June and autumn are the best times for roses around here. I only have one rose left but it is so happy now I thought I would feature it on the blog header.
My friend Molly used to say that climbing roses are the most disease resistant and strongest type. The only rose I have left is the yellow climbing rose in the front yard. Many of the roses in this region had Rose Rosette a virus that really deforms the stems. It's one of those diseases that you not only have to remove the whole bush but also not plant there because the soil still has the virus for many years.
We removed the arbor from the front this spring because of the new path we had put in. I trimmed the remaining climbing rose and have been keeping it short--like a tea rose. Apparently this has been a good thing for the rose. It's been healthy and flourishing. Today I'll prune it again for another batch.
Another flower blooming around here is the Crepe Myrtle. These bushes were not common when I was young and to be honest, the first time I saw them was when I was in Alabama years ago. But in the last decade or so, people around here have been planting the bushes and it's survived. Perhaps there is a new hardier bloom that can take our zone 6 weather. I also noticed many folks plant that in protected areas: against the house, inbetween two buildings, etc.
A bush aside of my neighbor's home.
Do you have this bush?
How is your garden doing?
Have a safe and happy weekend!
No Crepe Myrtle in my area, it's too cold here in the winter. I had several roses at the farm in my flowerbed. They were always attacked by Japanese beetles, I just couldn't keep them away! I didn't plant any here at the new house.
ReplyDeleteRoses as they say by any name, are so beautiful. I need to learn more about them. I have two bushes here of the common, very hardy type. Tea roses sound so lovely.
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