Everything's Coming Up Roses....

Well, maybe not everything!


But, one of my climber roses is blooming profusely!

Because this climber rose was already here when we bought the house, we have no idea what kind it is, but from looking at pictures of other climbers, we suspect it might be a "William Baffin". 

This climber was in sad shape when we first bought the house. I pruned it way back and it has grown very much in the last few years. I've been trying to tame it's unruly nature with difficulty. It has wicked-big thorns!

It usually doesn't bloom until June, but with the early spring, it too is starting much earlier this year. I normally will prune it after it blooms the first time and can usually get more blooms throughout the summer until fall.


A few days later and it's exploded.....................

In the "sun garden" by my back porch, my Asiatic lilies are blooming....I have red ones with orange in the middle! When I bought these lilies they were supposed to be all red ones, but I got an orange one by accident I guess.

My other climber rose has many buds on it, but hasn't bloomed yet. Here is a picture of it from last year:

I had to prune this one quite a bit also at the end of summer. This climber rose is also a "mystery rose". It has much smaller leaves than the other one and does not get rose hips like the other. The thorns are small, but very sharp. It has no discernible fragrance and judging by the massive base with multiple, thick canes, it has been here for a number of years.

The flowers on this climber are much smaller than the other and are very "full", with densely packed petals. When they first open, they are this pretty watermelon-pink color, but they seem to be a lighter pink color after they've been open for a few days. I have tried looking online for similar ones in an effort to learn the name of this climbing rose, but have not been successful yet. I think I might have to visit the library and look at some climbing rose books. This climber rose is even more vigorous than the other. 

In the larger picture above, from 2011, you can see some of the trellis that we added the year before, in 2010,which added another six feet for the rose to climb on, but this rose has already covered all of that trellis and is now sending mains and laterals well past the trellis. 

I think soon it will reach past our second-story bedroom windows. I think it means to take over the world!

This climber seems prone to get powdery mildew. Last year I had no issues, but this year, because of the early spring where we had warm days followed by very cool, damp nights, it has a bad case of it again. I've been spraying it with a fungicide, but I may not get as pretty of blooms this year.

Thanks for stopping by!!!
I'll be linking up with The Tablescaper for Seasonal Sundays!
And also to A Southern Daydreamer for Outdoor Wednesday!

Blooming Big!

Ahead of schedule, like everything else in my garden, my big double white peonies are blooming!

  I have lots of them this year; plenty to cut a large bouquet for my dining room table, with many left on the bushes. This is their third year since transplant. I also have some light pink ones, but they are always a week or so later than these white ones.

                          I swear some of the blooms are almost the size of a dinner plate!

I tucked a few fern sprigs in the bouquet also; these are Ghost Ferns. They are a hybrid between Lady Ferns and Japanese Painted Ferns. They have a silvery, whitish hue (thus the name) with a burgundy rib although mine look sort of light green in the photos. The color can vary a little depending on how much light they get.

Also showing off it's really BIG  blooms is my double clematis, which was called "Celtic Skies" by Michigan Bulb, which is where I ordered it from. The real name of this cultivar is "Vyvyan Pennell". It took a few years to get established well enough to get flowers, but they are quite beautiful. This is the first year that I have the double flowers. This clematis is a repeat bloomer and will get blooms again later in the season, but the blooms will be single flowers, instead of doubles, when it blooms a second time.

The blooms are really quite large, almost bigger than my hand. Right next to this clematis, on the same trellis, I have a dark purple clematis, a very popular cultivar called "Jackmanii". I planted it last year and it has been growing nicely so far, so maybe I'll get some blooms from it later this summer!

Thanks for stopping by!

I'll be joining A Southern Daydreamer for Outdoor Wednesday

and

Faded Charm for White Wednesday!

Outdoor Wednesday: A Bit o' Blue

I love to have some blue in the garden.........

In my very small shade garden, my Virginia Bluebells (Mertensia virginica) are blooming. I bought these last year, so this is their first year blooming! I have them planted behind my Japanese Painted Ferns. Next to them, on the left, are toad lilies...but they won't bloom until September.

Our very early spring after a mild winter made many of my perennials come up much earlier than usual, but these seem to be right on time.

My jumbo Dutch tulips were very early..............

This picture is from a couple of weeks ago, but the cool weather we had recently and chilly nights have enabled the blooms to last much longer and they still look almost as good as this, even weeks later!

I'll be joining A Southern Daydreamer for Outdoor Wednesday!

Thanks for stopping by!

A Visit to Hawthorne Hill Farm

A couple of weeks ago the hubby and I went to visit a great place near our home called Hawthorne Hill Farm. I heard about it at a craft fair that I went to in September.

It's a 150 year old farmstead that is open to the public and features the work of local artisans and crafters, as well as unique collectibles and vintage finds.

There are also art workshops and women's retreats held here, as well as special events.

One of the large barns holds three levels of vendor booths.

This particular weekend was the Harvest/Halloween Market, so all the booths were showing fall and Halloween items. Coming up in November is the Holiday Market, when everyone will be showcasing Christmas themed items. I will be out of town that weekend, unfortunately. :-(

It's such a lovely farm and, of course, full of adorable vignettes everywhere, like this one above. I love the blue wicker and the red table and chippy red bench paired with the pumpkins and fall flowers. The color combination is unexpected, but lovely.

Inside the barn there were lots and lots of goodies. I especially loved this cloche on a stand with a bird and flower figurine inside. There were two of these.

Everything was displayed beautifully and creatively.

I especially liked what one artist did with this old door. Some of the panes of glass were covered in old newsprint and crows were nesting in the middle where a pane of glass was missing. A few spooky spiders added just the right touch.

I bought a couple of decorated vintage cabinet cards from a booth filled with neat things and used them to make two Halloween collages. Click HERE to see that project.

Thanks for stopping by!

I'll be linking up with A Southern Daydreamer for Outdoor Wednesday!

Fall Farmer's Market

Even though last weekend seemed a little too early to get my Hallowe'en pumpkins, the hubby and I went to a favorite place to pick up a few things nevertheless.

All summer you can pick up fresh veggies here; right now they are getting all their squash in and still have sweet corn, tomatoes and root crops, like garlic, onions, potatoes and beets.

They have a large selection of decorative gourds too; which is mainly why I was here today, looking for something specific for a Hallowe'en decor project.

There are also numerous pots of mums and asters. I bought some purple asters for my porch.

Inside the market building you can buy fresh apple cider, Indian corn and even cookies, among other things! Mmmm....

I will be going back again this week to pick out some pumpkins for carving.

Thanks for stopping by!!

I'll be joining up with A Southern Daydreamer for Outdoor Wednesday!