Yes indeed it is, and the time seems bigger and better than it has in a while. Having suffered several years of drought, followed by 2 years of flood, 2024 has got it just right.
The water tables are nice and high, so there’s plenty of deep moisture and the sun has been shining plenty all year. The most significant fact about the roses this year is how early they are. Definitely about 2 weeks ahead of schedule. They’re shooting basally and loaded with flowers, so very happy all round.
This time last year young Seth had just been born, well overdue, and we were trying to keep the gardens in order for a photo shoot for The NZ Gardener. We managed, or else Sally was good at trick photography! and the article duly appeared in the magazine. This has caused a lot of interest and an increased number of garden group visits.
We’ve always hosted the odd bus and lots of smaller groups of visitors, but we’re currently very busy with groups from all around the place.
One day in October we had 2 buses here! Lots and lots of sharing happening, which is absolutely the best thing about the garden at this time of year.
We had another busyish Open Day in October and are just about to host the November one on Sunday. Hope the weather holds out, it’s been very kind to visitors so far.
As usual I left this missive unfinished…November marches on, it’s the 17th today and I’ve been busy with lots more visitors in the mean time.
The Open Day was great, much garden appreciation happened. I have 3 groups this week and that will finish things off. (Until Dec 8th when we’re having our last Open Day of the year)
There’s nothing like waking up at my place at this time of year! As soon as I open my eyes I’m greeted by so many flowers! and as soon as I open the window the perfume from all the rugosas I’m surrounded by wafts in.
If I look through the other window the view is rather obstructed by the Kalmia in full song.
How very lucky I am to be able to be in this lovely garden and share it with lots of other people. Sometimes my body tells me a smaller garden would possibly be more suitable, but I tell it to get over it and take some pills!
I’ve nearly completed the task of potting up the cuttings I made in the first half of the year. Except, a lot of the True Old Fashioneds are still just thinking about it…they are never in much of a hurry to make roots, and have to be returned to their pots to contemplate making someone happy or not.
Unfortunately I haven’t done any sort of stock take as I went and as they were put away willy nilly under the shade cloth to live or die post potting, what is there is still for the most part a mystery! I have started the task of pulling out pots which appear to be growing strongly and can now put them out in the sun with the older specimens. Anytime soon I’m going to know what I’ve got available!
Besides the roses being happy this year, so too are the Irises and many other perennials. Everything is happy really…the fruit trees all seem to have set bumper crops, I think I’m going to have my first apricot glut in about 5 years, so that’s pretty exciting!
In their general happiness the once flowering roses are really outdoing themselves.
The Banksias made their first flowers in May!!! and haven’t quite done yet. Mme Gregoire Stachelin and Milkmaid are another 2 that have been flowering like lunatics since August, likewise some of the pimpinellifolias.
It’s pretty exciting to get such a long show from these beauties.
The Noisettes are a very rewarding family in pretty much every way (except most of them are only occasionally willing to grow from cuttings for me. They have a lot of Tea influence and so many of them flower even in the Winter months. They also have lovely fresh green foliage and a beautiful scent. They are mostly small to medium climbers, excepting a few rampant crazies like Milkmaid. I really the love the simple charm of Desprez a Fleurs Jaunes, it is a real toughie and is growing on my chook run fence right outside the nursery shed door. It is often in nearly full shade because of the giant apricot tree beside it, but flowers almost non stop and her beautiful scent greets me when i step out the door.
I could spend many hours describing all the beauties in the garden at the moment, but as I have a garden group coming in the morning, I better go and stake my poor blown over sunflowers! Catch you again before Christmas.