11 April 2016

Rose garden project.

 During Autumn we started planning an idea for a rose garden.
We have an open area of the garden which is never used
 and it's just more grass that needs to be cut.

Mr France has recently taken an interest in the garden
other than just having to do the heavy work
that I can't manage these days.
Last year we visited a 'Roseraie' in Limoges
and came home with the idea of creating one in our garden
albeit  on a much smaller scale .


 Plan A

We bought these woven willow boxes
and started planning were we would put them -
However after a long winter of lots rain,
and not being able to get on with the project,
The willow boxes have been put in the shed for the time being


Now we have - Plan B.  Work is still in progress.
This is what it's looking like at the moment.

We managed to acquire a very large piece
of thick black polythene from the farmer near where we live
which he didn't needed any more .
Covering the ground will kill off the grass
and will save a lot of back breaking digging.
Mr France has made much stronger wooden box frames
and they are nearly all in place.

All the roses have been bought, some French and some English.
I can't wait for the summer to see them in bloom.
Would you like to see what I've chosen ?

All pink.



Frederic Mistral created by Meilland - French rose.

I have chosen three different bush roses
 from the ever popular David Austin variety.

 Geoff Hamilton. - Mary Rose. - The Mayflower.

 Climbing rose 'Narhema'  I bought and planted this one last year 
to grow on the new pergola we put up near the pool.


After a summer of very few blooms,
 it certainly wasn't happy where it was.
The reason ?  a mixture of things,
the most important was not enough sun and then fighting 
with the nearby Honey suckle & a Variegated Ivy.

After I'd dug the rose up, I could see it hadn't made much root growth.
so it was definitely ready to be moved.


Mr France has made an Obelisk


similar to the one I'd seen here
take a look at Pamela's blog, 'Flower Patch Farm'
she is a very talented & creative lady.

Hopefully moving it to new open ground
with 2 Clematis, it will flourish and we'll reap the benefits
and see lots of beautiful pink roses, intertwined with blue Clematis.


  
Hopefully this is what we'll be seeing for our efforts.
Can't wait for summer.
I'm sure if you know me, or have followed my blog for awhile
you know patience is not one of my virtues .
But ....  'come on ' who couldn't wait to see these beauties.


We still have some more work to do.
I'll show the finished result in another post.

How are your gardens coming along? Have you made any changes,
or are you trying new plants you've always wanted to grow?
I'd love to see what you've done.

I know some of you are still having cold weather & snow....
Maybe you're over wintering your delicate plants indoors ?
 in pots, ready for the warm sunny days.


à bientôt

Barbara Lilian

14 comments:

  1. Barbara..I adore the willow boxes..but the wood ones will be much sturdier and they look beautiful also.
    What a treat that M.France is into gardening in a big way now.The obelisk is lovely..I am grateful Jacques rebuilt 2..to replace 2 that we had made when we moved here..they lasted 14 yrs..but you know our weather..so that was ok..
    I love roses and clematis together.I grow Mary Rose..again..here roses don't act like yours..and I live in a pesticide free community..

    New dawn is an excellent climber for you i think as well as the Fairy climber..what do I know?:) LOL just want you to have what I cannot.
    I would love some boxes like yours..for veggies now..
    have fun with all this promise..
    M.France is fit and this will keep him fitter and so happy..you too:)

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  2. Oh Barbara, this is going to be so lovely when it's complete and the roses are in bloom. I'll look forward to you sharing photos in the summer. We are still in a see saw spring here but the weather may be improving after tomorrow. It is still brown and dull but one can see bits of green in the lawn and the spring birds have returned. I haven't seen a dandelion yet though. Take care and enjoy your gardening days. Hugs. Pamela

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  3. Oh my . . . how lovely it will be.
    Excellent plans . . . bright sun . . . contained, boxed areas . . .
    And David Austins are wonderful ROSES . . .
    (I favor pinks too!)
    Nothing has begun here for me except in my head . . .
    I do have our vast yard, gardens, borders cleaned from the winter "stuff!"
    Difficult to believe we had spring weeks in March when I could work outside and then winter days arrived again.
    I do have a day of cleaning up more leaves, uncovering some of the areas where I protected the plantings.
    My Helebores are peeking through with flowers . . . I keep adding more and more of them each year.
    I have some old roses, (New Dawn) in one area . . . I am inspired by you to consider a few more . . .
    Happy planning, planting, dreaming, springtime Barbara . . .

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  4. Can I place my order for beautiful pink roses Barbara - I think you will have enough to sell bouquets come Summer! They will be awesome, and lucky you having Mr. France to make such a fabulous rose garden, including using some very good looking carpentry skills for the boxes and super obelisk.

    I just lost a nice rose bush, came right out of the ground and looks like we have the voles back as all the roots were eaten, grrrrrrrr, I'm really mad about that.

    Happy gardening en France!
    Hugs - Mary

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  5. I love your choice of roses and can't wait to see the finished results. Geoff Hamilton was a great gardener, I loved watching his shows on the television and the rose named after him is wonderful.
    We have 2 President clematis in our garden and they flower eceptionally well, a beautiful contrast to the pink roses. Roses I hear are making a big come back in our gardens and so they should.
    Have fun being creative :)

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  6. We are still in the planning and dreaming and buying stage. We'd counted on a little rain, but have had none now for close to three weeks, which makes planting a bit of a challenge in the dry soil. Like you, I'd choose pink roses - all pink. Good luck with staying patient!

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  7. This is going to be so beautiful and I can't wait to see it all in bloom. I do love the look of the willow beds but understand the durability concerns Too bad they can't be slipped over the wood just for looks :)

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  8. Barbara, the roses are going to be stunning!! I love the David Austen roses....and your hubby did an inspired job with the boxes, which I am sure will last longer than the willow ones....(could you put the willow around the boxes?? That would be beautiful....
    Can't wait to see your next post.....
    Nancy
    wildoakdesigns.blogspot.com

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  9. I really like what i see...love the rosé garden...but i also like plan a those willow boxes...i hope you wil also put them in your garden..and not in your shed...hahahaha...have a Nice week...enjoy working in your beautiful garden...love from je Ria x

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  10. Dear Barbara - I just can't wait to see your lovely roses blooming. What a great plan. Mr. France has done a wonderful job building everything and the Obelisk is so great. Makes me just want to come visit you. P.S. I love pink too. Have a great day friend. Hugs!

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  11. This rose garden is going to be so beautiful, Barbara! What a wonderful project to work on while you anticipate all those pink roses. I'll be following along to see the progress.

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  12. Oooooo, a rose garden, just my cup of tea. You and your husband have done so much work, Barbara, but in the end, it is going to look wonderful. And you wanted them to be all PINK! I really like the ones you chose, and they are a softer pink, which I would have preferred in my own garden. My yellow roses got spots on the leaves, so I had to remove all the leaves and even prune the branches, and I don't know when I will see them bloom again. I hope by summer at least. I love the French rose, but I think my favorite color would be the Mary rose. Your garden is going to be glorious, Barbara. I can't wait to see it this summer.

    love, ~Sheri

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  13. I love how you obelisk turned out. Now I am going to have to copy you, it is much less busy but does the job. I swooned over all those roses, you picked several I do not have...yet. I love Clematis, they perform so well for me with little effort. I am adding more this year as they don't take up a lot of space yet are so gorgeous.

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  14. I love roses, especially pink ones. Mr. France is so talented…as much as I love the woven willow boxes, I think the wood boxes will hold up better over time. I can't wait to see the outcome of the rose garden in a couple of years when the roses are fully rooted and in full bloom.

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