^I like your lawn and the Rhododendrons.. I would grow those here if I had the conditions.. I'm not sure now your rose is what I had been thinking as I've not seen it black spot like that, and it would normally be flowering by now.. so we wait and see on that one..
Nothing is blooming in my garden yet. In fact, all my roses are looking really sad and sorry for themselves and positively infested with aphids. I'm almost sorry to share photos! But, any suggestions for how to support the roses would be gratefully received.
One of the new beds is mainly peonies, which haven't bloomed yet. Our clematis only came out yesterday!
This is another of the new beds. It has a new a new climber, generous gardener, belle de jour and lovely parfuma. Again all eaten by aphids.
To be fair, I've not been in the garden as much as I found out i was pregnant in February and had a pretty rough first trimester. Now I feel like everything is on top of me and it's all a bit overwhelming! So I did an hours weeding earlier and then decided to sit in the sun and enjoy the wildlife pond.
This bed is completely new. What you can see here (and sorry for the quality of the photos) L-R: Lady Emma Hamilton, Vanessa Bell, Lady Emma Hamilton and Aphrodite. Pretty Parfuma is at the back. Aphrodite has really blackspotted this year and both it, and PP look really sorry for themselves and are covered in aphids.
My proper job looks like a shrivelled mess in its pot
Similarly, my MMe Alfred carriere is also looking really sorry for itself. It's very limp and the leaves look unhappy. Do you think it needs more water(?!) or a good feed?
I'll take photos of the front garden tomorrow as I'm now in need of a snooze! the fun of being pregnant.
Oh lovely to hear from you @Katsa. What fabulous news, many congratulations. I do hope the rest of the pregnancy goes well for you.
I have had reason to think of you , I am trying to get a climbing rose up to my balcony railings but the bed is a bit of a distance away. I remember the contortions we all went through with suggestions for you. It's very nice to see your elegant solution today.
Very bad for aphids this year here too. I dose my garden roses with copious spent tea leaves, it really seems to keep the critters off. My pots however I have to do lengthy daily squishing inspections. I will start tea leaving them too.
Congratulations @Katsa! 🥂 Sorry you had a tough time, hope it settles down for you. I would just give your roses a good water and a seaweed drench as a pick-me-up, they will hopefully recover and grow new leaves. I have had a lot of aphids this year too, not something I usually suffer from. If they don’t do so well this year, so be it. Don’t stress yourself out about it, you have other important things to think about just now and they will still be there next year..
Interesting about the tea/aphid relationship @Tack. I’ve had much more rainwater now I have all those butts so have not been using tea to slightly acidify my hard water.
Mountainous Northern Catalunya, Spain. Hot summers, cold winters.
Lovely to see all the photos. So happy people’s roses are starting to bloom. I too have lots and lots of growth on my 3 David Austen roses. But no buds yet.
@Katsa, lovely to hear from you, big hugs and congratulations! I was in similar situation 4 years ago, felt so tired and sorry for the plants but just didn't have any energy left to take care of them. Roses are tough plants. They struggled without water but then they were ok. It is time to take care of yourself and enjoy your special time.
@Katsa - congratulations! Hope everything starts feeling a bit easier. Your garden’s looking great.
@Tack - I’d completely forgotten about using the tea. i’ve storing a big container full of it!
Lovely warm day, bit too warm actually for me without having acclimatised to it, I feel exhausted, although that could also be the vaccine starting to have an effect. I’ve taped up the pot and it looks ok, not leaking at least. Doesn’t look too bad now I’ve turned the pot a bit.
Starting to come to life in the garden now.
Bathsheba
Royal Jubilee
Malvern Hills
Kew Gardens - 2 open flowers out of sight, but was focussing on the number of buds!
Cantibrigiense Geraniums starting to flower.
First ladybird I’ve seen this year, yet we had so many last year here; little two-spot. It was actually inside the house crawling around the window frame, so I popped it onto Malvern Hills.
Posts
I'm not sure now your rose is what I had been thinking as I've not seen it black spot like that, and it would normally be flowering by now.. so we wait and see on that one..
One of the new beds is mainly peonies, which haven't bloomed yet. Our clematis only came out yesterday!
This is another of the new beds. It has a new a new climber, generous gardener, belle de jour and lovely parfuma. Again all eaten by aphids.
To be fair, I've not been in the garden as much as I found out i was pregnant in February and had a pretty rough first trimester. Now I feel like everything is on top of me and it's all a bit overwhelming! So I did an hours weeding earlier and then decided to sit in the sun and enjoy the wildlife pond.
This bed is completely new. What you can see here (and sorry for the quality of the photos) L-R: Lady Emma Hamilton, Vanessa Bell, Lady Emma Hamilton and Aphrodite. Pretty Parfuma is at the back. Aphrodite has really blackspotted this year and both it, and PP look really sorry for themselves and are covered in aphids.
My proper job looks like a shrivelled mess in its pot
Similarly, my MMe Alfred carriere is also looking really sorry for itself. It's very limp and the leaves look unhappy. Do you think it needs more water(?!) or a good feed?
I'll take photos of the front garden tomorrow as I'm now in need of a snooze! the fun of being pregnant.
Interesting about the tea/aphid relationship @Tack. I’ve had much more rainwater now I have all those butts so have not been using tea to slightly acidify my hard water.
..yes, congrats from me too.. and hope you feel better soon..
re. your Mme Alfred.. nothing wrong there, the drooping foliage is typical of that rose, it's a characteristic..
The new bed is coming along a treat..
@Shenny
Hiya.. no problem, I have an Austin without buds yet too.. all very late this year..
Lovely warm day, bit too warm actually for me without having acclimatised to it, I feel exhausted, although that could also be the vaccine starting to have an effect. I’ve taped up the pot and it looks ok, not leaking at least. Doesn’t look too bad now I’ve turned the pot a bit.