Joanne McKinnon Garden Photography

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The last rose planted this season. The new bed is 3 by 4 ft. Only two ‘Kogesha’ ensata irises will share this bed. To prepare the bed, I dug up 10 inches of soil. Removed roots and large stones and before replacing it, amended heavily with compost. I also added lime, bone meal and alfalfa meal and a small amount of Epsom salt. The ground in this part of my land is mostly sand. A mulch of shredded leaves will protect the base from the baking sun.

To learn more about this beautiful rose, visit the Hot Cocoa page.

Weeks Roses

Paintbox Poster by McFingon (Joanne McKinnon)
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My Raspberry Ripple is now 4 years old. It’s also the first pelargonium, I over wintered upside down in a box. Now I keep it as a houseplant and place outside in the summer. In Faye Brawner’s Geraniums: The Complete Encyclopedia, I read that these are also called Paintbox pelargonium. You may also find them described as speckled or freckled flowered.
I started my plant from F1 hybrid seeds from Thompson & Morgan. This variety does well indoors as a blooming houseplant.

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For the first time, my Morden Sunrise was unprotected during the winter months. In early spring, I pruned off more than half the top. The sunny days made the sap rise up the stem, at night it froze. So even ‘hardy roses’ can benefit from some protection. This rose grows on its own root and bounced back, but it took a little longer. It will be protected for the next dormant period.

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I’m often asked, ‘How do you get them to bloom?’ and most are surprise when I say ‘Nothing’. Before planting them, I did a bit of research. Yucca’s grow best in hot and dry weather. I live in the north east, so often, too much rain. To compensate, I planted them in a rockery facing south. The only water they get is from mother nature. In July of last year, it rained almost every day. They didn’t bloom. The ‘pups’ I replanted in flower beds rarely bloom. Adam’s Needles are perfect for the sunny, dry spots of the garden.

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I nearly lost this antique rose. The hemerocallis growing in the same bed were crowding it. So I moved it a few feet away in amended soil and pruned off the weak branches. I did have to add a few bricks to keep the wild turkeys from scratching the base and uncovering the roots.

I also moved the Winchester Cathedral. It had been growing in the same spot for years. I’ve read in ‘Old Roses and English Roses‘ that replanting can be beneficial. Now the rose is bouncing back slowly. The new bed was amended with shrimp and seaweed compost. My home made compost is scratched on the surface.

The Molineux blooms look slightly different this year. Last summer I never noticed a pink blush. Since I used the same amendments, I’m guessing this might be from the high heat, followed by excess rains. Another layer of compost was spread at the base yesterday.

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Not all plants in my garden are cultivated varieties. The Blue Vervain is a welcomed volunteer. This native of Europe, Barbary, China, Cochinchina and Japan grew in ancient times. The name derives from Celtic ferfaen, from fer (to drive away) and faen (a stone). The Druids included it in their lustral water. In my garden, it blends well with the perennials and looks great in wild flower arrangements.

A Modern Herbal, Vol. II | Richters Herbs | Downloads

After reading an article by Graham Rice, I realize that my ‘Double Jewel’ reverted back to its parent “Plenum Album’. Mine is too tall and the flowers are missing the dark eye. I will let the geranium self-seed, and maybe I will get a nice surprise next year.

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Blue Mirror is still growing strong but only in one location. All those planted in flower beds died. The survivors are in beds made of black left over drainage ditch pipes. The beds were half filled with raw compost (3 years ago), topped with one layer of horse manure and another of garden soil. I rarely water these beds. So basically they are left to fend for themselves.

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New pelargonium purchased this year at Loblaws. Not to be confused with the Rosebud or Noisette zonal of the mid to late nineteenth century. This new version is the work of Gummen, plant breeders and producers of Germany. In North America, they operate under the name Red Fox. They also produced the Savannah Series.

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