Fall Garden Beauty...

[Mara]

I know that gardens are winding down in many areas in the East...here in the West my patio garden is still going gangbusters. In fact it seems like roses that were performing only in a mediocre way most of spring (too much rain and not enough sun) and part of summer are having their heyday right now! It's kind of late for me to have such a big flush going on .... but some are gearing up YET AGAIN to bloom within the next 2-3 weeks.

So I took some pictures...I adore flower pictures so I wanted to share the beauty with you all and hopefully give the East Coasters something to dream about for spring of 2006!!

This is my Tiffany hybrid tea, my Mom had one in her garden when I was small and growing up I grew to love this rose and the smell so I have had this one for almost 5 years now I guess? The bush itself is a funny 'treeish' stem shape but the blooms are just DIVINE and smell like heaven. The colors are amidst my absolute favorite and when I saw how this picture came out... well all I can say is

.

 

[Mara]

and here is another Tiffany bloom a few days later...I love this rose because the blooms are pretty consistent...but they do blow fairly quickly...aka the bloom I just posted up above was taken about 3 days ago and it's fully open right now, and about to drop petals probably in the next day or so. So not too long on the bush if it's too hot which is kind of a drag. But this thing is a trooper, rarely gets a lick of disease.

 

[Mara]

Here''s my Abraham Darby english rose...droopy heavy blooms but they smell divine. I never used to like the quartered look but it grew on me and now I have to have one or two quartered roses in the yard! This thing could produce more but it''s actually come into it''s own this fall after doing alot of nothing all spring and most of summer. It probably just saved itself from the shovel and ride over to my Mom''s house, aka where my rejected roses go.

 

[Mara]

and here is the floppy messy little bush but it has 10+ buds on it right now. Can''t wait!

 

[Mara]

Here is my Heritage english rose, another floppy thing with cupped blooms, but the blooms smell divine like a sweet, spicy perfume... and are the softest pastel pink color with translucent velvety petals. Swoonable, and decently trainable on the fence too...so it's a fairly good-looking bush!

 

[Mara]

Another Tiffany, in stunning profile...this bush is right next to our patio table and when we sit out there on weekends, the perfume is very heady. Divine!

 

[Mara]

My Nikko Blue hydrangea with 9 lives...it''s on it''s 7th or so now. I used to neglect this thing horribly and it almost died last year...so this year I dedicated myself to taking excellent care of it. I snipped off the tiny little spring blooms and fed it religiously, also tried to get it go back to being blue vs the icky pink shade it took on...result is that it''s got 3 small heads forming on it right now, which is bizarre since it normally blooms in spring. Since I want to see if the bluing formula is working...I am letting them bloom so who knows what will happen next year but the bush is thriving, thank goodness!!! Greg is constantly amazed at the resilience of this bush. It should be bigger, it''s a 10 year old plant, but for the neglect and the fact that it''s in a pot....but I ADORE this plant. I can''t wait to see it next year.

 

[PaulaW]

Absolutely breathtaking Mara! Thanks for posting them! I''m afraid I''m one of the east coasters who''ll have to put out mums very soon!

 

[Mara]

and last but not least for now...my new addition to the patio...this copper painted funny little garden bobbling dog we got at a festival a few weekends ago.

 

[jcrow]

those pictures are beautiful. great photography.

 

[cute330xigrl]

Date: 9/13/2005 4:46:24 PM
Author: jcrow
those pictures are beautiful. great photography.

yea really Mara. You''re macro shots are superb! Very CRISP! I cant begin to express how jealous I am right now. I guess I can say my weeds have never been stronger. A few have bloosomed into being quite a sight since this weekend.

 

[Mara]

Thanks guys..I love taking pictures of my flowers and trying to get them at odd angles sometimes. The funny thing is that my camera does beautifully with flower macro shots, but I can''t take a diamond macro shot to save my life!! Unless I take 100 and then maybe I get 1-2 good ones...whereas the flower ones are just snap and shoot. The next camera I get will be able to do both..it''s a requirement.

The days here are cooler, much cooler in fact, but I''m so happy the garden is still going to town for me. Must be that extra dose of Oscomote I gave it in early August.

 

[moremoremore]

I have to say that that Darby just made me gasp. What an amazing beauty...

 

[curlygirl]

Date: 9/13/2005 5:15:54 PM
Author: moremoremore
I have to say that that Darby just made me gasp. What an amazing beauty...

Me too!! What an absolutely stunning flower. All of your pictures are just amazing, Mara. The colors are so vivid and crisp. I''m a jealous east coast girl who lives in an apartment so we can only have small plants, nothing half as beautiful as your garden. Great work!

 

[Blue824]

Have to agree with MMM & Curly - that Darby was incredibly beautiful!

 

[Mara]

Date: 9/13/2005 8:59:56 PM
Author: Blue824

Have to agree with MMM & Curly - that Darby was incredibly beautiful!

If only you guys could smell the Abraham Darby...you''d really swoon!!

 

[belle]

great pics of the roses. the color is delicious!

 

[hoorray]

Great pics Mara! I''m living vicariously through your roses, now that I have NONE of my own. Every year I say I''m going to break down and plant some, but I think I''d have to redo my watering system, etc. so it keeps me from going there.

Your garden looks wonderful. Gotta love the CA Indian summers, keeping things blooming.

 

[Mara]

Lop, I adore the roses...maybe get one or two in a pot?! They do great if they are treated well...!

 

[Kaleigh]

Mara your roses are to die for. I love those colors, sooo pretty.

 

[fountainfairfax]

Date: 9/13/2005 4:41:58 PM
Author: Mara
My Nikko Blue hydrangea with 9 lives...it''s on it''s 7th or so now. I used to neglect this thing horribly and it almost died last year...so this year I dedicated myself to taking excellent care of it. I snipped off the tiny little spring blooms and fed it religiously, also tried to get it go back to being blue vs the icky pink shade it took on...result is that it''s got 3 small heads forming on it right now, which is bizarre since it normally blooms in spring. Since I want to see if the bluing formula is working...I am letting them bloom so who knows what will happen next year but the bush is thriving, thank goodness!!! Greg is constantly amazed at the resilience of this bush. It should be bigger, it''s a 10 year old plant, but for the neglect and the fact that it''s in a pot....but I ADORE this plant. I can''t wait to see it next year.

Thanks for all of the beautiful photos Mara, your roses are just amazing!

I thought I''d just mention that here on the North Fork of LI we grow the most amazing hydrangeas (my all-time fav, I hope to have my wedding bouquet just bursting with them.) As a kid my farmer Grandparents used to give me the fall job of burying pennies all around the hydrangeas to ensure they would bloom the most vibrant blue the next year. I guess they kept the soil acidity perfect or something!

 

[Mara]

What a great idea, FFF...on the pennies!

Right now I finally got a small bloom on it and the color looks like it''s more blue than pink now, but still a tiny tinge of pink in there which I don''t want, so maybe I''ll do a penny or two for the soil this fall and see what THAT does! I love this garden experiment stuff. It''s funny how I love pink but not in my hydrangeas...I adore the blues that the plants can get with varying soil acidity!! That is what drew me to this hydrangea about 5 years ago and I paid $100 for it then...I just HAD to have it!

 

[Mara]

Since Abraham Darby was such a hit last time around...I took this picture this morning of 2 blooms in a vase that I brought inside to perfume the kitchen. I love funny little vases, this one is a favorite..it's a soft purple bubbled look, kind of a thick feel to it. It's great for shorter blooms.

Oh and it's funny how the pictures in the background look crooked, I must have had the camera at an angle since they obviously don't look like that on the wall!!

 

[cute330xigrl]

where''s the drool icon when u need it!

that looks incredible. such a fun looking vase. jus looking at these pics makes me wanna move.

pretty interior colors btw. nice muted? tones....

 

[Mara]

Thanks cute...yes our interior colors are very muted..almost too muted sometimes when I crave more color...but I think we did the right thing to stay neutral because I can accent with color.

I have done some home decor stuff recently (and am doing some more) so I want to start a thread at some point where people can post updates and ideas but just haven''t gotten around to it yet! I am SO in the home decor mode now, esp with holidays and cool weather around the corner, I turn into a huge nester when it''s cold outside! Cold being CA relative of course.

 

[cute330xigrl]

Date: 9/25/2005 6:40:16 PM
Author: Mara
Thanks cute...yes our interior colors are very muted..almost too muted sometimes when I crave more color...but I think we did the right thing to stay neutral because I can accent with color.

I have done some home decor stuff recently (and am doing some more) so I want to start a thread at some point where people can post updates and ideas but just haven''t gotten around to it yet! I am SO in the home decor mode now, esp with holidays and cool weather around the corner, I turn into a huge nester when it''s cold outside! Cold being CA relative of course.

ohhhh joy joy! a home remodel thread. i need HELP BIG TIME! we''ve been remodelling our home and I need so much help doing some finishing touches.

we also want to start redoing the kitchen. i want a new layout... but no clue what/how to do it. dying for ideas i tell ya. just dying!

the house just doesnt look "tied in". so when ya ready... i''ll be a postin''

.

 

[jorman]

Speaking of home improvement.
Here are the before and after pics of our dining room project. All we have left to do in this room is replace the hideous light fixture and brown outlets. I think it turned out pretty darn good.
Here is BEFORE:

 

[jorman]

Here is AFTER:

 

[cute330xigrl]

nice job taking out the panelling jorman. those table mats look familiar. are those from pottery?

i LOVE b/w photos... simple. nice touch!

 

[Mara]

WOW Jorman you little decorator you...you will have to come over and help me finish up some rooms! It looks fab!