When I was young, the ultimate fantasy was to look at a mannequin in a department store (remember those?), point and say, “I’ll take it all!” No fussing about the cost and no settling for just the sweater or shoes. I’d stride out and add it to my collection of complete, well-coordinated outfits. That, of course, never happened and to this day I am reluctantly discarding mismatched items of clothing, long past their sell-by date, that never really worked. Plant selection can operate in a similar fashion.
The Lady of Shallot is one of my most favourite roses (I love orange and apricot roses). I had a David Austin rose which lasted 5+ years, a minor miracle in zone 5b. Imagining you two standing among the roses in the evening, inhaling all the wonderfulness. Blessings on your rose borders!
Fingers crossed for Princess Alexandra, she’ll need to rally. Our area has also seen a rise in Rose Rosette disease. Are you familiar with this and has it been an issue in colder climes?
I haven't seen it here, Chris. A quick Google search reports that it's mainly found in Arkansas, Missouri, Texas, and Oklahoma where it was found in cultivated roses. There's no cure and the affected roses have to be destroyed. It looks like a filthy virus. I contend with rose sawfly whose pale green larvae eat rose leaves like an all-you-can-eat buffet.
This is so charmingly written!
Thanks, Willo. We are having fun.
The Lady of Shallot is one of my most favourite roses (I love orange and apricot roses). I had a David Austin rose which lasted 5+ years, a minor miracle in zone 5b. Imagining you two standing among the roses in the evening, inhaling all the wonderfulness. Blessings on your rose borders!
Fingers crossed for Princess Alexandra, she’ll need to rally. Our area has also seen a rise in Rose Rosette disease. Are you familiar with this and has it been an issue in colder climes?
I haven't seen it here, Chris. A quick Google search reports that it's mainly found in Arkansas, Missouri, Texas, and Oklahoma where it was found in cultivated roses. There's no cure and the affected roses have to be destroyed. It looks like a filthy virus. I contend with rose sawfly whose pale green larvae eat rose leaves like an all-you-can-eat buffet.