Tuesday, July 5, 2011

Roses & Roses that don't Look like Roses



Ironically, as we head towards the hottest part of summer, there was a definite chill in the air at dawn this morning. I hate to the 'f' word, but with the nip in the air, it felt like fall. I am sure when a cloud of humidity descends over the city in the middle of July and settles in for a few weeks stay, this cool early morning will seem like a distant oasis from the relentless heat. 

The light was wonderfully golden this morning. As we took our morning stroll, the dogs and I disturbed the big brown mosquitoes from their resting places. I swear these retched vampires are the size of small birds! At least you can see them coming and feel them landing.


In the garden, there is a general changing of the guard. The last of the peonies have finished and the soft pink spirea have faded to a deep tan color. Roses have stepped into fill the void. The hostas have hoisted their mid-summer flags and the deep pink spirea are filling in nicely for their pale pink cousins.

'Graham Thomas' here and in the opening shot.


In the front garden, there is red Monarda with their crazy mop heads.

 At the side of the house there are big white daisies...


and little white daisies (Feverfew).

There is also a tiny Moonbeam coreopsis in flower.

Along the front of the picket fence, the 'Fairy' is beginning her magic.

There is also the Polyantha shrub rose called "Marjorie Fair'.

A "clearance" clematis hangs down over the picket fence.

My favourite is still got to be the 'Mary Rose'. 

And you can't beat this workhorse. Canadian Explorer series rose 'John Cabot'


The back garden is quieter. There is too much shade for it ever to be a riot of blooms.

Still, there are more subtle forms of beauty worth taking a moment to appreciate.

 The work of the new veggie beds is almost complete. This is a project that 
seems to have dragged on forever!

Hopefully soon, there will be more zucchini than I know what to do with. More about that later...

'Carefree Beauty'

For today, I end on a rosie note.

Today I am going to link to the Creative Exchange and later in the week to Cottage Floral Thursday at Fishtail Cottage. To see other great posts, simply click the links.

34 comments:

  1. Your garden is truly magnificent, Jennifer. Such a colourful, lush haven (both front & back!) and your photographs are always drop-dead gorgeous. I sit here positively stunned by their beauty. We get mosquitoes, but not as big as those you describe and although we notice them, they aren't anywhere near as much of a problem for us. I don't think I'd be at all happy if they were!

    ReplyDelete
  2. Your gardens are incredible, everything flows together seamlessly.

    ReplyDelete
  3. I've always noticed that a sudden blast of cool air always feels like fall after a long period of hot temperatures. No matter what time of year it is. The same can be said for a blast of warm air in winter.

    ReplyDelete
  4. Your gardens look so refreshing in these photos, I could actually feel a little wisp of cool air. Everything looks so sharp and brilliant. I love the couple of long shots of the border, I always want to see the design and what the whole garden looks like in addition to each plant's beauty.

    ReplyDelete
  5. Jennifer, I am glad to see you are a fan of a densely packed garden. I too layer all of my plantings, hardly ever see a weed.

    Mary Rose is also my favorite, like perfume throughout the whole garden.

    Eileen

    ReplyDelete
  6. Hvor har du mange smukke blomster.
    Tak for kigget.

    ReplyDelete
  7. Goodness you're far ahead of us here! Peonies have only just started blooming and the spirea hasn't opened a bud yet. Mornings are still quite cool and plenty of rain but at least the temperatures have finally begun to climb.

    ReplyDelete
  8. Your garden is absolutely beautiful. Thanks for showing your roses. They look great. I love this time in the garden.

    ReplyDelete
  9. The roses are beautiful and the evening primrose is so stunning. Do you find it spreads on you? I had it once but it grew beyond the bed boundaries, spreading by a runner, so I got rid of it. I do love the colour though.

    ReplyDelete
  10. Beautiful Jennifer. Love the ruffly pink rose. Your photos are magnificent. You have a nice assortment of roses.

    ReplyDelete
  11. I love the roses, esp. the yellow one. Your garden is truly splendid! It's hot hot here and dry as a bone. Every time you show that evening primrose I add it to my Want list!!

    ReplyDelete
  12. Wow are your beds gorgeous. Your photos too. So few bloggers ever post the spirea, and your image is so pretty of them. I love the colors that you have.

    ReplyDelete
  13. Can you guess which one is my favorite.........yes I think it will be 'Carefree Beauty' but as you know by now I love pink flowers......lol if you do not know that by now then you do not read my comments............lol

    ReplyDelete
  14. Your garden is just awash with blooms. Beautiful!

    ReplyDelete
  15. Your garden is so gorgeous! Very colourful blooms.

    ReplyDelete
  16. Beautiful pics! Love your Roses especially the yellow one. Beautiful garden.

    ReplyDelete
  17. Those roses are lovely and your garden borders are just gorgeous!

    ReplyDelete
  18. Such beautiful gardens! I just put in some Feverfew this year. What wonderful roses! I actually prefer the roses that look like apple blossoms. Wish I could smell them. Look forward to the veggies!

    ReplyDelete
  19. Colour everywhere in your garden , I must say the roses shine out for me ,love Robin Hood, what a nice selection and what an amazing bargain bin clematis.

    ReplyDelete
  20. Just beautiful photos of beautiful blooms! Your last post of the dogs was good, too: Your dogs are marvelous!

    ReplyDelete
  21. There is a lot going on in your garden - so many blooms! I loved looking at your garden shots, you seem to have such a nice mix of plants. Beautiful roses.

    ReplyDelete
  22. These garden images are just stunning. You are a wonderful photographer. What a pretty angle you shot the evening primroses from, and they look great mixed with that blue flower.

    Well done!

    ReplyDelete
  23. Nice borders, well planned and planted. So how do you keep the dogs out..I never have been a big spirea fan. Maybe little princess because of her dainty leaves.

    ReplyDelete
  24. I really am mesmerized by 'Graham Thomas', have to add that one to my garden. Your garden is very beautiful and bountiful right now, so impressed with all the blooms. :)

    ReplyDelete
  25. Your garden is absolutely beautiful, huge and gorgeous. Thank you for this color fireworks:)

    ReplyDelete
  26. Stunning photos of your gardens and upclose and personal photos of your roses...some remind me of ranunculus.

    ReplyDelete
  27. Such a beautiful garden with varieties of flowers and plants. Your roses still look like roses to me...gorgeous! Love the pink peonies too!

    ReplyDelete
  28. No, no, no ~ don't mention that "f" word!! I'm no where near ready for summer to be over!!
    It does feel nice every once in a while to get a cooler day tho. We had one yesterday now we're climbing back into the 90's.
    The clearance clematis is very pretty. Your garden is transitioning to full summer beautifully. 'Graham Thomas' is another of my favorite roses. Your photos are always superb Jennifer.

    ReplyDelete
  29. Absolutely stunning! Your garden is amazing.

    ReplyDelete
  30. Your photos are bursting with life! Lovely.

    ReplyDelete
  31. Thank you for this delightful stroll through your garden. What a feast for the eyes! Love all the color and variety of blooms that you have.

    ReplyDelete
  32. Gorgeous. everything is just gorgeous....i really wanna visit you in person & get a tour! i especially love that "Robin Hood" Rose...is it fragrant? Thanks so much for sharing over here at Cottage Flora Thursday's! xoox, tracie

    ReplyDelete
  33. You could charge a fee for how beautiful this post is!
    Absolutely lovely,

    glimpsesofglory-karen.blogspot.com/

    ReplyDelete

Apologies, comments are disabled at this time.

Note: Only a member of this blog may post a comment.