Color Combining and Cottage Gardens
A riot of color in the gardens can be exhilarating, and overwhelming, both, to some degree. My first house, after my divorce, I created cottage gardens all over the front and back yard. I grew everything. Lots of roses of course, those were the main staple, but I had giant alliums, daisy’s, delphiniums, peony’s, all of them! If I saw it in the garden center, I think I tried it! And annuals, I planted them around all my rock borders, and in pots on the deck and porch. When the gardens were in full bloom, or spring flush for the roses, cars would actually stop and take pictures. I’m not sure if it was because it was stunning, or they thought I’d lost my mind creating something so vibrant and high maintenance!
This was my thing though, gardening, and all that came with it. It was not a chore for me. I loved every minute of it. My gardens were my happy place. Below are a couple pictures from these gardens. It was at this house, where I learned how to propagate roses, and I developed the yearning to one day have my own rose nursery. This was over 20 years ago.
Fast forward 20+ years, and I am now married again, and my nursery has been somewhat a reality for a few years now. It is a work in progress. It is not easy.
Instead of cottage gardens, we have large display gardens with the 500+ varieties of roses we grow. I chose not to intermingle them with other plants this time, and my display beds are created and separated by ‘types’ of roses now. I have three David Austin English rose beds, two old gardens rose beds, a buck rose bed, and two beds combining shrubs, HT and Floribunda, with some hybrid musk and polyanthas thrown in for good measure. I combine all colors, and it does not bother me, if red and orange are near each other. To me, it’s part of the charm.
Last spring during the spring flush, my mother mentioned it was overwhelming looking at the gardens, because so many roses were all in bloom at the same time, she didn’t know where to have her eyes rest! I guess I can see that from her perspective, but spring flush will always be my favorite time of the year when all the girls are showing off! There is no such thing as too many roses in bloom! Sorry Mom!
