A post about Evelyn. Two years ago I saw she was unhappy in her part sun home, desparately straining for more sunlight. So I planted in the middle of a full sun bed in the front yard and she grew fat and happy. Here she is now, at the top of a 7 1/2 foot obelisk

She shares the obelisk with Mme Julia Correvon. I had originally intended to have Aloha share the obelisk with Mme Julie, but decided I didn’t like Aloha’s coarse blooms and lack of scent, so out she went. Evelyn is paler than Aloha so the combo is more contrasty, but I still like it.

Evelyn blooms a ton , lasts well, and will fill a room with peach fragrance, so there’s plenty to cut and share with friends

She is one of the few Austins that can bloom and hold in the heat of summer, here’s a bouquet taken last summer when it was well over 100 degrees, she pairs nicely with Just Joey.

I neeeeed Evelyn!

I agree about Evelyn. The only Austins I have grown in Texas that can compare are... Dark Lady and Abe. These excell in ..

size of flower, long vase life, bush strength, fragrance, continual bloom, maintain form on bush for several days. These guys thumb their nose at our heat., my August flowers are almost as good as my spring barely any change not in color or size. (This is why I push Dark Lady so often here. My Abe sometimes balls in wet weather but that could be due to positioning.)

All my other Austins, though they have great qualities, fail in one of these important categories. This is just my experience in my garden. .

No wonder you were chosen. That garden landscaping is amazing. No way I could do that landscaping. I spent hours this weekend trying to help my wife with her flower bed, and it is much less permanent and not as nice than yours, and when she returned home today with my work so incomplete she was still complimentary. At my age it is hard to get her compliments.

Ben - I can't believe how big your FF is! Glorious! Mine is about 1/4" right now. LOL Sigh. And your Evelyn!!! Swoon!! And those vases!!! I love them both...but the green one is gorgeous! Evelyn looks great in that beautiful vase!

Mark - I love how you're still trying to be her hero! :)

Stephanie,

I’m sure Evelyn will be well suited to your hot inland CA California area. My mom lives in San Joaquin Valley, I’ve often thought of planting an Evelyn there.

Austin,

I agree a few DA varieties are very well suited to TX, many of them look like they’d rather stay in England. I wish DA would start breeding roses better suited for Southern US.

Carol

I hope Firefighter and all your garage freeze survivors have some nice basal shoots this spring. At some point in the winter I told myself I had too many roses on order, so I started collecting vases to put them in , lol. Thanks for noticing!

Mark,

Wonderful that you are so thoughtful to help your wife in the garden, and even better that she knows it and appreciates your efforts.

Holy Ben! I just saw this thread today- clearly I haven’t been keeping up. I’m sorry the garden tour was canceled, but I appreciate you taking all of us on it! So much beauty and inspiration, it’s a good thing I’m not within walking distance, I’d be in your yard all the time.

Anyone have a rec for a good rubber hose with brass fittings? If I could find a hose as good as that “pink shovel” life would be so fine! 😎
I leave out yr round, not into garage storage of a hose in Texas.

Right now, I have about thirty roses growing in pots, and only four of them have blackspot:

Black Magic

Candice

Radio Times

Abraham Darby

All except Candice, which was in bad shape when I received it last Summer, are babies that I hope will outgrow this, and it is not their normal disposition. Your input regarding Abe, Austin, makes me somewhat hopeful.

Oh so in agreement regarding D.A. rose breeding, Ben.

I spray or did until my sprayer broke . Waiting for My 4 Sons to have product to sell. Wish I could convince someone to give Dark Lady a try - she will not disappoint

Nick,

Thank you, I would love to visit your garden, too ! Then again, I never tire of talking about gardening and would probably overstay my welcome. Most my neighbors are the ‘plant it and forget about it’ type of gardeners, unfortunately.

Austin,

This is simply the Best Hose money can buy, unfortunately it takes a good deal of money to buy it. I will spend good money only when a product is worth it, I’ve been known to drag a rose out of a garbage bin for a dollar before. I leave mine outside and pressurized, it’s very flexible and doesn’t kink. I can’t believe My4Sons is totally out of stock, must have some parts sourcing issues with our current pandemic situation.

Lynn

What a nice collection of roses you are gathering, some of those quite hard to find. Where in the world did you get Candice last year? I agree with Austin that Abe is a great rose in Texas.

Ben-

Right now, I am dissatisfied in not having enough roses to keep me busy. Some of the collectibles I have came from a family member and rose loving kindred spirit who moved from Houston to Dallas last Summer, others I just got lucky and was able to acquire.

Ben the last part about the hose was cut - it does that sometimes and not others wish I knew why... could u send again please

Ben - Thanks! This is the first year that I haven't have tons of basals growing in the garage...white and thin so that I have to take them off. That feels just horrible. Maybe now the basals will grow under the sun's warmth.

Austin - I was thinking...what? did I miss the part about the hose? Glad it wasn't just me. :)

Part of messages get cut off... hate that. I sent Houzz a messages asking why

Some long messages are not affected others are. Like our phones assuming a word in a correction, sometimes leaving things off changes the intent

Austin and Vap,

Not sure what display issue you‘re having, but the hose can be found HERE

A rose with a truly mesmerizing scent, this is Sugar Moon. It doesn’t smell of rose or fruit like so many others, it smells like someone dropped a bottle of perfume! It starts off as a traditional high centered HT:

I opens up wide and round, indeed like a moon, with some red stamens in the middle. The blooms are good size , about 5” and last well. I bouquet like the one below will fill a whole room with scent. It really is one of the most reliably strong and pleasant scents in the rose world. Everyone who smells Sugar Moon will want one of their own!

Here’s the plant, unfortunately my camera did a poor job on the detail. Well branched but very upright:

Sugar Moon with her neighbors, Lady in Red and Mellow Yellow

A bunch of my most fragrant roses cut inside to compare scents. Neil Diamond (strong pure rose), Tahiitian Sunset (anise), Firefighter (also very rosy), Neptune (lemon), Voodoo (spicy) and Beverly (strangely like mango compared to the others).

Here’s Neil Diamond, blooming together with Eden. I like they way the look together, like some sort of candy treat.

Austin, a hose I adore is Flexzilla. Cant remember about its fittings, whether they are brass or not, but I have several of these - they are light, dont kink and are a pure pleasure to use. They come in quite a few colors, but my Tractor Supply, where I got mine, only carries a neon lime green. It tends to look mildewey - I am busy and dont have time to clean a water hose so I let it be. Wish I could get it in a darker color so that gunk wouldnt show up, but it is such a wonderful hose I just dont care! It is about $44 and worth every cent.

Ben - Oh my!!!! Your Lady in Red is sooo amazing!!!! I love it!! I'm getting a Sugar Moon this year...so I'm looking forward to smelling its fragrance! Your Neil Diamond and Eden look fabulous together! Thank, so much, for the fragrance descriptions.

Have no idea why your messages di not come in full Ben going to trh on my computer. The last stopped at the hose... crazy ! Maybe Houzz has an issue with that hose company ... joking

While we are talking hoses, I must that while I have no doubt the Flexzilla hose is great for Judith, it was awful for me. It was so bad a wrote a review on Amazon , set to the lyrics of Rick James’ SuperFreak. To my great suprise, over 1700 people voted it the Most Helpful Review on this hose

I once saw a “life after death “ show where the lady was transported through the universe to see planets and galaxies on her way to heaven . And I made a mental note to ask my guardian angel for such a tour as well . But before I get that far Ben , I’ll be asking to whisk by your garden first . I simply must see it in person! It’s incredible, and you are so talented and blessed .

Just ordered the one from Eley but had to go to my computer to see your recommendation. Apparently I am missing a lot of the end of post. It must have something to do with my Apple
products but have no idea how to fix it, nothing in setting that I can see.

Alameda thanks, appreciate your response and the Flexzilla was the right price but could not do the bright green nor the black mold... I am sure it is a fine hose but surely people do not drink from anything with a coating of black mold. Since I was not going to drink it would have probably been ok.

I figured since I have to buy a new $280 sprayer I may as well spring for a $150 hose. In for a penny in for a pound as they say. I will be going down as the best dressed bag lady on the corner with my designer purses, no leak hoses, and battery sprayer. I don't eat much and old people get cold so I can sweat in the Texas heat and be OK.

Ben, you are a hoot! You should do a music video to your song with the hose! Do it among your beautiful roses - you would be a utube star!! I guess dragging around cheap hoses from Walmart made me think the Flexzilla was the bomb. Still........in spite of the color, it works well for me. My problem is that I have so many places to have hoses, many beds, lots of spigots here and there [I live on a horse farm] it would be tough buying that many expensive hoses. So at this juncture, the Flexzilla is way better than the ones I have been using. One of these days when I can stop buying roses, I will treat myself to a first class hose!

Ben - ha!!!! I love it!!! :)

Lilyfinch - what a wonderful idea!

Jen

You are too kind and sweet, thank you so much. Would love to have you visit some time if that were at all a reality, but I’m afraid the garden doesn’t look as good in real life, sometimes I’ve just got a pic positioned to make it look nice. But I’d gather my local rose buddies, and we’d have quite the day rose shopping , viewing gardens , endless garden talk!

Austin,

We do spend an awful lot on this hobby , don’t we? I really do try to bargain hunt, but if I feel something worth its price, I will say so.

Judith

I must say the first flexzilla I bought was good, I used it for several years without much care. But I bought a second one years later, it was the unbelievably bad , they must have switched materials or suppliers. If I just glanced at it , it would kink in 10 different places! That’s when I wrote my Super Freak tribute.

Carol,

I can imagine what all those pale shoots from garaged roses must look like. I have a buddy that keeps buying potatoes , letting them sprout in his pantry, and buying more. If there’s a pandemic induced potato shortage, I know where I’ll go to get a head start on sprouted potatoes to grow.

It’s Lavender Crush!

I’m cutting bouquets for myself and friends. One of my absolute favorite roses, LC has one of the strongest lemon and rose perfumes, and perhaps the most purple blooms with a unique white reverse to highlight. She lasts long, repeats well, and grows strong. I wonder what was used to breed it, there are no other roses remotely like it!

Does she look best dressed in blue?

Or jade green?

Or deep green?

I added some Mock Orange (Philadelphus) to make the scent even more over the top.

Hmmm, now the other bouquets need some mock orange too, Out to cut some more...bye!

WOW!!!! What gorgeous purple roses!!! Do you think it will do well in my zone/south OC? How big does it get? Is it a floribunda or ht? Thanks for the visuals. Really like it!

forgot to write: I like the deep green vase best. :)

I like your LC with the blue personally.

I like the blue as well - that’s an incredible looking arrangement. I don’t think LC liked my freeze/thaw cycles here - it just dwindled away but I enjoy seeing how well it does for you.

Try creamy white vase something like milk glass. My new hose has been shipped. I only needed one 100footer Alameda but if I gardened on a horse farm I would do same as you. Now if My 4 Sons would only get availability - otherwise I may have to start a no spray garden.

FYI: I read somewhere that the three most expensive hobbies the average person could engage in were yachting, equestrian, and gardening.
I have hit 2 of the 3. Alameda have you ever owned a big boat??? Maybe you could make it 3 out of 3. 🤩

Up late watching A Man Called Ove. Read the book and loved it. Movie has subtitles you hardly notice Highly recommend, a sure fire feel good watch....the book made me laugh out loud many times during the read.

On Amazon Prime

Ben - LOL yup, you'll be squared away for potatoes. :) Wow!! Your Lavender Crush is really beautiful!!! Especially the close up!! As to which vase (I love questions like this!!)...I would order them from as #2 (fav), then #3 (almost as good as #2) and then #1. What's your opinion on the vases with LC?

Austin - yeah, I remember reading that somewhere...I think my husband shared it with me. LOL

I love LC in the green vase!

My goodness. We shall name Ben the rose fairy of TX! Beautiful photos! You should do a youtube.

What a picturesque garden!

Why oh why do I never see Lavender Crush in any of my stores.

And choose the dark Jade Green

I love how we all like different colors of these vases. :)

Thanks everyone for the nice words and the votes! Personally I like the dark green vase best for Lavender Crush I think the deep color works well to bring out LC purple hue. But the blue vase is my favorite on its own, blue works so well with all roses since it’s the color of water and doesn’t compete with any rose.

Jen

I think Lavender Crush would be fantastic is zone 10, probably would enjoy your climate more than mine.

Every spring, Moonstone manages to have the most perfect flush of all my roses.

Every bloom is perfect

Every stem is perfect

Every leaf on the the whole plant is perfect, which has perfect shape.

The blooms are huge and uniform, and nothing seems to bother it. We had Bortrytis and weather issues all springs, yet Moonstone looks like it was grown under glass. Such an impressive rose. Not much fragrance and slow to repeat , hopefully that will improve with age, but just so beautiful in spring. A friend sent me this link from rose.org, it appears Moonstone is the top exhibition rose, followed by Veterans Honor. Not surprised at all, these are such perfect and infallible roses.

Wow!!! You're so right!!! Everything about that bush is perfection from the leaves to the stems to the blossoms!! What a treat!

Well you convinced me for Moonstone and Heirloom has stock. I am not a hybrid tea person usually but your bush pictures were convincing. FYI: Love the hose. My last rubber one was great for many years and I left it for days under pressure. I could not find the label so the brand was a mystery. Sure hated to spend so much for this new hose but I think my last one was $89 and probably more now. The older I get the more I value things that make gardening easier. I intend to go down in flames if the economy crashes. :)

HMF describes Moonstone as white... does it lose all pink tones in summer? Heirloom cannot send until June so I can change if need be, sure love you rose but still have D Austin roses that white out in summer so prefer not to add more. Love a soft pink however.

@BenT (NorCal 9B Sunset 14) glorious posts/pics of your garden. I keep looking at everything again and again. Thanks for sharing! Quick question--is your Dolly Parton rose beset by powdery mildew? Mine is almost constantly covered despite spraying here in my Portland, OR garden. None of my other roses have it, but DP just seems to hold on to it. So exasperating. I don't find the plant itself to be all that pretty either. It's the color and fragrance of the blooms that make me keep it.

Hi PDXRobert, I had heard that Dolly Parton was susceptible to Powdery Mildew. I didn’t have that in Texas, so it wasnt a problem for me. But blackspot liked Dolly too, so I sprayed for that. I do think that Dolly is one of the the most spectacular individual bllooms among all roses: huge , saturated rich color , powerful fragrance. `So for me, she was worth the trouble.