and they bloom in profusion. They don't require spray and the plant keeps its overall shape a lot better. I couldn't ask for anything more!

Garden Blogger's Bloom Day

Here's what's blooming in my April garden:


A pass-along daylily from my step-father


Society garlic and knock-out roses


A hula girl hibiscus from my mother's garden


and, the best for last, lots of knock-out (so appropriately named) roses.

Caught in the Middle

I relish these last days of spring, knowing that the humid days of summer are slowly creeping up on us. The cool freshness of a new day is invigorating. Even the roses love spring, as their blooms are much larger at this time of year. As I wish for spring to hang around as long as possible, my yard is slowly dehydrating from the lack of rain. With a one-day-a-week watering restriction, sun-parched patches of grass and wilting plants are dreaming of a thirst-quenching summer rain shower. So it is with much longing that I cling to spring, but pray summer arrives soon.

Cracker Rose - A Southern Favorite

This rose is Louis Phillippe a/k/a the Cracker Rose. It is an antique rose that performs well in a partially shaded area in my yard. It's flowers are larger during the milder winter days and it is wonderfully fragrant and covered in roses right now. Malcolm Manners writes about this beauty in his Ultimate Easy Old Roses article on the American Rose Society's website.