Growing Roses & Growing Friends

Link | October 13, 2016April 1, 2017 | Teresa / TheGardenDiary.com

THE AMERICAN ROSE SOCIETY

Through the American Rose Society, I have rose friends from all over the country that enrich my rose hobby. This society exists to promote the culture and appreciation of the rose, through education and research to members, to local rose societies and their members and to the public.

Locally our rose growing season is coming to an end, but, like NYC, the American Rose Society is an organization that never sleeps. There will be something going on all winter long. If you are not a member, isn’t this a perfect time to join! So many rosey benefits!

ARS Year in Review 2016

Fun to see what’s going on in the world of the American Rose Society! Look closely, there might be a sighting of yours truly.😉

MEMBERSHIP…

Most ARS members are home gardeners who enjoy growing roses and want to expand their knowledge of rose culture. Starting now gives you all winter for learning and getting ready for spring! If you are not ready to take on a full membership, give it a try with the cost effective TRIAL MEMBERSHIP and see what you think.

FOUR-MONTH TRIAL MEMBERS RECEIVE:

Free advice from Consulting Rosarians.
Free or reduced garden admissions, a $25 value after just 3 uses.
Free online access to five quarterly bulletins, a $45 value.
2 issues of American Rose magazine, $16 value.
Discounts of up to 30% at merchant partners.
A four-month trial membership is valued at $86 for only $10!

For FULL MEMBERS, one of my fav ARS member benefits currently is the monthly newsletter. I am the editor! To see a sample of the newsletter, read on here.

For the trial membership or a yearly membership, complete the online form or call 800-637-6534.

New ARS Website coming soon!

OUR LOCAL SOCIETY … INDIANAPOLIS ROSE SOCIETY

For this society I serve at 1st Vice President and Chairman for website and social media.

In this organization I have met amazing people of all ages. We are all at different stages of the gardening experience and have different passions. Some are into just growing while others with the competitive spirit, enter the most amazing blooms and arrangements in competitions! We have those who use chemicals and others who are all organic. Some members have 1 rose and some have 500 roses. One of the great perks is getting to visit members gardens. This group has some amazing gardens.

But it is so much more…

We spend time enjoying all things “rose” together. We learn, we laugh, we celebrate successes and we deal with failures & issues together. It’s not just roses that keep us together, over the years–we have become family and you are welcome anytime!

This year we have members coming from Marion, Kokomo, Bloomington and most of the surrounding burgs!

Our 2017 year started off with a bang in March. Dr. Mark Windham gave a program on getting our gardens off to a good start and gave us the latest on his research with Rose Rosette.

You can keep up with what’s going on by subscribing to our blog at INDIANAPOLISROSESOCIETY.COM. You will receive posts in your email as we “post” them. Most of our meetings are the second Tuesday at 6:30 pm at the Sullivan Munce Center in charming Zionsville. Get it on your calendar! HERE’S WHAT’S COMING UP FOR 2017.

Come grow with us!

Biltmore International Rose Trials 2016

Link | September 30, 2016August 17, 2018 | Teresa / TheGardenDiary.com

 The Roses, The Garden, The Hats!!

THE ROSE TRIALS. . .

There is so much for me to love about the rose world. Roses, rose friends and rose events add so much to my life. None more than the annual pilgrimage to judge roses at the Biltmore. What a pleasure to be in this beautiful place with so many beautiful friends. And, the roses, oh my, spending this last weekend in September in the Biltmore rose garden is truly ending my rose growing season on a high note.

ABOUT THE TRIALS:

The trial is dedicated to the backyard gardener and is open to professional as well as amateur rose hybridizers from around the world. Each trial lasts two years and a permanent jury judges the roses four times per year. Even in winter!

Roses are evaluated for their overall health and vigor, fragrance, disease resistance and their ability to rebloom. All things that we backyard gardeners are looking for. In my garden are several of the past winners and I am making plans to add a few of these as well! 🙂

And, the 2016 winner are…

POLAR EXPRESS (Kordes Sunbelt Collection) Link to New Flora http://newflora.com/product/polar-express-rose/

Best Growth Habit
Best Floribunda
Most Outstanding Rose of the Trial

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HONEYMOON (Kordes Arbors Collection) More info here.

Lord Burleigh Award for Most Disease Resistance
Gilded Age Award for Best Climber

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DOUBLE 10 by Ping Lim

Pauline Merrell Award for Best Hybrid Tea

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THE LARK ASCENDING by David Austin

Chauncey Beadle Award for Best Shrub

B/26A/06(M)LUC/HAxGC/MMT(10)

An amazing collection!

THE GARDEN…

Belinda’s Dream was so dreamy–I could hardly tear myself away! You can order this one here. Lucky for me, my Belinda’s Dream was blooming when I got home! (More about that here.)

Pink Pet (Sometimes thought to be Caldwell Pink … read more about that here. Also sold at Chamblees.)

Strike it Rich … Mercy! Tom Carruth has a winner with this one. Read more.

THE HATS. . .

Marci Martin always lovely and always inspiring. Check out her FB page here.

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Tina VanCleave, Marci and I having just the best time!

Jim Wilson and Susan Foxx.

Debbie Clark taking note!

Award winning rose grower, Cindy Dale, hard at work!

George Ann Hamilton … so lovely in her pink!

THE BEST PART…

Mr. G and I were celebrating our 39th anniversary that day.

He is the VERY BEST!

These guys know how to say “welcome home”!

Link | September 27, 2016September 27, 2016 | Teresa / TheGardenDiary.com

Last week when I left home for the Biltmore, there was not very much going on in the garden. (A post about the incredible Biltmore Rose Trials is coming very soon!)

Back to the garden… Something changed while I was gone. Rain. Lots of rain. The rain came and things started blooming! You can water and water and water but nothing is like a good soaking rain.

Caution... excessive garden pictures to follow...

Lady Ashe

Sunshine Daydream

Belinda’s Dream

Petit Pink

Quietness

More Quietness

Moje Hammarberg Rugosa

Dick Clark

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Smoothie

Flamenco Rosita

Flamenco Rosita 2

View from the Potting Shed porch.

Some of them were ready to come inside! 🙂

I am enjoying every single one of them! It’s gonna be hard to say goodbye for the winter. You are going to have to help me through it!

Wishing you a wonderful day and a warm welcome wherever you go!

FALL ROSE CARE

Link | September 10, 2016September 10, 2016 | Teresa / TheGardenDiary.com

Even though the temps are still high and the rain has decided to pour down on us, it’s time for me to admit that fall is near and winter is coming. Time to prepare the garden for the long winter’s nap. In my Zone 5b garden that could mean most anything as I’ve seen winters with more days than I care to count below 0 and then there are the mild midwest winters. From the blizzard of 1978 to the polar vortex to jacket weather–we’ve seen it all!

Regardless, good fall care makes spring all the sweeter.

SNOWDAY_005

STOP FERTILIZING & DEADHEADING

About 6 weeks before expected frost, it is time to stop fertilizing and deadheading the roses. Since in my neck of the woods, the first frost date can be anywhere from October 5 – October 28.

Stopping the deadheading process tells the roses it’s okay to begin to go to sleep and start producing seeds in the form of rose hips. (Read more about rose hips here.) Don’t trim those off either–the birds find them particularly yummy.

GENERAL CLEANUP

Remove all diseased leaves from around your roses. Black spot and other fungal diseases are not discouraged by cold temperatures and will just over winter and be there next spring– so they must go! Don’t add any of your diseased leaves to your compost pile … they will overwinter there too!

PRUNING

I don’t do much pruning in the fall (Read about spring care here.), unless there are rose canes that have gotten extra tall or spindly. Those I trim back to prevent them from flapping in those cold winter winds as there is a danger of loosening around the roots and making the roses more susceptible to damage from the cold. Pruning says, “Let’s get busy growing.” That is the wrong message to send in the fall!

MULCH

I think it is very important to add an extra layer of mulch to protect the roses through the winter. And, for roses that are more tender, I will mound the mulch much higher on them–to about 1/2 the height of the shrub.

NOW WHAT?

Now it’s time to sit back, relax and pour through those beautiful catalogs and websites and get to dreaming, plotting and planning. Spring will be here in about 174 days.

Although fall and winter are not my favorites, I am thankful for every season in life and in the garden. My heart knows that… He makes everything beautiful in its time. Ecclesiastes 3:11

Keeping it Cool: Rose Ice Cream

Link | August 18, 2016 | Teresa / TheGardenDiary.com

Denise Schreiber, garden friend and author of Eat Your Roses, shared a wonderful, super easy rose ice cream recipe with me recently.

ROSE PETAL ICE CREAM

¾ cup of dried edible rose petals
1 quart of good quality vanilla ice cream
1 tablespoon of rose syrup (I used Monin)
½ cup of finely chopped pistachios
1 teaspoon of cardamom (Optional)

Soften ice cream. Crumble in your hand the dried rose petals (from roses that have not been sprayed with chemicals) as you would dried herbs. Stir in slightly then add rose syrup. Taste test first to see if you desire more syrup. Refreeze then serve.

For more recipes like this one, check out Denise’s Facebook page here.

What a treat! I used Rugosas petals in our ice cream and it was delicious! Yes, yummy rose flavored ice cream is a great way to enjoy summertime in the rose garden.

Do you have recipes that use roses and other flowers?

ROSE BUZZ: ROSEFEST

Link | April 30, 2016May 7, 2016 | Teresa / TheGardenDiary.com

YOU ARE INVITED!

The Indianapolis Rose Society is having a ROSEFEST on Saturday, June 11 at the 4H Fairground in Noblesville, IN.

$10 EVENT TICKETS AVAILABLE
CONTACT: Monica Taylor at IndyMonica@gmail.com or 317.514.7284

A DAY FILLED TO THE BRIM WITH ROSES!

This is going to be a day filled to the brim with roses. You can stop by for a few minutes or buy a $10 ticket and stay all day. The $10 ticket gives you entrance to hear all 3 speakers. I can tell you that this lineup of speakers is a Rose Dream Team.

Peggy Martin of New Orleans, LA
12:30 – 1:30 pm | Program: Old Garden Roses
Peggy is the VP of the Heritage Rose Foundation and owner of the original Peggy Martin Rose, the rose that survived Hurricane Katrina.

Carol Tumbas of Bloomington, IN
1:45 – 2:45 pm | Program: Hardy, Sustainable Shrub Roses
Carol is the former President of the Indianapolis Rose Society, a well respected rosarian and grower of more than 500 roses.

Gaye Hammond of Houston, TX
3 – 4 pm | Program: Earth-Kind Roses
Gaye is a noted expert of the Texas A & M Earth-Kind Program and lectures nationwide about growing roses in no spray conditions.

THE SCHEDULE

The day will start with the Hamilton County Master Gardener Association Tea in the Rose Garden and rose garden tour.

Then you can go inside to the conference center to see an amazing display of roses grown in the Indianapolis area, ask questions of Consulting Rosarians and hear from our great speakers. There will also be roses and rose products for sale.

For the complete schedule of the day, read on here.

TICKETS

With your $10 ticket you get to hear all 3 speakers! A true bargain for these great speakers.

There is a limited number of tickets (because of seating capacity), so buy your tickets ASAP by contacting Monica at IndyMonica@gmail.com or 317.514.7284. Seriously call or email her today! I don’t want you to miss this special event if you are in the area!

For more information about this event and other rose society events coming up — like the Wine and Roses garden tour, read on here.

Let me know if you have any questions?

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Rose Buzz: Helping Roses Be Their Best Self

Link | March 11, 2016March 11, 2016 | Teresa / TheGardenDiary.com

Contrary to popular belief, roses are simple creatures with basic needs like…

SUN: You’ve heard it said over and over …. LOCATION LOCATION LOCATION. Pick a spot with 6 – 8 hours of sun!

WATER: All living things need water. The best tip for watering I can give you is—water deeply. Shallow watering leads to shallow roots—which leads to plants that are more susceptible to dry conditions. Send those roots down deep!

NUTRITIOUS SOIL: This is the most important part! Good soil is the best gift you can give your plants. Roses don’t like like “wet feet,” (Neither do most other plants!), so drainage is key. For those of you in my region (midwest Zone 5) you are probably dealing with clay soil. Amend clay soils with compost and aged manure.

DEADHEADING: To keep your roses blooming throughout the season, remove spent blooms.

FERTILIZER: We ask a lot of roses … Be your best self and bloom all season long, so they appreciate a boost! For shrub roses the best time to fertilize is the spring. For hybrid teas and floribundas, they will appreciate some fertilizer in early spring and mid summer.

MULCH: 2-3″ of mulch helps retain moisture and provides a weed barrier. It is one of my fav parts in the process as it adds the finishing touch in the garden!

GOOD COMPANIONS: We all benefit from good companions. They truly help us be our best self and in the case of roses, many of those companions play host to the good bugs they need to fight the bad bugs lurking about!

YOU! Like in all good relationships, there is no substitute for time together. They like to show off for you and the more you visit the more you will recognize what is working and what is not! Maybe this is the year to take a selfie of you and your roses and post it on social media. That will surely prove how much you love them. 🙂

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Some of my roses on a beautiful summer day…

Rose Buzz: Beverly HT

Link | January 8, 2016January 2, 2016 | Teresa / TheGardenDiary.com

_Rose Buzz_Beverly.jpg

I am so excited to share my Beverly Hybrid Tea rose with you. It is a true beauty.

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This is a Kordes rose and Kordes roses are known for winter hardiness, disease resistance and beauty! Many are full petaled, with the old fashion form and fragrance. I have several Kordes roses in my garden and they have lived up to their reputation! More about those later.

Beverly’s blooms are so very pretty right from the beginning bud stage to fully open. The foliage is also amazing — almost looks unreal

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I have had this rose for 3 years and it rarely has any sign of disease. (Actually I have 5 of them.)

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This is one that will hold up very well in a vase for you too. The front rose in this vase from last summer is Beverly!

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A TRUE WINNER

At the 2013 Biltmore International Rose Trials, Beverly was a big winner, winning the award for Best Hybrid Tea and the coveted Most Fragrant Rose award.

SOURCES

If you are considering buying this rose, check out these sources…

Chamblee Roses

Edmunds Roses

If you grow this rose, let me know your growing zone and how it performs for you!

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Rose Buzz: Gruss an Aachen

Link | January 1, 2016January 2, 2016 | Teresa / TheGardenDiary.com

Rose Buzz_Gruss2

This light pink rose was hybridized in Germany by Wilhelm Hinner who worked for Philipp Geduldig’s nursery in 1908. Not only is this rose beautiful, it is also fragrant and has the multi-petaled lovely old world charm that I adore.

It is considered by most to be the first floribunda. I have also read it is one of the more shade tolerant roses.

Since this rose grows to only about 3 high and wide, she will fit nicely in to most any sized garden. She did have some black spot issues in July when it was raining every day, but I cut her back, spritzed with Mil Stop and she finished strong and healthy.

I have 3 of these in the garden that were planted 3 years ago. While they bloomed well even the first year, last year was the best by far.

I originally had 4, but one had a harder time over the winter in my Zone 5 garden, so I dug it up. Since I love this rose so much, I couldn’t just throw it away; instead I lovingly planted it in a pot. And, I unlovingly forgot about it. The poor potted Gruss received very little care or water ALL SUMMER. It is now residing in my potting shed where I promise to pamper it over the winter. I just gave it a hardy drink of Moo Poo Tea and we will see how she does.