In the garden again

Tada! I was digging in the garden today, first time in two years. Such elation!

My garden had deteriorated to such a state that I hired a lady, Angela, to rescue it for me. And she did! She works as hard and as carefully as I do, and she's faster. The front looks better than it has a right to after such neglect. Two beds were buried in Bermuda grass but no more. Today I was busy with the driveway bed, spraying RU on all the germinated weeds that appeared this week, digging up leftover Bermuda roots, spreading Black Kow and topsoil to raise the sunken level, and planting a new rose.

Believe it or not there are three roses in this mess. With apologies to the neighbors it remained like this for months. 

After Angela!  She had the brilliant idea to divide up several liriopies and plant them along the property line, creating a wind-break to block the neighbor's weed seeds and Bermuda grass clippings when they fill in. The debris pile got even bigger. 

Here it is all cleaned out and bigger than before. You can see the darker soil is the old rose bed. The lighter (sandier) part had azaleas and liriopes in it.

After adding 15 bags of topsoil and four bags of Black Kow. The new rose is closest to the camera. 

I nearly fainted when I saw Kordes roses at Lowe's. This is the biggest potted rose I've ever bought. 'Zaide' is said to be very disease-resistant. After lots of DH's questions about what I want for Mother's Day I decided this was it.... along with a 'Blue Girl'. It was a very large plant as well and healthy and full of buds so naturally I couldn't resist. Though it's also a Kordes rose, it's older and not disease-resistant. Oh, well, you win some and lose some. 

I'm definitely on a buying spree. Yesterday I bought three Endless Summer hydrangeas, thinking I can fill in with these easy-care plants and forget the roses. Twenty-four hours later.....

May I also add a postscript that I have been eager to tell. These roses of mine are truly none the worse for wear after two years without feeding. At this point I don't think I need to feed several times a year. I fed them last week, and I think that will be it till next spring. I really believe by using the composted horse manure I built good organic garden soil that has been able to sustain the organisms and the worms which have done their work of providing the nutrients that the roses needed.

Organic is the keyword. 

If I had been using synthetic fertilizer, I'm guessing this garden would be dead by now.

'Pink Pet' rooted through the bottom of the pot, but she's moving to the driveway bed soon.  Whoever heard of not having to feed potted roses for two years? That is not what the experts say!

After Angela

'Madame Abel Chatenay'

My garden brain is totally out of practice, so I can't remember the name of the red climber, but the salvia is 'Victoria'. The climber is now three years old, ready to leap. 

'Belinda's Dream'

'Duquesa' and 'Clotilde Soupert'

'Chrysler Imperial' 

'Clotilde Soupert, Climbing'

'Chrysler Imperial'

'Darcy Bussell' in backand 'Chrysler Imperial' in front

I wish I could remember the name. 

My hydrangeas give me such a thrill. 

Before Angela. Thank God for Angela! 

High calorie candy

It’s been an unusual spring in that I’ve been inside working for the last month. Fortunately, the garden at this stage takes care of itself. The only thing I had to do in the garden was capture it with my camera, and that I did. The unusual part was that DH and I found ourselves redecorating our great room. He wanted a recliner, and from there the dominoes started falling. At points it was nerve-wracking, wonderful, physically demanding, stressful, baffling, and ultimately very satisfying. We are ecstatic about it, really. It boils down to a few new furniture pieces, clean grout (a lot of grout!), and old pieces moved around from here to there. Maybe I wouldn’t have shared it on this blog if I were not this thrilled with the way it turned out. I almost named this post “Stashes make dreams come true”, because my fabric stash finally realized its potential. In the post I wrote in my mind the other night I reasoned that gardeners have stashes, too. I’ve heard them referred to as pot ghettoes. I’m here to tell you – have faith in your stash, believe in your pot ghetto. One day it, too, will realize its potential.

I'm gaga over blue and white. Anything French blue gets my attention. Alas, the home I lived in was never conducive to the stash of my dreams because of the presence of the dogs we loved. They're gone now...

...and now my home is French Country and stylish, if I do say so myself, with a new sofa and ottoman. I used my stash to replace the pillow covers and make a fringed throw.

'Gold Medal' - so far living up to its reputation of being a great rose in Central Florida.

'Yazoo Jim Terry' daylily

Clematis 'Purpurea Plena Elegans'

'Purpurea Plena Elegans' again

'Nur Mahal' - Hybrid Musk rose

'Nur Mahal' and 'Purpurea Plena Elegans' are teepee companions because Nur Mahal has always been indecently naked in my garden. During the winter her trellis fell over and I had to cut her way back to get the rusty thing off of her, and then the teepee/tripod ensued. The plan is to start tying Nur Mahal's canes - any day now, but don't rush me.

'Louis Philippe', the rose hunk for every Florida garden. Do I need to say it again? Get this rose! It loves Florida.

Wonder of wonders, this baby hydrangea is blooming bigger flowers than its tiny little body. First in the garden to bloom! I can live with that. Sorry, I don't have the name handy.

Hydrangea 'Limelight' - first of all, I'm glad it survived being transplanted into a bit more sun, and second of all, the dang thing is always last to leaf out. May is very late here. Things have been given up for dead by this time, but I'm so glad he's alive.

'Absolute Treasure' daylily

'Caribbean Perfection Plus'

'American Original'

NOID - this gorgeous and very fragrant maroon rose on Fortuniana rootstock was purchased at our rose festival last November with no name tag. I've dug around on HelpMeFind.com and think it might possibly be 'Intrigue' but that's a guess. This first bloom was poor quality which is typical - in my garden anyway.

'Sewing Circle'

'Mrs. B. R. Cant'

'Moonstruck Madness'

'Francois Juranville' is scaring me.

This is FJ's fourth year, and here is his flush. Did that sound mean? I really don't care because I just wanted something green to grow on this rebar arbor, and he is perfectly healthy and evergreen, but I'm kinda starting to care.

Aptly named 'Killer'.

'Key To My Heart'

'Indy Indy' - I totally love the color of this daylily which is also a heavy bloomer.

'Quietness' on the left and 'Hot Cocoa' on the right. I didn't think not getting a photo on the first day of Quietness in full bloom would be a terrible omission, but then next day (and the next for six days) it rained. She was so beautiful, and I missed it.

I need to clean my desk before I can tell you the name of this one.

Dahlia 'Kelvin Floodlight', described as dinner plate sized, but I'd say more like desert plate - so far. And pushing five feet tall. Doesn't mind the rain a bit.

Whoever said red and purple together is tacky certainly wasn't describing nature. 'Byzantine Emperor' with volunteer 'Rocket' larkspur.

'Fred Ham'

You may see this combo again in this post. The colors knock my socks off.

'Byzantine Emperor' and 'Fred Ham'

'Madame Abel Chatenay' - 1894 Hybrid Tea

Mme Abel Chatenay is working on her second flush, although she doesn't really stop blooming in between flushes. Lots of new growth and buds.

You should have been here last week.

MAC is a very sturdy, reliable garden rose. Always healthy (no-spray) until the end of the season - which is very long here.

Oh, well, I guess you didn't miss last week's flush after all, and she wasn't even bothered by thrips.

'Byzantine Emperor' - do you believe I got this daylily from Sam's? Thirteen in a box for $9.99 back when I knew nothing about daylilies. Love it!!

My desk is on my list of things to do.

Clematis 'Maria Cornelia' - Dan at Brushwood Nursery told me she was very pretty when I bought her, but last year (her first) she's was kind of a dud. Well, she's strutting her stuff this year! Thank you, Dan!

I don't have anything to say about this shot. I just wanted you to see it.

Mailbox was getting a bit floppy after last year's anonymous assault on it. DH added a little more duck tape. D'ya think anyone will notice?

Get off my back about the desk, OK? Please...

'Starfish Moon'

'Becky Lynn'

'Becky Lynn'

There's that red daylily that I can't figure out.

This is why 'Maggie' left my garden the first time. This time I'm just going to ignore her. She can be ugly all day long... until she gets over it.

An aerial view makes 'Maggie' look a teensy bit better, and the fallen petals help.

I'll get back to you on this one.

'Sherry Lane Carr'

'Kent's Favorite Two'

'Rosette Delizy' about to start what looks like a nice flush, and she's only six months in the ground.

'Souvenir de la Malmaison' had a wonderful first flush that the thrips totally destroyed. So just for the heck of it, she's starting again.

'Chrysler Imperial' scoffs at six days of rain.

Thought this was 'Hero Worship' but not sure.

Whoever it is, he sure is gorgeous!

Oh, yeah, I missed the opening of 'Rhodologue Jules Gravereaux's first big candelabra. I bet he was really pretty.

My first thought at seeing this photo was that God is so good at arranging flowers he doesn't even need a vase.

SDLM's corner - not much happening this minute - but pretty soon 'Mme Lombard', 'Darcey Bussell' and Curly Pink' will have something to say.

'Green Ice' in the pot, 'Duquesa' straight ahead, and 'Rhodologue Jules Gravereaux' at far right - along with the Floodlights, Kelvin's, that is.

If your 'Lillian Austin' is scrawny and barely more than sticks, I say dig her up and put her in a pot. Such a transformation is almost unbelievable.

Here she is a week ago.

'Madame Lombard'

'Le Baron' dahlia on the right. 'Peach Drift' is in the upper left with just a smattering of blooms after her flush.

Little 'Rosette Delizy' but not for long, I think.

'Le Vesuve'

Yes, 'Maria Cornelia' is very pretty. She's on a four-foot metal obelisk.

'Puccini'

'Clotilde Soupert, Climbing' - one good flower on all three Clotildes. They're having a terrible time with balling. You would, too, if your zillion petals had been in the rain for six days right after a thrips attack. Poor things.

'Belinda's Dream'

'Rocket' larkspur trying to upstage 'Le Vesuve'.

A couple of days ago starting to tone down, but not too bad considering all the rain we had.

But quite different from a week ago.

One thing I’ve learned about my garden is that it takes forever to change when I'm watching it and it changes overnight when I'm not looking. It’s kind of like that old saying, “You don’t know what you have until it's gone.” Paying attention is 95% of gardening. Or it seems that way anyway.

Happy gardening, everyone!!