Today was a really satisfying and enjoyable day in the garden. The weather was perfect, and I got most of the bare-root roses planted. The list of tasks are being ticked off, the first round of trees are planted, and the remaining trees have been trimmed, leaving space for groundcovers and companion plants.
Gardening is inevitably a process of constant, remorseless change. It is the constancy of that process that is so comforting, not any fixed moment.
Monty Don
Thanks to the warmer weather, the extra time, and the focus on the garden, there are signs the garden is starting to take on a new landscape and look slightly more like a garden, even though it is still early and the foliage is minimal. It is fantastic to be out working again, with improvement everywhere.
“I am only good at two things, and those are: gardening and painting.“
Claude Monet
Taking on our new garden was a huge challenge, and there were few redeeming features to boast about or be elated with at the start. I had a landscaper look at the garden initially, and he said he believed one should always work with what you have in a garden. He then paused and continued to say, except in this instance. He was so appaled at the rocky ground and unappealing landscape. Although his comment, it made me all the more determined to keep going.
Also, although planting the new trees was challenging, they look spectacular, including three Betula pendula ‘Moss White’ Silver Birch visible from the lounge room window. I look forward to them greening up for summer and providing dappled shade and beauty.
Mirabel Osler
“To be able to walk under the branches of a tree that you have planted is really to feel you have arrived with your garden. So far we are on the way: we can now stand beside ours.“
The entrance along the driveway hosts a Teddy Bear Magnolia Grandiflora with signature glossy leaves and fuzzy tan undersides that resemble teddy bear fur. The Teddy Bear Magnolias were first bred in New Zealand and created by crossing the Magnolia Liliiflora ‘Nigra’ with M. grandiflora ‘Lanceolata’. The tree is distinctive, and the unique texture adds to the landscape growing upright to four metres at maturity.
With Spring just around the corner and repeated glimpses of what’s to come, the garden colour scheme has been at the forefront of my mind during planting. Again, I hope it works. The look I’m after is an old-world blend of soft and muted coloured roses, from the softest yellow and cream to vintage white with coffee, parchment, peach, and blush. And, of course, varying shades of green and silvery foliage, like the colours of French Lavender.
In the spring, at the end of the day, you should smell like dirt.
Margaret Atwood
An impressive rust urn-shaped tub is on the corner of the garden and driveway, planted with a topiary cherry tree as a focal point and Mediterranean Creeping Thyme as a ground cover. Surrounding the tub and extending further into the garden are the roses – Peace, Spiced Coffee, Vintage, Julia’s Rose, Knockout White, La Vi En Rose, Couer de Neige, The Wedding Day, and Penelope. All that is needed now is Spring growth, rainfall and a layer of mulch.
Just living is not enough. One must have sunshine, freedom, and a little flower.”
Hans Christian Andersen
Standard roses play a significant part in the garden design this season. I have planted several because they suit a smaller garden space and provide more colour. There is room underneath for other plants and groundcovers, and I’ve found that excessively prickly roses with stunning blooms are often far more manageable as a standard. They also give the garden height at this early stage and a lush canopy with instant structure, interest and elegance. Peace, Soul Sister, Princess Charlene de Monaco, Carmagnole, Iceberg, Dark Desire, Claire Austin, Mother’s Love, Fragrant Plum, and Tangles, standard roses are scattered through the garden.
“She leaned in to smell the apricot-tinted rose whose petals had just unfolded into a ruffled cup. The scents of lemon, myrrh, and peach floated up, and Sorrel once again wondered why anyone would name a rose Jude the Obscure.”
Ellen Herrick-The Forbidden Garden
Standard Roses
The canopy of foliage and blooms we know as a Standard rose is a rose grafted onto the stem of a species rose such as Rosa canina or Rosa multiflora.
Because standard roses’ foliage is high off the ground, it reduces bacterial and fungal infections.
Standards are perfect for lining a fence line or driveway.
Standards can frame the house and are excellent in large pots.
Standards add timeless classic beauty to a garden.
Standards are ideal for a feature plant.
Standards allow room underneath for the extra colour of companion plants, which helps promote pollination and reduce pests.
Standard roses are at eye level, so it is much easier to enjoy the blooms quickly, especially in the first 2-3 years of growth.
Standards can give a formal aesthetic. However, if not planted in a linear row, they can create a more relaxed style, especially when repeated throughout the landscape, providing rhythm and geometry.
Standards like a protected place away from strong winds with at least four to six hours of sunlight.
Standards will require good, sturdy stakes to prevent damage in high winds.
Standard roses are easier to maintain because they are elevated above the ground, which makes pruning and maintenance easier.
This rose is an extra. Its smell and its colour are an embellishment of life, not a condition of it. It is only goodness which gives extras, and so I say again that we have much to hope from the flowers.
Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
The exceptional Rose ‘That’s Life” also arrived today, epitomising the style of roses I love. The colour changes with the weather and the season. Thats Life Rose sometimes appears bright, vivid, and colourful, and then the next time you look, it has turned soft, muted, and subdued. The colouring is from blush pink to peach and crimson with yellow undertones in a beautiful shape. That’s Life is a Floribunda Rose bred by Wendy Mather in Australia in 2011 and introduced by Knights Roses in 2013. That’s Life is hard to find and was unavailable last year, making this rose even more special.
“One rose says more than the dozen.”
Wendy Craig
The end-of-season sale from the rose growers was a temptation and hard to resist, and I have succumbed to several new standard roses; among them are the charming Tangles Rose, with Just Joey and Shirley’s Rose.
Shirley’s Rose, BRUshirl is a Bruce Brundrett Hybrid Tea rose bred in 2014. It is a tall upright shrub with semi-glossy leaves and gorgeous pink to deep copper and salmon colouring. It will grow into a large shrub 150-175 cm high, although mine is a 90 cm standard. I grew Shirley’s rose in the rural garden as a shrub rose, and it was magnificent but too tall and prickly to move. I’m going for a standard to reduce the risk of thorns, which are prolific on this rose.
Anna Pavord
“One of the best tricks a garden plays is that you never quite remember how it’s going to be, that first day after winter has gone, when you go outside and can stay outside all day fiddling with jobs that aren’t pressing enough to weigh heavily but will nevertheless pay dividends. A garden is made up of a thousand small inventions, but each small act is a defence (defiance even) against a world without anchors or safe harbours.”
Tangles is a spectacular, generously blooming Floribunda rose in a soft lilac to mauve colouring. What sets this rose apart from many is its carefree nature, disease resistance, and continuous flowering of large clusters of blooms throughout the season. The Tangles rose is only 70-90 cm tall but makes an extravagant display despite the size. It is healthy and delightful.
Tangles Rose was awarded the Bronze Medal at the 2019 Australian National Rose Trial Garden Awards in South Australia. Having grown this rose previously, it is a must-have rose for any garden. or container. Tangles symbolises hope and the enduring spirit of conservation because it was named and inspired by the Southern Right Whale named Tangles. The whole story on Tangles can be read here.
Title quote Lucy Maud Montgomery,
Content Di Baker 2024
Images Di Baker or as cited above
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