Rose Bed Pictures

In early July I decided I didn't like a flowerbed that was next to the house and decided to re-do it. Below the fold are pictures of the process.

First thing I did was dig out all the irises, the bleeding heart and a very small hosta (it had just been planted last fall and was about a hand-span diameter). The results were an astilbe on the left, Scentsational rose (which had been planted not too long before), Helen Hayes rose (ditto), some yellow flowers that the neighbor had given me (a primrose perhaps), a bushy coreopsis and the ferns at the end.

I moved the two roses forward so they were closer to the stone wall and had deeper soil:

Then I filled in with Pro-Mix:

Then finally I placed the other roses, mulched them and set up cat spikes. This picture is on the left side of the area - you can see just a bit of the astilbe:

Then the right side of the area (the overlap of the pictures is the small rose bud at the bottom left corner):

I think the area certainly looks better although Helen Hayes is giving me fits. She had luscious foliage until about 2 weeks ago and now she looks as if she is questioning her own existance with only 3 leaves. She has popped out only 1 bloom in that time (Scentimental, which also got moved is now going thru its second flush of bloom since the redistribution).

As for the plants I dug up, never fear, I found new homes for them. The irises are below the dog pen, the bleeding heart is in the semi-shade garden at the corner of the driveway 9what part I didn't give away), and the hosta is in a pot awaiting the completion of WS's latest project (it will go into an extension of the shade garden we made last year).

I like these types of small projects; they give a quick feel of accomplishment unlike large projects like the Area Formerly of the Fruit Trees!

Comments

[Cop Car]

Beautiful, Bogie! Your "little" project is a pretty big one for someone no more inclined to do such things than I am. I just don't understand why you won't give up living in NH to return to Derby--so that you can do my gardening! (Kids are so ungrateful...grumble, grumble.) ;^)

[buffy]

Would you please come and renovate my iris bed?? Move to Illinois and I'll even cook for you! (Trumping the grumpy one's bid)

That was a lot of work, Bogie....and it's looking great!

[Bogie]

Hey, is that a bidding war that just got started? If so, I think it would be much easier for me if you would move to NH and cook for me!

[bod]

hold on a minute, i think you'd enjoy the challenge my garden would provide bogie and buffy i think you would find me a very appreciative recipient of home cooking!
cop car, you'd be more than welcome to supervise the activities :-)

[Bogie]

Ooh, I'd get to travel the world, enjoy Buffies cooking, and appreciate Cop Car's organizational skills. A combo that's hard to beat!

[Cop Car]

What a deal! I'm up for bod's suggestion!

[Cop Car]

Well, duh! What I meant to say is that, good as Bod's suggesting is, I am up for Bogie's suggestion.

[Bogie]

I think it was bod's first, I just expanded upon it.