I just took a few silly photos, still rather cold here and the thaw is slow.. My little pond still thick with ice.. 'Forever Royal' showing some nice fat shoots.. I planted this 'Reine des Violettes'.. thornless roses are so useful.. 'Elizabeth' likes to get going early it seems.. ..my chosen fertilizer again this year.. ..a fairly balanced NPK, with good supply of Magnesium, a macronutrient, and also micronutrients like Boron. I like this Iron level too, the latest DA one is lower.. Manganese is essential micronutrient. If you notice yellow veins in the upper leaves of your roses its likely Manganese deficiency rather than Magnesium, which tends to affect lower leafage - so I'm told...
@Marlorena i do not believe Guirlande will grow a lot taller to be honest.
It is at the moment with the ladder still at reach. But not so visible on the picture , Maria Lisa is even higher on the wall. Luckily she is a rambler and so less demanding with pruning and Deadheading. But indeed it is rather high.
Congratulations on winning at the rabbit show @purplerallim
Wow, that's a slab of ice @Marlorena, you must have had some good winter weather recently. Here it has been mild all week after heavy frosts everyday the previous week. There was a surprise frost this morning, nothing looked frozen but when I inattentively went to sweep the water out the bird bath I realised it was solid , I could smash it with the brush handle though so couldn't have been too cold.
Nothing much to report from Sponge Corner but I have enjoyed catching up on all your posts. Some spring bulbs starting to emerge and snowdrops starting to flower which is promising. I haven't pruned yet apart from a few tempting bits here and there when passing. This winter I experimented with planting crocus in some of the larger pots to see if they get on ok and they are starting to come up. All mixed species, if I remember correctly.
Vintage Classic and Princess Anne and crocus companions on the grey pot side of the front garden (pink heavy planting)
Julia Child upgraded to a large brown pot for being a trouper last year. On the harvest colours side of front garden.
Thank you everyone for some great discussions on fertilisers and pruning. I learned a lot there.
All quiet up here in Scotland. Weather has taken a chillier turn in the evenings so that has hampered some plans a bit. However, today I got the unknown yellow HT rose moved. Pic. 1 below shows it now in the new border, closer to the front and flanked by two 'wee Iris Sibirica pals" (Temper Tantrum) and Pic 2. shows its placement in the new border.
I have the canes at 12", but I think I recall @Marlorena advising to take them down to 6" in March. This is a forty year old rose and the roots were as thick as a baby's arm! (slight exaggeration). But it will either take the move or not, if not then I'll replace it with another yellow rose.
You'll note the soil levels rising - after digging out and sifting through 10 barrow loads of compost - I've decided just to dig the soil to open it up and then apply the compost as a 6" mulch. It will get dug in as I begin to plant out, but in the meantime it will act as a weed suppressant.
Next job is the 2 x Rose Goujard to move and yet more double digging, stone/root removal, and even more compost to add. Then one half of the path will be laid. Onwards and Upwards.
BTW has anyone had experience of training a rose up an obelisk - for a couple of years I have hankered after a DA Gertrude Jekyll over an arch, but the path would need an arch specially made and that is silly money! So maybe I just get an obelisk on one side. Other than GJ are there any other pink roses that anyone would recommend?
Tomorrow Agatha gets on her monthly Foxy Walk, with about 10 other fox terriers - that will be good fun and I am sure not without mishap.
@Marlorena that fertilizer bag looks different to the one WAMS bought.. with micronutrients etc and ericaceous.. I guess that would be good for roses in pots especially as the tap water would make it more alkaline..
@cooldoc Yes it's different. The one that WAMS got does not contain trace elements, only the NPK plus magnesium. I don't doubt it'll give good results on most soils, but my high PH 8 needs a bit more I think. I always use a food with ample micronutrients.
The one I use is identical to the old DA, just a different sleeve label I imagine. It does not contain Molybdenum, but that's a deficiency in acid soils, not alkaline so I can do without that. I'm missing a bit of Zinc which is shown on their new one, but I've always been pleased with the results, so not worried about that either..
The new DA one you have or are getting, says 'potted rose formula' to me, although it must have proven itself for general use, but I wonder if it's also been specially prepared with potted roses in mind, as so many people seem to be growing them that way these days..
@Victoria Sponge Your potted roses are looking rather good. I used to grow Crocus in rose pots too.. be prepared for rapid spread from these, especially after you have fed the rose. Next Spring you'll be amazed at how quickly they colonise..
@PeterAberdeen Lots of us grow roses on obelisks. I would recommend one at least 6 feet above the ground to work with. An alternative suitable pink is 'Aloha'.. Am I muddled or is that a new rose in the picture? the canes look young, I'm struggling to see that as a 40 year old.. is there some mix up.?.. I would expect a 40 yr old to have really thick trunk like stems.. With all that goodness your roses will soon take off..
Lots of us grow roses on obelisks. I would recommend one at least 6 feet above the ground to work with. An alternative suitable pink is 'Aloha'..
Am I muddled or is that a new rose in the picture? the canes look young, I'm struggling to see that as a 40 year old.. is there some mix up.?.. I would expect a 40 yr old to have really thick trunk like stems.. With all that goodness your roses will soon take off..
No your eyes are not deceiving you that is a forty year old rose! - according to mum. We have no idea of it's name, but once it flowers I'll get a picture. This one is rather sporadic in its flowering (probably due to the fact that its pruning was rather sporadic too - but it last flowered in November, one solitary bloom that lit up my life for that one moment.
I'll certainly look up Aloha - do you plant the rose within the obelisk and then spiral the canes round it? Do not suppose it matters if it spirals clockwise or anti?
Thanks @Marlorena, I really value all your opinions and advice.
This is Aloha in my garden. A wonderful rose, both healthy and scented. Hasn’t grown much in height, but it’s probably not planted in the best of soils. I am planning to replace it with Ghislaine and grow this one in a different part of the garden.
This is Aloha in my garden. A wonderful rose, both healthy and scented. Hasn’t grown much in height, but it’s probably not planted in the best of soils.
Thank you @pitter-patter. That is a lovely rose, the pink against that bright green foliage is perfect. That one is definitely a contender - thanks to @Marlorena and her good taste for suggesting that one.
Posts
My little pond still thick with ice..
'Forever Royal' showing some nice fat shoots..
I planted this 'Reine des Violettes'.. thornless roses are so useful..
'Elizabeth' likes to get going early it seems..
..my chosen fertilizer again this year..
..a fairly balanced NPK, with good supply of Magnesium, a macronutrient, and also micronutrients like Boron. I like this Iron level too, the latest DA one is lower..
Manganese is essential micronutrient. If you notice yellow veins in the upper leaves of your roses its likely Manganese deficiency rather than Magnesium, which tends to affect lower leafage - so I'm told...
i do not believe Guirlande will grow a lot taller to be honest.
But indeed it is rather high.
Agatha looks a jolly sort @PeterAberdeen
Congratulations on winning at the rabbit show @purplerallim
Wow, that's a slab of ice @Marlorena, you must have had some good winter weather recently. Here it has been mild all week after heavy frosts everyday the previous week. There was a surprise frost this morning, nothing looked frozen but when I inattentively went to sweep the water out the bird bath I realised it was solid
Nothing much to report from Sponge Corner but I have enjoyed catching up on all your posts. Some spring bulbs starting to emerge and snowdrops starting to flower which is promising. I haven't pruned yet apart from a few tempting bits here and there when passing. This winter I experimented with planting crocus in some of the larger pots to see if they get on ok and they are starting to come up. All mixed species, if I remember correctly.
Vintage Classic and Princess Anne and crocus companions on the grey pot side of the front garden (pink heavy planting)
Julia Child upgraded to a large brown pot for being a trouper last year. On the harvest colours side of front garden.
Next job is the 2 x Rose Goujard to move and yet more double digging, stone/root removal, and even more compost to add. Then one half of the path will be laid. Onwards and Upwards.
Yes it's different. The one that WAMS got does not contain trace elements, only the NPK plus magnesium. I don't doubt it'll give good results on most soils, but my high PH 8 needs a bit more I think. I always use a food with ample micronutrients.
The one I use is identical to the old DA, just a different sleeve label I imagine.
It does not contain Molybdenum, but that's a deficiency in acid soils, not alkaline so I can do without that. I'm missing a bit of Zinc which is shown on their new one, but I've always been pleased with the results, so not worried about that either..
The new DA one you have or are getting, says 'potted rose formula' to me, although it must have proven itself for general use, but I wonder if it's also been specially prepared with potted roses in mind, as so many people seem to be growing them that way these days..
Your potted roses are looking rather good. I used to grow Crocus in rose pots too.. be prepared for rapid spread from these, especially after you have fed the rose. Next Spring you'll be amazed at how quickly they colonise..
@PeterAberdeen
Lots of us grow roses on obelisks. I would recommend one at least 6 feet above the ground to work with. An alternative suitable pink is 'Aloha'..
Am I muddled or is that a new rose in the picture? the canes look young, I'm struggling to see that as a 40 year old.. is there some mix up.?.. I would expect a 40 yr old to have really thick trunk like stems..
With all that goodness your roses will soon take off..