Saturday, June 13, 2015

Sunset and a Rose

Rose "Crown Princess Margareta", David Austin rose, amy myers photography
Despite increasing temperatures, Crown Princess Margareta has produced a small new crop of flowers.  I was able to capture this bloom at sunset a couple of days ago.
Rose "Crown Princess Margareta", David Austin rose, amy myers photography
The light was almost too strong to deal with, but the Arizona glow was not to be missed.
Rose "Crown Princess Margareta", David Austin rose, amy myers photography
The waterdrops on the flowers are from a good hosing down, intended to reduce spider mite problems through the garden.  Happily, the Crown Princess has had minimal pest problems, and foliage is looking very good.

Crown Princess Margareta is listed as a good choice for hot, dry climates; it is certainly living up to its reputation, continuing to bloom with a good soaking every other day.  (ed. I should correct that to "recommended for hot climates", but the dry conditions do not seem to distress it either as long as it is kept reasonably moist.)  The worst enemy right now are the rabbits since the bush is still small and tends to blossom low the ground - well within rabbit reach.  Speaking of growth habit, this variety appears to be an excellent candidate for pegging though I haven't begun yet.

And the blooms are exquisite...
Rose "Crown Princess Margareta", David Austin rose, amy myers photography
Happy summertime!
Rose "Crown Princess Margareta", David Austin rose, amy myers photography
Weather Diary: Fair; High: 104 F (40 C)/Low: 78 F (26 C)

9 comments:

  1. Wow, an English garden in the desert - I'm intrigued...and I think the princess is rather beautiful! Happy gardening to you too :)

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    1. I hope the idea proves feasible! But "nothing ventured, nothing gained"... I've been delighted with the princess - those lovely blooms hold very nicely even in the heat. Have a great week :)

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  2. Such a beautiful rose echoing the colour of the sunset. It looks like the weather is starting to really heat up: your roses take it in their stride!

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    1. Some do take it a bit better than others: the blooms on Graham Thomas are struggling along, though it was a smaller plant to begin with... To my surprise the bushes at the west end of the border are more robust than those at the east. I expected the reverse, but it certainly makes for some fine evening photo-ops ;-)

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  3. Your roses are remarkable, Amy! This one is an exceptionally pretty color.

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    1. Yes, I love the color on this one! The catalogs show it as quite a bit yellower actually; I would guess the pink tones are brought out by the heat and stronger sunlight, since we did get a few peach-hued ones early in the season. Love it either way!

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  4. I see your comments above re the pink tone Amy and was wondering exactly that as I was reading. This rose is one on my wish list if any of the ones I planted last year don't do well for me and all the references I saw were more yellow than yours shows.
    Your images are amazing. Well done!

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    1. This is proving to be a magnificent rose, Angie - highly recommended if you end up with some space for it. And I believe the colour difference must be weather-related as the pink tones have intensified with the season. I'll be curious to see what happens later in the year. Glad you enjoyed the pictures :)

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    2. This is proving to be a magnificent rose, Angie - highly recommended if you end up with some space for it. And I believe the colour difference must be weather-related as the pink tones have intensified with the season. I'll be curious to see what happens later in the year. Glad you enjoyed the pictures :)

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