Zuzu, those are beautiful! That is a gorgeous bloom of Golden Princess and Tuscan Sun - well, as Neal has said on occasion - drool!

cwhitt - Peace is wonderful - a rose that never disappoints!

Been rather hot, by our standards, the last couple of days and I am still busy getting my trial beds done - final tilling done on four with three to go!
Here are some pics from the last couple of days that I would like to share ....

Anne Henderson and Ashram


Minerva - very vibrant, Esperance rooted from florist rose, Flaming Peace


Blackberry Nip - finally blooming in my garden after two prior wrong deliveries but definitely worth the wait - the scent is gorgeous!!!


Christopher Columbus - can only recommend this rose! Very healthy - note the two to the left, Doris Tysterman and Flora Danica with only a couple of new leaves!


All that Jazz - a disappointment firstly because it was supposed to be Dick Clark and secondly because of the shape of the bloom - I really do prefer the classic HT. On the positive side - no health issues! Maybe one to use for breeding - Ping Lim and Tom Carruth have used it successfully.

The bloom shape of All That Jazz does appear to be preferred by the bee, however.

I'm crazy about Minerva and Blackberry Nip. I've never seen them before.

Flaming Peace is one of my favorite roses. I've bought a couple of them over the years, but it's only available in the own-root variety here and doesn't grow well on its own roots.

yes Zuzu the bees do seem to love it - actually most singles probably because of the easy access.

Pity Flaming Peace is only own-root there. Have you ever thought about trying your hand at grafting?

Do my own grafting? No, I'd much rather complain that no one else is doing it.

Seriously, though, I thought that retiring from work and having a housekeeper would give me lots of free time, but I was mistaken. There are already so many things to do in the garden that I can't imagine adding another project to the mix.

a good moan is sometimes very satifying

Retired - so looking forward to that!! Housekeeper tried one of those - just couldn't do it - I found myself cleaning before she arrived which sort of defeated the object
Seriously though, I can understand where you are coming from - sometimes the days are just too short to get everything done and from what I have gathered you have a rather large garden

I actually have the opposite problem: I find that I have too many things to do after the housekeeper leaves. She tends to rearrange my furnishings. I have a lot of knick knacks, and I space them carefully, to preserve a sense of balance. She rearranges them in straight rows, sometimes in order of height.

It's frustrating, but on the other hand, after growing up as a refugee in third-world countries, I'm so delighted to have inconsequential, first-world problems.

zuzu said:I'm so delighted to have inconsequential, first-world problems.

Never a truer word said - I often have to shake my head when I hear what people here, who have never been abroad, consider problems. It is actually quite sad.

It's National Dog Day. Rosa canina is the Rose of the Day.

Our local shelter was saying it was National Dog Day - I guess it really is! I had thought they were just trying to boost adoptions, which is not a bad idea. Everyone get out and adopt a dog! (Our local animal control is overcrowded.)

Here are a few that caught my eye as I just walked through the garden.

Day Breaker and Fairest Cape



Shazam and Sheer Magic

Is the other bloom in the photo with Sheer Magic a rear view of the same rose? Very striking!

Yes, Porkpal. It's the same rose. That combination of red and pink sounds odd, but it is quite striking.

I like that picture of Shazam. Looks like it's performing magic on the bloom on the bottom.

I see what you mean, Amanda. What a great imagination you have!

Lovely blooms Zuzu - I am really impressed by Sheer Magic! As you say the colour combo is rather striking!

I mentioned earlier that I was disappointed with All that Jazz but that maybe I should keep it for breeding. As it happens @Legalily - Ginny - has posted one of Ping Lim's offspring of All that Jazz which I think is much prettier. I think the whole rose is much more balanced in comparison to the parent

@skylark has been posting some really stunning pictures of roses at Butchart Gardens, Victoria BC so I had to google it to see where it is. Absolutely beautiful gardens!!! for all the lovely pics skylark

Sharlene ...

'All That Jazz' has been used as the first generation parent in four more roses that are not in our database that I really like that have been introduced to commerce. It may be good for breeding. 'Sweet Fragrance' is the one that calls my name ...

Sweet Fragrance

Showtime

Cancún (Carruth)

Long Tall Sally

i am glad you liked the photos! it was partly cloudy - so the lighting was perfect. Their rose garden is quite special - all plants are prize winners from all over: Australia, NZ, Germany, England, US, etc and the bushes are mature - so quite impressive.
The climate there is special, of course. Since the nights are cool - there are very few insects - foliage is pristine, not a blemish, not a hole anywhere! and we are talking august!
of course, it hardly rains there in july-aug and highs are rarely above 75 with cool nights. so, it must be very good for flowers.

They are wonderful photos. Last year you submitted an equally impressive group of stunning rose photos you took at the Bronx Botanical Garden. They're highly appreciated.

Here's a link to all of skylark's rose images:

http://garden.org/plants/brows...

Lovely roses, excellent photography; what a treat! Thank you.

i am sort of obsessed with plants
if i can't grow them at least i can take their pics!
I got a better camera last fall - so now i am getting obsessed with taking better pics
i am glad you enjoyed them.