It gets in your blood. It’s like a fever. I’m talkin’ about showing roses baby, show roses. Once you get a taste you gotta have it. You go for the blue, all the way. You want it bad. You want to be “on the table.” Your heart skips a beat Continue Reading
Do-It-YourselfEntertaining TalesGarden LegendsGardening & Social MediaHoliday TributesIllinois GardensPlantsRosesUncategorized
Love You Best, Mom
“Love You Best” was what she said. Mother made every person feel they were the person she loved best. Peonies were her favorite flower. Every year in northern Illinois in preparation for the spring bloom I would take the hand tool and cultivate around each peony bush, add peat moss Continue Reading
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Floribunda Rose Garden
The transition from USDA planting zone 7b (Lower South) to 6a (N. & Central Midwest) was a big deal for me. Plano, TX planting zone 7b, where I had over 200 roses is home to places like Dallas, Austin & San Antonio with long hot & humid summers and mild Continue Reading
Do-It-YourselfEntertaining TalesGarden MakeoversGarden PhotographyGardening & Social MediaGeese GirlsIllinois Gardens
A Rosarian’s Ode To Lilacs
Something happened on my way to building the new rose garden. A memory so vivid it took my breath away. Fragrance triggers are like lightening bolts in our brain. The fragrance was the smell of a lilac bush just starting to bloom on a cool Continue Reading
Rose Garden Eclipse of the Heart
Does a watched rose bush produce a rose bud more quickly? I don’t think so. Waiting for your rose garden to leaf out, produce canes and ultimately rose buds is like waiting for paint to dry. So I’ve come up with some things for you to do. This is an Continue Reading