Wise words, Ingrid. I'm sorry for your far-too-dry roses, but admire your ability to take the situation gracefully.

I'm so sorry your garden is still struggling, Ingrid - I was only thinking recently how beautifully fresh everything was looking in some recent photos you posted - I'm not sure if I posted a comment, but I thought it. Adaptability to changing physical realities must indeed be the key to survival - of all sorts of dreams as well as gardens - but I know sometimes that can be so hard, even to know what or how to adapt successfully.

Just out of interest, have you tried interspersing any of your tough Californian natives amongst the roses? I know it's a tricky one to pull off here, since many of our native species cannot tolerate phosphorous, and so would be harmed by rose fertilisers, but I am planning/hoping to try putting in a few toughish/species/not-too-far-from-species roses (Rosa Primula, Golden Wings, and Autumn Delight - the hybrid musk) this winter to mingle with our locally indigenous Callitris Gracilis (a columnular evergreen), Banksia Marginata (scrubby tree/shrub with yellow candle-like inflorescences, Xanthorea Semi-Plana (local grass-tree), and Acacia Pycnantha (golden wattle), with a yellow tea or tea-noisette (maybe Duchesse d'Auerstadt) climbing into the wattle tree from a different bed where I can feed it; along with various dark and bright green/ grey/ purple-leafed ground covers. I'm hoping they might all agree to be friends, if the roses will put up with starvation rations, and harmonise visually in a rather delicious semi-wild sort of yellow/ grey/ green/ purple mosaic on my roadside verge. (I have pictures on Pinterest, but no idea how to get them out of there and into Houzz, otherwise I'd post them.)

Do you grow R. Californica/Californica Plena? It looks very pretty in photos, but don't know if it would do well in your conditions. I'm sorry to have to confess, that's the only Californian native I know of. I love the idea of mixing wild and slightly-more-cultivated plants into a not-quite wild, not quite tamed landscape!

Comtesse :¬)

Thanks, Melissa. You've certainly had frequent challenges with your garden(s) and have never given up the struggle, and you have so many more roses and other plants to deal with. My solution is to have fewer and fewer roses. I probably need to grow more of the kinds of plants comtesse mentions. My problem is that my garden is subdivided into small areas and if I have roses there it's difficult to find room for anything else, and most of the natives get fairly large. The native plants I've tried have all died because they were in one of the really hot areas. You'd think they would be acclimated, but the solar radiation in this place with close-up bare hillsides and boulders, and large areas of concrete, is just so intense. The native plants like ceanothus that were already here in the wilder sections have all died in the drought. Even the native flora depends on an adequate amount of winter rain. In places where it's getting too hot for the roses I'll take them out and look into tougher plants that need less water, but I'm still fighting a rear-guard action and am not yet ready to give up.

Ingrid:

Your spirit is reflected in the haunting beauty of your gardens. Whether lush or spare, there's something about your gardens that moves people --just look at the responses you get every time you post pictures. I design gardens everyday and am not easily impressed, yet your gardens reach into my soul and leave an imprint. Anyone who says she is not an artist while creating such poignant images in the harshest conditions needs to endure -- I'm so glad you're not ready to give up.

jannike

For my heat radiant areas I plan on:

Adding more mulch over my drip system, last year the difference between some type of drip system vs a hose is amazing

I added fruit trees so shade them in the summer, even though they will take time to grow I am at least using my water for food

And I will be adding a couple of the light colored under$20 shade triangles from Costco to cool the area

On plants the shade sail will not cover I will use a tomato cage and shade cloth to give them a break

I also will not put roses in a hot zone and instead pick a more appropriate salvia

I think Las Pilitas has a nursery in your part of the state. It might be a good idea to visit them

jannike, I'm so moved by your comments. The fact that you design gardens and find something to like in my very modest one does give me a sense of pride, especially since I greatly admire what you've achieved at Humpty Dumpty House's gardens. I hope you are making steady progress health-wise and will be back home soon.

Kippy, you're doing a lot to deal with the drought and I really admire that. We are putting in a drip system soon and just bought more bags of mulch today to keep the plants cooler. A large part of the planting, especially the new roses I put in, will have afternoon shade. It really makes a huge difference to the roses. I'm curious to see though, how heat tolerant roses like Snowbird and Carding Mill will do in the hotter area of the garden.

Jannike, I'm thrilled you're out of the hospital; I did not expect that. Please do take it very easy so that you don't have a setback.

Your SdlM is beautiful! I gather it is the climber form? I think this rose knew you were coming back and made a special effort to bloom to bring you some joy.

I'm glad you're out of the hospital Jannike.

Ingrid I'm sorry about this difficult spring. I know how much the beauty of your garden means to you. Best wishes.

Thanks for your well-wishes Ingrid and Pam. Ingrid, I got two SdlM climbers and one shrub. These were very slow to start in our gardens at Humpty Dumpty House (at least in comparison to the Austins which are racehorses for us). But wow, are they blooming now -- just fabulous! I do think gardens thrive with our love, just as they shower us with joy. And that may have been the case with my homecoming. On the other hand, I do chuckle that she shaped up in the nick of time to save her neck from the shovel!