I have a similar spot @Mr. Vine Eye where I've just removed Queen Elizabeth so will be interested in suggestions . I am wondering about a short clematis on an obelisk or just looking at the grasses thread, maybe something there? I'd like evergreen but not dark green. I've ruled out a conifer or euonymus. In the meantime I can think of tall things but nothing for winter interest.
May be a camellia which is not wide but tall. They do get bigger over time but take a very long time. I have one with slightly lighter green leaves, it self cleans (drops flowers as they age instead of holding on) and is narrow and tall. I had noted its name but again lost it.
Beautiful camellia, @newbie77. One of mine grown on from a twig is full of flowerbuds for the first time. They are worth the (long) wait, aren't they?
Could anyone please advise of the pros/cons of any of following three DA roses? Not necessarily going to get them now but looking at their whole catalogue, these are the remaining ones they have that really appeal to me. 1. Eglantyne 2. Charles Rennie Macintosh 3. The Ingenious Mr Fairchild
Thank you!
P.S. Amazing pics, @Tack. Your roses still seem to think it's summer.
Yes camellias are worth the long wait. My neighbour told me that previous to previous owner had planted 5 camellias in this garden. They are large and very beautiful from Januray to April. I have also planted couple of camellias. But neither that owner nor I knew about self cleaning and not self cleaning ones. I wish we had made better choices. Anyway good thing is the one next to patio is the one I mentioned in my previous post and looks great all the time because it drops the spent flowers before they get brown.
@Alfie_ I think it was @purplerallim that has/had both Blue Moon and Twice in BM, so might be able to give you the lowdown. I think one of them had a weird fragrance..
@Mr. Vine Eye @Marlorena had a lovely slim camellia with bronzy foliage but I can’t how tall it got, was it called Spring Fiesta or something? For herbaceous Verbena Bon immediately springs to mind, bronze fennel or or a tall, slim grass like Karl Foester. The humble thistle is really striking, tall and skinny..
I’m not having much luck with old Austins, first Filroses said they can no longer supply CPM or Falstaff, now Dewilde say they cannot replace The Prince (after sending me WS2000 in error last year). Once stocks of these beautiful oldies have run out, they will sadly be no more. I just wish they would stop listing them as available when they are not!
I have requested Thomas a Becket as a replacement since nothing else took my fancy, so can anyone who grows/grew it tell me about it’s habit and also how it does in sun? I’m wondering where best to place it and if it’s better trained as a climber or supported as a shrub?
Mountainous Northern Catalunya, Spain. Hot summers, cold winters.
@Nollie I have Thomas A Becket. I grow mine in a pot because I follow Ben Hamilton Anderson who is a David Austin Rose expert who said the problem with it is that the flowers are too heavy for the plant, like many Austin roses, and they hang down and so he said to grow it in a pot so that you can see the flowers properly. I have mine in full sun and it has grown about 1 metre tall in it’s first year. It has been my best performing rose flowering continuously since I planted it in May until the beginning of this month. It does need some form of support. Either a cane wigwam or you could use a small obelisk.
Hi everyone. Been away this weekend and am just catching up on posts.
Yes @Nollie is right I have both Blue Moon and Twice in a Blue Moon @Alfie_ The info on both is a bit patchy as I have only had them this year. Planted two Twice, only to find they appeared to be one of each type when they flowered. Supplier sent a replacement Twice when spoken to so no problems there. They appeared to be a single and a double flower, and smelled completely different, the Twice seemed medicinal, whereas the other was floral. Fast forward to end of season, and all three have flowered, but are still a bit spindly ( will be giving a good prune in Feb) and unexpectedly all three now smell the same! The later flowers on the Twice turned old rose fragrance in the second flush. 🤷♀️
@nollie - thanks. Yes I definitely don't want any weird smelling roses
@rossdriscoll13 - yes I follow him too and find his reviews very informative and super useful. His videos together with recommendations on here have informed my Austin choices for bare roots this year. His top 20 Austin roses review was very interesting with Silas Marner, Eustacia Vye and Gabriel Oak taking the top three spots, respectively.
@Nollie ..that Camellia is 'Spring Festival'.. obviously needs neutral/acid soil.. lovely foliage but not much for wildlife value really.. I think for up north in a garden of roses like @Mr. Vine Eye .. I would consider Leycesteria Formosa because the purple buds and white flowers go well with roses of all sorts, and the foliage is good too.. insects love the flowers.. deciduous and wide spreading but can be contained easily by reducing the width to a funnel shape.. and pruned to ground level if necessary, where it will regrow herbaceous-like.. blackbirds eat the berries in late summer and it's fun to watch them jumping up to grab the juicy berries.. A great non-toxic easy to grow plant for gardens with children I would say, always providing it's managed and not allowed to get out of hand..
Re 'Thomas a Becket'.. I've had this rose both as a short climber and a shrub.. continuous flowering, rather coarse and thorny but its bloom performance was outstanding. Dark red fading to mid, then lighter pink - 3 colours on the same plant.. best allowed to develop to at least 5 or 6 feet so the blooms are eye level for most of us.. good old rose/citrus scent.. Another feature was the shape of the opening red bud. Deep red, sinister, shaped like a medieval monk's hood.. I had to train it on rope - rambler style.. height about 5-6 feet in these pics..
I don't have photos of it as a shrub as I lost all my earlier pictures before 2020.. I grew it with dark blue Anchusa and I think 'Lady Hillingdon' nearby.. It does not need full sun, my rose above only got sun from mid afternoon..
It's a shame you have to move The Ancient Mariner... like so many Austins, it was hopeless in my garden for the first 2 years, and I nearly removed it.. 3rd year it took off and developed into a magnificent shrub.. I loved these beautiful opening buds on it..
Posts
found a link about it. It will get pretty big will take years. it: https://forum.gardenersworld.com/discussion/comment/2320899#Comment_2320899
Could anyone please advise of the pros/cons of any of following three DA roses? Not necessarily going to get them now but looking at their whole catalogue, these are the remaining ones they have that really appeal to me.
1. Eglantyne
2. Charles Rennie Macintosh
3. The Ingenious Mr Fairchild
Thank you!
P.S. Amazing pics, @Tack. Your roses still seem to think it's summer.
I’m not having much luck with old Austins, first Filroses said they can no longer supply CPM or Falstaff, now Dewilde say they cannot replace The Prince (after sending me WS2000 in error last year). Once stocks of these beautiful oldies have run out, they will sadly be no more. I just wish they would stop listing them as available when they are not!
I have requested Thomas a Becket as a replacement since nothing else took my fancy, so can anyone who grows/grew it tell me about it’s habit and also how it does in sun? I’m wondering where best to place it and if it’s better trained as a climber or supported as a shrub?
Yes @Nollie is right I have both Blue Moon and Twice in a Blue Moon @Alfie_ The info on both is a bit patchy as I have only had them this year. Planted two Twice, only to find they appeared to be one of each type when they flowered. Supplier sent a replacement Twice when spoken to so no problems there. They appeared to be a single and a double flower, and smelled completely different, the Twice seemed medicinal, whereas the other was floral. Fast forward to end of season, and all three have flowered, but are still a bit spindly ( will be giving a good prune in Feb) and unexpectedly all three now smell the same! The later flowers on the Twice turned old rose fragrance in the second flush. 🤷♀️
@rossdriscoll13 - yes I follow him too and find his reviews very informative and super useful. His videos together with recommendations on here have informed my Austin choices for bare roots this year. His top 20 Austin roses review was very interesting with Silas Marner, Eustacia Vye and Gabriel Oak taking the top three spots, respectively.
..that Camellia is 'Spring Festival'.. obviously needs neutral/acid soil.. lovely foliage but not much for wildlife value really..
I think for up north in a garden of roses like @Mr. Vine Eye
.. I would consider Leycesteria Formosa because the purple buds and white flowers go well with roses of all sorts, and the foliage is good too.. insects love the flowers.. deciduous and wide spreading but can be contained easily by reducing the width to a funnel shape.. and pruned to ground level if necessary, where it will regrow herbaceous-like.. blackbirds eat the berries in late summer and it's fun to watch them jumping up to grab the juicy berries.. A great non-toxic easy to grow plant for gardens with children I would say, always providing it's managed and not allowed to get out of hand..
https://www.gardenersworld.com/plants/leycesteria-formosa/
Re 'Thomas a Becket'..
I've had this rose both as a short climber and a shrub.. continuous flowering, rather coarse and thorny but its bloom performance was outstanding. Dark red fading to mid, then lighter pink - 3 colours on the same plant.. best allowed to develop to at least 5 or 6 feet so the blooms are eye level for most of us.. good old rose/citrus scent..
Another feature was the shape of the opening red bud. Deep red, sinister, shaped like a medieval monk's hood..
I had to train it on rope - rambler style.. height about 5-6 feet in these pics..
I don't have photos of it as a shrub as I lost all my earlier pictures before 2020.. I grew it with dark blue Anchusa and I think 'Lady Hillingdon' nearby..
It does not need full sun, my rose above only got sun from mid afternoon..
I loved these beautiful opening buds on it..