It's been a busy week in the greenhouse and hardening off plants for the garden. I was so busy I hadn’t realized the roses were in bloom. You know what they say, stop and smell the roses. It’s so true. Life gets busy and we miss out on the simple pleasures. Our garden is full of fragrant roses and over the weekend I had people ask me about the one above. In the garden we have six old-fashioned shrub roses. They are in full bloom this week and the fragrance is intoxicating.
It wasn’t until I was out watering the kitchen garden this morning that I saw this. Wow! It must have been all the great weather we have had this week as this apricot coloured climbing rose is stunning. We are way behind in the garden and many of the canes haven’t been tied in over the arbor. The advantage to that is I get to reach them and enjoy their fragrance. I may even cut some for a bouquet.
This is a closeup of the climbing rose. I have no idea which rose this is as they were all here when we moved in. The stems of these plants are three inches across so it has me thinking they are about twenty years old if not more.
On the other side of the arbor the white climbing roses are just opening. They cover a ten foot wide section of the arbor and are amazing when all are in bloom.
This rose drives me crazy. I love that it’s so pretty and fragrant but after it blooms it send out masses of wild shoots that bear single petalled roses. They are most likely suckers coming from below the graft and even though I cut them back they return each year.
It’s not only roses out this week. The peonies are open among the Centaurea montana. In behind, the variegated Weigela is in bloom with its light pink flowers.
Aquilegia or columbine is out with its granny’s bonnet shaped flowers. Such a nice perennial to have in the garden.
For years we have been wanting to prune this monster Weigela before it eats someone coming through the gate. We never seem to get around to it. The bees love the trumpet-shaped flowers. It blooms now and then again in late summer.
May is Iris month. The early Iris are long done and now the main season Iris are here. I think of Iris as the orchid of the garden, flowers so perfect in so many amazing colours.
I rarely show this back area of the garden. The Rhododendrons are fabulous this year. My favourite are the whites as they show up so well in the evening. Someone asked me once if I deadheaded my Rhododendrons. I answered back, we have forty plants, so no. I have to admit I tend to take some spent blooms from the white ones but the rest I leave for Mother Nature.
This Iris has to be my all time favourite. I love the purple and white blooms!
The last of the spring bulbs are the Allium. They are planted throughout the garden. They are great architectural plants to have in the garden. Once they are done blooming all the spent foliage from spring bulbs will be removed to make way for annual flowers. That’s about it for this week. It's time to get my Impatiens, zinnias, purple millet grass, sunflowers and salpiglossis out of the greenhouse and into the garden.
