Royal Botanical Gardens - RBG

The Royal Botanical Gardens (RBG) is a phenomenal local resource that I don't visit often enough. In its brochure, it is described as "…an ecological jewel placed within the fastest growing urban area in all of Canada. A National Historic Site of Canada and the country's largest botanical garden, our focus is on horticulture, conservation, education, science and research". It is comprised of numerous gardens spread over 2,700 acres.
The RBG is literally 10 minutes from my house but I rarely get down there. But I finally went yesterday, at a time that was past the peak of many of the roses I went to photograph. But some were lovely nevertheless.

Inside the RBG Centre are many indoor gardens and waterfalls. The main attraction is the 12,000 sq. ft Mediterranean garden which features gorgeous exotic blooms year round.

I remembered having to enter Hendrie Park (which I always called the Rose Garden) through the main building and then under Plains Road through a tunnel. This is still the case:

Just past the tunnel are lovely displays featuring coleus, tuberous begonias and Elephant Ears.

The award winning Zimbabwean stone sculpture exhibit Zimsculpture is on display until the end of September. Many interesting statues were on display among the plantings.

The centre of the garden features 2 calming reflecting pools, a Tea House and the Centennial Rose Garden

Rosa 'Louis Jolliet'

Rosa 'Tropicana'

Rosa 'Hilgrome'

Rosa 'Royal William'

Climbing rose 'Dublin Bay'

Rosa 'Escapade'

Please check out my food blog where the latest recipe featured is Lemon Orzo with Asparagus Pasta Salad.

Rose Gardens Tuscan Style

I never grow tired of taking time to smell the scent of the roses, it comes naturally to pause at climbing roses, rose bushes, wild hedgerows and formal rose beds to take in the form of the blooms, the sheen of the leaves and the scent of the rose petals.  In Tuscany roses are grown in vineyards in vegetable gardens, on wild verges and on balconies, a timeless statement of natural beauty.  The climbing rose in particular works wonderfully in both informal and classic Tuscan Gardens.  I have some personal favorites such as Banksiae with its clusters of petit white or yellow blooms, this climber is robust and fast growing and will spread across walls and pergolas swiftly achieving a mature look in the first year of planting.  New Dawn is a delicate looking rose with pale pinky blooms often merging with a peach hue, this too is robust and hardy and will tolerate changeable weather conditions.  Constance Spry is personal friend and a firm favorite of mine and if you are looking for a stunning bush plant then you can't beat Jude The Obscure.  Another very good all-rounder is the Iceberg which needs little maintenance and will establish well in most situations.


In my nursery garden I have over 30 types of rose cuttings which I am watching over with baited breath I have had great success with Iceburg, Banksiae and many others so watch this space.  For details on roses that will thrive in Tuscany contact Sharon on 334 599 5702 or email bellaterra@arthouse-pr.com For research check out David Austin Roses at www.davidaustinroses.com

Banskiae

Constance Spry

Jude the Obscure

Iceburg

New Dawn

Roses in my garden

I have had a love/hate relationship with roses over the years. When I first started this garden 25 years ago, I attempted to grow a number of hybrid teas. They proved to be fussy, finicky, black-spotty and very high maintenance. As one after the other kicked the bucket, I thought: No More! But as usual after a good emotional outburst, I decided to check out options other than the hybrid teas. I am happy to report that a number of different types of roses do very well for me and I am in love with each and every one of them.

Let's start with the climbers:

I have 'Blaze' in 3 locations (and some of those have been moved several times!) 'Blaze' is a strong, hardy deep red climbing rose that blooms repeatedly, right through early fall into the first really cold days of November.
Most of mine are in direct sun or they get sun for at least 6 hours a day. The biggest one has long outgrown its trellis so it needed extra wires and support. It's right beside 'New Dawn', another popular climber, so maybe it's the two of them together that keep yanking down the trellis.

This year I think I will really feed them and pamper them more. They already put on a good show but I have seen photos where the flowers absolutely cover the whole plant. That's what I want! And I'll fertilize them to achieve that.

Here's 'New Dawn', a pale pink beauty that compliments 'Blaze' beautifully or stands out as royalty in its own right.

This stunning yellow rose lasted about 4 years in my garden and then died out, I'm not quite sure why.
I had planted 'Lichtkonigen Lucia' to intertwine with my deep purple Clematis 'Jackmanii' but they never did bloom at the same time. I did enjoy it while it was around and may consider replacing it someday.

Rugosa roses bloom only once in the season but are abundant and the most lovely shade of deep pink. They are shrubby and have phenomenally painful thorny stems but require absolutely no maintenance whatsoever, therefore I have several in the yard. They can grow to 6' x 6' so if you plant them, make sure you have the space.

Explorer roses are considered to be Canada's greatest contribution to the world of roses. They are named after famous (and not so famous!) Canadian explorers. The roses are very hardy, disease and mildew resistant and are often repeat bloomers.

At their peak, mine look magnificent against a background of the variegated leaves of red twig dogwood bushes.

I only have one David Austin rose 'Mary Rose' and it fights the shade of a huge linden tree now. But it blooms so delightfully, stretching out tall in search of the sun. She's a real trooper and I adore her. I bought this plant at the grocery store! (Amazing sometimes where you can get terrific plants!!)

I have a couple of lovely delicate-looking shrub roses called Flower Carpet White beside the peonies near the deck. They grow 3' x 3'. Their buds are a soft apricot shade but they open white. Gorgeous.

I have another white shrub rose that has grown into a monster - at least 8' x 8'! It sort of takes up the middle of a bed but blooms so nicely - single white blossoms blushed with pink once in early July - that I tend to ignore its bullying tendencies.

And last but certainly not least is the polyantha rose 'The Fairy' - a pale pink beauty that blooms profusely in summer and then all over again in late fall. Its buds are tight and deep pink and then it opens into a paler version of the same colour. I have it near some 'Silver King' artemesia and deep green evergreens. It's astonishing and unstoppable.

So if you are considering roses for your garden, remember - there are so many different types that I'm sure one or two "easy" ones will do beautifully for you!

Colour in the garden

Most gardeners do not consider themselves artists. But with a little help from Mother Nature, they certainly are artists! Just look at the colours that occur in the garden either by (happy!) chance or by plan.

Above is Artemesia 'Silver King' with the red climbing rose 'Blaze'. Pale gray is a terrific neutral colour  to have in a perennial bed - it enhances the colours right next to it and makes them much brighter.

Here Silver King is paired with the pale pink polyantha rose 'The Fairy'

The gray of Lamb's Ears (Stachys byzantina) brings up the multi-coloured pinks of Sweet William (Dianthus barbatus)

Some gardeners prefer soft pastels but hot colours like red and yellow together make a bold statement. Here is red Maltese Cross (Lychnis chalcedonica) beside Yellow Loosestrife (Lysimachia punctata)

On the other side of the garden, Maltese Cross stands out well with yellow Sneezeweed (Helenium autumnale)

When these deep purple petunias fill out over the summer, they will be a perfect dark spot between the different hostas surrounding them

On a walk through the garden last evening, I noticed an unexpected shot of hot pink peeking out through the pussywillow bushes

 It was the clematis I had purposely planted in there to wind its way through the branches but (typical me) had forgotten about it until now when it bloomed :)

Annuals play a very important role in the garden - the intensity of their colours are a joy to behold. For example a very deep dark purple petunia with white and blue Lobelia.

Colour echoes blend well in a garden: the spotty pink in the Caladium is echoed in the much deeper pink of the Rex Begonia

Even NEON colours have their place: hot pink Wave Petunia is paired with lime green Potato Vine.