Friday, June 24, 2016

Little Jewels

rose, small sunny garden, desert garden, miniature roses, amy myers, photography
I don't know how they do it!

The miniature roses are in full bloom despite the weather.  It's not as if they receive special treatment in terms of water, though most have more or less half a day's shade.  They have proven not only vigorous, but floriferous as well through summer's heat.

In the South Border are a lavender from Kordes...
rose, lavender, small sunny garden, desert garden, miniature roses, amy myers, photography, kordes
For scale, the background plant is Lavendula stoechas "Madrid", roughly 20 inches tall
... and an unknown cream and pink - mostly cream just now!
small sunny garden, desert garden, miniature roses, amy myers, photography
The former was purchased at a garden center; the latter was pulled off the gift plant rack at the grocery store.  The shape of the tiny blooms was perfect.
small sunny garden, desert garden, miniature roses, amy myers, photography
Both are proving very resilient.

I should have expected it, given the performance of the red mini "Daniela".
rose, daniela, small sunny garden, desert garden, miniature roses, amy myers, photography, kordes
Having produced luscious clusters of perfect red roses earlier in the season, it is now blooming all over again.  Individual flowers are not as full as the spring batch, but there are plenty of them!  The color is rich and unfading, and the petals have plenty of substance.
rose, daniela, small sunny garden, desert garden, miniature roses, amy myers, photography, kordes
The plant itself is nearly the size of a small floribunda.  Unlike the others, it has already survived one summer in the garden... in fine style, I might add!

And then there are the two potted minis on the patio.  Both of these nearly succumbed to powdery mildew last spring.  I had little hope for them but kept hosing them down thoroughly, and both are back in full feather.  I wish I had caught the yellow one when it first bloomed as the blossom was exquisite -- like a miniature antique rose.  Hopefully there will be another opportunity soon!
small sunny garden, desert garden, miniature roses, amy myers, photography
I expect I will slip one or both of these in the ground this autumn.

The miniature roses are certainly providing an unexpected dash of color in June, making them my pick for the monthly favorites round-up with Loree at the Danger Garden.
small sunny garden, desert garden, miniature roses, amy myers, photography, kordes
Weather Diary: Sunny; High: 111 F (44 C)/Low: 82 F (28 C); Humidity: 11%-35%

9 comments:

  1. Your remark about the toughness of miniature roses is interesting. I remember that I had a baby pink one in my old garden, which also did remarkably well (although I think it was eventually shaded or crowded out). I'm not having a whole lot of luck with my larger roses so maybe it's time to go tiny!

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    1. If you do, I'd love to know how it works, Kris. I'm still not sure why these are growing quite so well; the main thing I've had to watch for is spider mites, especially right at first planting. I never could grow them in the ground in the Midwest; winter was too cold and other plants simply swamped them in the garden. They seem able to hold their own here!

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  2. Great to see the miniature roses, I have had one or two in the past usually given as pot plants. I was interested to see your Lavender thriving, I don't know why we persist in trying to grow it in many parts of the UK as we just don't have enough sun, something you would seem to have in abundance:-)

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    1. Thanks for coming by, Rick - I agree our gardening conditions could hardly be more opposite :) The lavenders have been wonderful here. I could never keep them alive in my garden in the Midwest, where the high humidity sapped them within a couple of years, so I promised myself plenty of lavender when starting this garden.

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  3. Yay for your mini roses! I was shocked to hear that my sister-in-law had a thriving rose garden in Phoenix before moving in with my brother. I never would have thought they would do so well in the heat. Thanks for joining up with the favorites!

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    1. I'm still surprised about the roses, Loree! But apparently there are still some commercial rose fields here for the wholesale industry. I'm still learning to adjust the feeding and mulching... ;-)

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    1. I can't believe I later deadheaded twenty blooms from the lavender rose and still had plenty on the plant! :)

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  5. Goodness they really are amazing...not only floriferous but their leaves look so healthy...no disease at all. Fantastic!

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