Wow, Jackie! What a HUGE accomplishment!! Isn’t it crazy how there is always some hazardous obstacle from years past to discover once you being excavating a patch of soil around an antique house? My 1912 house was moved in 1926 to the site of an old brick yard. Even after 20 years, I still unearth chunks of history now and again. Your developing garden area is going to be just lovely, a real change from ivy and monster shrubs! I can already see it taking shape and can imagine what it will look like once you get your hands in the soil to work your magic. It sounds like you have a solid plan and a good amount of time to move your climbing roses. Wishing you and DH all the best! Carol

What fun connections to the past! I love it that you and DH are reusing what you can of historical found objects like the old stepping stones and that you are discovering archealogical garden finds like an old pond. I also love it that you have an antique photo of the area with a child from the past standing in the garden. It always creates a sense of wonder in me when I think about all the people who stood in the very place where I am standing now. Your reincarnation fence reminds me of my reincarnation door. We had a contractor cut a “new” entry into the side of our house, but as it turns out, it was an old entry, not a new one. Our house was likely turned sideways when it was moved in order to fit this lot. The door I had cut is exactly where the former front door was located! Carol

Carol - that definitely sounds like fate! Old houses are indeed full of fascinating wonders, as are old gardens. Now, all of the roses I would ever think to plant in my garden are clones of the ones we already have growing here - some of them were "rustled" from old homes nearby, some were inherited survivors in this garden, and some were experiments, but all of them like our soil/climate, and to me that is the important thing. We don't spray, and have zillions of birds and other creatures in the garden. A doe had her fawn here in the Spring, and the two of them are still hanging around - they disappear for a couple of days or so, but even the incredible noise of the deconstruction and digging just made them move to a back part of the garden. Thus the new deer fence!

Did you inherit any old roses growing in the garden of your old house?

Jackie

Great project, Jackie. Re-using the old stones, etc is a great idea indeed-they will look much, much better than a lot of shiny new stuff,seriously.

Oh, I was so pleased to see that you "harvested" the old bricks and all! OF COURSE you did! Is there a chance of reconstructing the old pond???

Jeri - the old pond is still there, filled in - you can only see the concrete curb around it a bit if you peer under the shrubbery. However, it is under the one huge bush we left intact, as it protects the view of our bedroom windows from the neighbor's house, and also the ancient ancestor's lovely old camellia bush next to it, which likes its shade. So, the answer to your question is No. My DH does not want a pond in any case, as he does not want to have to maintain it. Here is a pic of the plant ( on the upper right - we think it is escallonia rubra) and its friend the old camellia, and 2 other friends:

Jackie

Jackie, I love that your roses are all clones of ones either from your old house garden or rustled from your area. I applaud your method of choosing plants that have thrived around your home for ages. You are simultaneously creating a garden that is healthy and historical and one that anchors the neighborhood with both beauty and a real sense of locale. The wildlife must be thanking you daily for the urban refuge! I really enjoy your photos of animals sharing your garden.

The only inherited rose in my current garden is what I believe is a Mr. Lincoln from the 1960s. It is now struggling to dominate its Dr. Huey roostock, so I plan to try some cuttings. My grandfather and mother grew ML (passed from one to the other), so I have a soft spot for this midcentury HT, and it has grown beautifully for me in Portland even though, like yours, my garden is no spray. I have also been trying unsuccessfully to root an old moss from my neighborhood. I have permission to dig some roots and am going to give that a shot this fall. If I manage to get it growing, the forum will definitely be the first to see photos.

Carol

Carol - I would love to see your old moss rose. I have found many of the old roses I have from nearby when I go for walks in the oldest areas of our town. Two of them were just bits of the top of canes sticking out of hedges (one of those turned out to be a glorious old clone of Maman Cochet). Others of them were on lots where the houses were empty, and in several cases slated to be torn down. If the roses looked healthy, and had been there for years, I always take a cutting to see what it will turn into. The only ones I ignore are the endless numbers of Dr. Huey bushes, which are so vigorous as rootstock that if a rose is neglected Dr. Huey always wins.

Jackie

Such an impressive project! Best wishes that it will continue to go well for you.

I wanted to share some good news with you. I had asked you some advice for my Anna Olivier, mistakely dug up by a work crew, then hurriedly replanted by them when they realized it was the wrong rose. I followed your suggestion for daily watering. New growth started very soon thereafter. If it continues as it has begun, the rose will be back to its old self in a year or two.

Wishing you similar success when you move your own roses.

Thank you Rosefolly - we have been having amazingly good weather, considering the rest of CA - fog every morning from the Ocean, which keeps our daytime temps in the 70s - I am hoping this continues, so that when we start planting/moving roses, they will get the advantage of benign weather.

Jackie

P.S. Forgot to say - glad to hear your AO is recuperating - the old teas are quite strong roses, as long as the climate is warm enough for them.

Absolutely! Hopefully, third time will be a charm and my moss starts will root this fall. Carol