Sunday, July 31, 2011

July Roses

Summer is not the best season of the year for roses here in Southern California. It is simply too hot, there is too little humidity, and no matter how hard I try to hand water my roses to give them some extra dose of water it never seems to be enough for them to produce blooms that are really at their best. This summer is partly an exception, because it has not been as hot as it usually is here at this time of the year. The roses immediately respond to these conditions and were producing quite some lovely blooms.

(you can click on the photos to enlarge)


I will start with my new favorite rose 'Charles Darwin', a David Austin rose. This one is new to my rose collection and only this month it had produced the first fully developed blooms. I just love, love, love this rose. Only since this year I have become interested in yellow roses again, after dismissing them for a long time in my own garden. Somehow for me it is hard to find a yellow rose that is going well (means without to clash) with the soft, mostly cool colored other roses that I have. 'Charles Darwin' fits the bill perfectly. Some people have nasty things to say about its color like being an ugly "mustard yellow", but I strongly disagree with that. The roses also changes color quite a bit from the opening stage to when it is almost dropping its petals, which I find very interesting to observe. Talking about petals: 'Charles Darwin' lasts relatively long on the bush and in the vase, which certainly can not be said about all David Austin roses. In my garden it has been very healthy so far. I grow it own-roots and my one gallon plant came from Chamblee's Rose Nursery.

The photo is taken by my husband, just want to give him credit! I think the background of the dark blue/violet agapanthus makes it quite dramatic and emphasizes the lovely shade of yellow of the rose even more.



'Sister Elizabeth', another David Austin rose. This one is supposed to stay on the small side in terms of its mature size, which is welcomed by me since many of the David Austin roses become very tall here in California. I can see this rose planted in front of another bigger rose with "bare legs" or even in a tall container on the terrace. The color of 'Sister Elizabeth' is a very clear cool pink that does not change into the apricot color range with warm weather. Fragrance is nice, too. It has only one drawback in my yard. It got plenty of powdery mildew. This rose is another young one, so it might grow out of it.  



'White Meidiland'. I am not quite sure what to think of this rose. I purchased it after seeing it at a befriended Rosarian's garden and liked it there a lot. At that time I was looking for a good white rose (actually come to think of it I am always looking for a good white rose) and it had a nicely formed, full, pure white blooms, and was very healthy. In my garden the flower shape does not impress me so far (it is a little bit more irregular and informal than I had it in mind), it got powdery mildew and the white flowers have a pink tint. Since this rose is also still very young there is hope. So I am hoping...



'Pretty Jessica'. This rose has exceeded all my expectations! It is just a couple of weeks in the ground but blooming like crazy. It gets maybe a little bit more shade than it would like to, but still does not really complain. The foliage has been completely healthy even at times when other roses got powdery mildew and the flowers have a very nice from, globular with a darker pink center changing into a lighter pink at the outer ring of petals. The fragrance is fruity, strong, and very pleasant. When I stick my nose in a rose bloom like this I am wondering why I should ever grow a rose that is not fragrant when I can have the ones with scent. This adds just such a wonderful dimension to the pleasure of rose gardening.


This one is 'Cymbaline' an older David Austin rose. I happen to find it quite amazing in terms of the color and the fragrance. The color is described as a very unusual dove gray (right now it has more apricot undertones, but when the weather was cooler, it was truly dove gray) and the myrrh scent is almost overpowering. I grow this rose own-roots and it came from Vintage Gardens. It is still living in a two gallon container, so I can not say too much about the shape of the rose bush and the size yet, but it seems to be wanting to grow into a tall rose more upright rose.



'Pope John Paul II'. After the first flush had been pretty much ruined by thrips, the rose returned back to its  former glory with the second flush. It comes with a great fresh lemon fragrance. I think this hybrid tea rose is a must have for all lovers of white roses at least in warm climates.


 

'The Prince'. On my monitor the color of the rose is too much of a bright red in comparison to the original, but  at least the lovely form of the rose is captured. This is the darkest crimson red rose that I have and I dearly love 'The Prince'. Disease resistance is also not too bad for me. It needs afternoon shade in my climate otherwise the blooms fry.



'Overnight Scentsation', my first Mini-Flora rose. The blooms come in a clear medium pink color and the scent is truly, well scentsational. So far I am very impressed. I am curious to see the mature size of this rose here in Southern California. 



'Marie Pavie' is blooming so prolifically it is unbelievable. I am growing her in a spot with quite a bit of shade and she really seems to like it there. I guess in full sun the blooms would fry. This rose has a very strong spicy scent, which wafts. That is very rare in Southern California, because we have so little humidity to carry the fragrance through the air.



'Our Lady of Guadalupe' unphased by the heat. My three bushes are in their third flushes and the blooms can take a lot of heat without frying. Unfortunately this year my bushes got some powdery mildew and maybe even downy mildew though, which is really a pity. 



My two 'Pierre de Ronsard' are in their second flush. One which gets more sun and has less palm root competition repeats well, the other one just mediocre. They also had a phase where both of them got severe rust. But for me this rose is a keeper. The blooms are just too pretty to pass up on them. 



The last of the roses that I wanted to show to you today that bloomed in the month of July in my garden is 'Mary Rose'. This is an English Rose that has passed the test of time in my book. It is true that the blooms do not last too long on the bush and, of course, also not in the vase. But they come in great numbers, smell good, and have a very lovely shade of pink. What is not to love about it?

Hope you enjoyed to see some of the roses that were blooming in my yard in July!

See you in the garden!

Christina


21 comments:

  1. Hi Christina, your rose photos(and your husband's) are stunning. How do you manage in such a heat? I find that we tend to get bleckspot and wilting in our sandy soil and much cooler climate.

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  2. Beautiful ! That " Pretty Jessica " is a fantastic rose.

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  3. Oh Christina ~ These are absolutely breathtaking in their beauty and colors. Wish I could take in their scents.

    My favorites this time are: Charles Darwin, Cymbaline, Marie Pavie and Our Lady of Guadelupe.

    Thanks for sharing and your DH did good as photographer of Charles Darwin.

    Happy Gardening and have a great week.

    FlowerLady

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  4. Some very pretty blooms are shown here. It has been in the upper 90's - low 100's for weeks here in Alabama with humidity 60-80% range. You can almost cut the air with a knife. Our roses continue to bloom in spite of the heat. Thank goodness for heat tolerant roses! Love the new header photo and layout colors...

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  5. Janet, thanks for visiting my blog and the compliment regarding my roses! Here in San Diego inland where I live, we have very low humidity and I believe that discourages blackspot, but when the temperatures get cooler I struggle with powdery mildew. In my garden the deeper layers of soil hold the water pretty well, so roses that are established are keeping up OK in the heat, but still I have to water a lot...

    Dani, yes 'Pretty Jessica' can be called fantastic. It is relatively little known even though it is such a good rose for warm, dry climates. I think it deserves a little bit more publicity!

    Flowerlady, thanks for your comment. It makes me happy that you like my roses! I will tell my husband that you think he did a good job in photographing 'Charles Darwin', it will make his chest swell :-)! Happy gardening and a good week to you, too!

    redneckrosarian, thanks, wow your temperatures and humidity level are really a little bit over the top. Isn't it amazing that the heat tolerant roses still manage to bloom? I am happy that you like my new header photo. I prefer it over the old one anytime!

    Christina

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  6. Your Roses are really lovely. Very lucky to have the blooming going on.
    Cher Sunray Gardens

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  7. Beautiful! I especially love the 'Cymbaline' and had not heard of it before. What a beautiful color. Pretty Jessica really is pretty, and your husband's picture taking skill is great! Love that blue in the background.

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  8. I did enjoy the beautiful roses yo posted. Have been to southern California many many times and always try to visit gardens when there. Have been to many (Sherman Library Garden, near Laguna Beach, USC gardens, UCLA Japanese gardens, Quail Gardens in San Clemente, Huntington Gardens, LA Arboritum, Descantes Gardens, etc. too many to mention. Love it all. I look forward to you garden tours. Here along the shore of Lake MIchigan it is so different from you in Southern California. Check out my Blog at: gardensatwaterseast.blogspot.com/ to see the difference. Touring with you should be a delight! Jack

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  9. Your roses are beautiful!! Finding roses that do well in my high humidity is always a challenge. I love yellow and peachy apricot colored roses. This fall I'm adding Jude the Obscure and Tamora. Fingers crossed!!

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  10. Sunray Garden, thanks for stopping by again. I am glad that you like my roses. We for sure have our challenges here in San Diego, too, but I know altogether I am very blessed that I am able to garden and grow roses in this climate.

    Holley, hope I get an even better picture of 'Cymbaline' later in the season. The rose is truly stunning. Pretty Jessica might do well for you in the Texas heat, too, since it really doesn't seem to bother here in San Diego. Will let my husband know that you appreciate his photo skills.

    Jack, thanks for visiting my blog. I am happy that you enjoyed my rose pictures. Wow, you visited many more gardens here in SoCa than I ever have so far. I am looking forward to seeing in your blog what you are up to at Lake Michigan.

    Casa Mariposa, welcome to my blog and thanks for becoming a follower! Yes, high humidity is giving roses a hard time, but where there is a will there is a way ;-)! I got Jude the Obscure as a band lately, but haven't seen a bloom yet, but I know from other gardens that Jude the Obscure and Tamora are wonderful roses. Good luck with them1

    Christina

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  11. I love Marie Pavie! I think if I ever find room in my crowded garden, I will get it. You seem to have a lot of Austins, I am glad you found some that do well for you. Cymbaline is really pretty, very delicate. It is nice to see some roses that do well despite the heat.

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  12. Pięknie różanie u Ciebie i zgadzam się z Tobą, ze pierwsza róża jest śliczna. Pozdrawiam

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  13. Masha, thanks for leaving a comment. 'Marie Pavie' seems to grow into a really nice rose and I am sure you would love the fragrance. Yes, some the Austin Roses have accumulated in my yard :-)! Charles Darwin does exceptionally well in the heat. This rose thrives when it is hot, it is really amazing to watch.

    Giga, nice to see you stopping by again. I am glad that you think that my roses are beautiful especially 'Charles Darwin'!

    Christina

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  14. Oh, Christina, they're all so lovely, and your photograps are perfect. I can't wait until my 'Mary Rose' has flowers like that.

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  15. You've outdone yourself, Christina. Really lovely roses and gorgeous photographs. Pretty Jessica looks stunning and I may have to rethink this rose. My Marie Pavie doesn't have a single flower but it is putting out lots of new shoots so I'm hopeful. My Charles Darwin doesn't have very pretty blooms so far this year so I'm really enjoying yours. Overall your blog is just a feast for the eyes and I really enjoyed your commentary also.

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  16. Hi Christina, thanks for your comment on my blog ernieandi. The flower in question is Echinops ritro, and it is indeed a thistle - it's common name is globe thistle. It's a favourite cottage garden plant in England. Lovely roses, by the way!

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  17. Sherry, thank you so much for your kind words. I hope your Mary Rose will grow well for you. It is truly a lovely rose.

    Ingrid, thanks, you are very generous with your praise! In my opinion Pretty Jessica is a outstandingly lovely rose. I believe if you rethink this rose you won't regret it. So far it does well in the heat in my garden. Hope your Marie Pavie and Charles Darwin come around. Both are nice roses. Maybe they just need a little bit more time...

    Martin, thanks for visiting my blog and letting me know about the name of the thistle. I will see if I can find it here in San Diego. It looked so nice in your garden. I am glad that you like my roses!

    Christina

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  18. I just loved seeing all of the roses blooming. I have 'Pretty Jessica' and 'Sister Elizabeth' on my list. I just need some space to plant them :)
    My roses seem to be between flushes now. I enjoyed your previous post on the garden in England and trying to find enough roses for a bouquet. I do the same thing in my garden trying to find enough flowers for a bouquet. Part of my problem is I have a hard time cutting them in the first place because I like to see them blooming in the garden.

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  19. Catherine, so nice that you found the time to stop by and left such a nice comment. I am glad to read that you have 'Pretty Jessica' and 'Sister Elizabeth' on your rose wish list. Besides the fact that I often do not have enough roses ready when I want to cut a bouquet I have the same "problem" like you do I also have a hard time to rob the garden of the roses. But right now it is so hot here that if I don't do it the roses will often wilt or even fry, so that makes it much easier to bring them indoors :-)!

    Christina

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  20. Hey Christina,
    Wow what a gougeous roses you have. I wish I could smell them.
    gr. Marijke

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  21. Hi Marijke, thanks for your compliment regarding my roses. I wish you could smell them, too :-)!

    Christina

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