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I really shouldn’t complain. After all, the rest of the country has been toasty hot from an early start, but… woe is me! The harsh winter and colder than usual spring has left me in a state of gardening withdrawal. Signs of color, other than green, have been a rarity this spring. It’s not that things didn’t grow, and it’s not like we haven’t had some really nice days, but rather that the timing of almost every bloom lined up with rather unfortunate weather. Most of our tulips were tattered apart by wet blustery storms, the cherry blossoms were blown out of the trees from start to finish, and every iris in the garden was besmirched by wind and rain. It seemed the sun only came out for the days between bloom cycles.
I know I said I that wouldn’t, but I did… I had to! After having dug up the roses last year, in order to stop attracting deer, I found that I couldn’t live without them. This May past, I put my husband to work digging holes. It was rather labor intensive, and my pointing finger was left a wee bit worn out. As he stated at the time, “You point, I dig.” And point away, I did!
Egadz! You planted bare root roses in May?! That’s too late! They will never grow! Against local advice, I did. With our spring temperatures having been hovering mainly in the 50’s and 60’s, that’s a California January. I’m not sure that I would have called my timing unfortunate, as although, to my disappointment, roses had come and gone at the local nurseries at that point in the season (I can’t help but wonder who these avid gardeners were that dug through 3 feet of snow and ice to plant them), having had to scour the internet for them turned out to be not only quite informative, but also really opened up the selection and allowed me to contemplate which roses by description and various forum reviews would do well in my area. When all was done, I ended up ordering roses from 3 different nurseries: David Austin Roses, Rogue Valley Roses, and Vintage Gardens.
I’m pretty sure that what I dug up last year was nothing but root-stock, everything above the graft having been a previous tasty treat for the deer. I’m hoping to avoid the same dilemma by:
1) Having planted the roses only in the back yard. (They were previously planted in the open front yard.) Although the fence isn’t so high that they can’t make the jump, I’m hoping that the deer won’t realize that they are there to begin with.
2) Planting own root roses. Not every rose on my list was available on its own roots, but I did go the extra mile to get the ones that were.
Back to: They will never grow! Actually, they are growing along quite nicely so far. I’m hoping for some summer color.
Katie Glenn said:
As I was scrolling through the “nature” topic on the WP Reader, I saw your photos and was so intrigued that I just had to click on your blog and I’m so glad I did! Looking forward to reading more. π
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act3scene1 said:
Thank you! I’m so glad you enjoyed it. I just took a peek over at your blog, and wow! I love it! π
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β αΊ β said:
The weather is so strange here as well. My lavanda is dead, I’m sad π¦
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β αΊ β said:
Oops I’m tired too : “lavender” not “lavanda”.
Have a nice evening/night, I’m going to sleep π
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act3scene1 said:
Lavender is indestructible, Nathalie! *tsk, tsk* Heehee. My English lavender is doing quite well, but my French lavender died and has now become one with the compost, poor thing.
Have a wonderful evening. Nighty-night! π
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theunknownphlogger said:
Colors in my garden are rare, too. Oops, what garden?! π
I cheated this year. Those flower photos in my blog are from our “nature walk”. Our purpose of walking was to relax our minds, and enjoy the beauty of the surroundings. The relax part didn’t happen, because I was clicking the camera constantly…heehee!
Remember my beautiful dahlias, from 2 years ago? Hopefully, next year would give us a better weather for our plants; and yours, as well…
<333
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act3scene1 said:
Yes, you should get to work on that… π
I don’t take my camera on walks unless I am going somewhere new that I am expecting to be scenic. Otherwise, I would be in the same boat as you. hahaha
My dahlias vanished too. I don’t know if it was our extended cold temperatures, or if a garden creature was the culprit, but I look at it this way: I get to pick out new ones. π
<3<3<3
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snake0644 said:
I like : “rather unfortunate weather”, a kind of understatment…
(β αΊ β is sad : that’s the first time I see it. )
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β αΊ β said:
I’m feeling better now, don’t worry π
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act3scene1 said:
I am so glad. π β€
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act3scene1 said:
I previously had some other choice words to describe the weather, but they are best not typed out. π
Same here! I don’t think I had ever seen her mention being sad either!
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Deborah Weatherhogg said:
Those are stunning images
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act3scene1 said:
Thank you, Deb! π
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Chloe deGravelle said:
Okay, I am officially ashamed I am so behind in reading and commenting. Mea culpa. I will do better. These are truly lovely images, I am glad you are enjoying your garden. I remember when you first moved there. You have done so much!
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act3scene1 said:
I have gotten a wee bit behind too. I was actually on the road, out of town, when you I ruded you via tweet. hahaha I’m so glad you enjoyed them. The garden is always a work in progress. Thank you!
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