ROSE RAMBLER 02.02.2017 …

Hello dear rose friends… In the style we’ve come to expect, January raced by and it’s already February when we celebrate the romance in our lives with VALENTINE’S DAY … this year, to be right in the spirit of it, I want to share this magnificent rose which Graham keeps picking and picking for vases on the kitchen bench … I must go and check how many plants of this glorious rose he has secretly planted in HIS garden!

DARK DESIRE has the most incredibly blended fragrance of sweet and spice, it’s fruity with hints of myrrh and the bloom has perfect form which opens nicely and lasts well in a vase.  It is a most romantic rose on a healthy, well-rounded shrub which is suitable for planting in a large tub on a sunny balcony … bring some romance into your garden this Valentine’s Day and gift DARK DESIRE to the love of your life …

GIFT ROSE – a 20cm potted, flowering rose; includes a pretty rose card with your personal handwritten message, delightful colour-matched gift wrapping, instructions for planting and ongoing maintenance, sample of seaweed solution and postage in a sturdy gift box $73.90 – for more information go to www.giftroses.com.au

Of course, you can select any available rose in our range at so be sure to gift a potted, flowering rose this Valentine’s Day and enjoy flowers from your own garden for years to come!

ART & ROSES TOURS

It’s that time of year when we start to promote the ART & ROSES TOURS working in conjunction with Rotary Club of Southern Mitchell and Kilmore Art Society this year promises to host one of the most spectacular weekends …

If you have a group who are interested in attending this event, please let me know as soon as possible so that I can arrange ANYTHING you might need (including weekend accommodation) to make your visit to our region a memorable occasion!

The garden at Curry Road, Kilmore which is opening as part of the weekend, is one of Kilmore’s finest and most plant diverse gardens; opened many times under the loving ownership of Leon & Mary.  New owners have put their personality into the garden and it is simply extraordinary!
Both past and current owners will be on hand during the open weekend … what an opportunity this is to visit Kilmore’s most beautiful garden!

GRA’S GARBLE …

Q.  What’s blue and has big ears?  A.  No, not GRA’S BLUE ROSE … it’s an elephant at the North Pole!

Did you join a rose society or your local garden club yet?  Without doubt, you’ll learn lots and enjoy meeting with like-minded gardeners.  If you are even remotely interested in BREEDING ROSES, please join the Rose Society of NSW and register for the special interest group about breeding … our dear friend Laurel who lives in QLD emailed us after reading the Rose Rambler last week …

When you join a Rose Society you will receive the ROSE ANNUAL which is a fabulous resource aside from the monthly newsletters!  Don’t procrastinate any longer … do it now!

Q.  What did the earwig say as it fell down the stairs?  A. Ear we go !

I recently hatched 30 Langshan chickens in the incubator … now on show when you visit the Rose Farm and here they are with grandson, Logan and Mooi …

Be sure to keep trimming the roses as we proceed through the last month of summer – the more you trim now, the more beautiful your roses will flower as temperatures become cooler for autumn.

ROSE RAMBLER 26.01.2017

ROSE RAMBLER 26.01.2017 … Hello HAPPY AUSTRALIA DAY 2017 TO ALL OUR DEAR ROSE FRIENDS … today of all days we should stop and quietly reflect on how very, very lucky we are to live in this enormously great land where, amongst many other privileges, we have the freedom to grow and tend a garden! I could postulate about mostly kind weather for gardening, space, peace, availability of plants, money to purchase plants … I won’t go on and on but ask you to just know that we are simply very, very lucky and while you munch on that barbequed meat in a garden today, take a moment to say ‘THANKS … SO GLAD I’M AN AUSSIE’. GRA’S GARBLE … Q. What animal can jump higher than the Sydney Harbour Bridge?  A. All animals, because bridges can’t jump!  I’m on a mission researching BIO-CHAR for increasing microbial activity in soil and potentially using it to increase the healthy vigour of our potted roses by adding it to our coir-fibre potting mix this winter. Exciting research is being conducted in Australia and BIO-CHAR products are available out of Tasmania … I will keep you posted as I learn more and my experiments reveal the kind of growth and hardiness anticipated. Whatever mediums we can add to increase microbial activity in our very mineral depleted ‘old’ soil here in Australia is worth it over the long-term and even home gardeners can have an impact in this endeavour!  Keep mulching and composting – return your waste to improve the soil in your yard!!! Here’s a shot of our compost heap – 22 bales of straw were used to create it and it’s breaking down rapidly … you could make a smaller one to fit your yard! Oak trees and fire … having experienced Black Saturday ’09 bushfire through our property here at Clonbinane I think it’s timely to once again remind you of the fire-resistance of oak trees – their leaves have an oil/liquid exudate which resists burning. Our local CFA Captain is an Entomologist at Vic Gov Research Station and he told me that in extremely hot weather, insects exude a sticky liquid which resists burning too. We and our neighbours have very large oak trees which survived the intense flames – the leaves were burned but within 6 weeks of the fire, fresh new leaves were evident on all oak and other ornamental deciduous and fruit trees. ALL EUCALYPTUS and other NATIVE TREES were completely burned along with their undergrowth.  Consider planting oak trees if you have an opportunity to plant a tree somewhere soon – glorious leaf-litter in autumn is extremely valuable for making microbial compost/mulch and as these trees grow, they will afford so much pleasure to future generations! Q. Why do kangaroo mums hate bad weather?  A. Their joeys have to play inside! JOIN YOUR LOCAL ROSE SOCIETY OR GARDEN CLUB … For true garden sharing, go along to your local garden club – don’t be afraid that they’re going to rope you into being on Committee as soon as you walk in the door!  (A good reason why lots of people resist joining their local groups – sad because you miss so many great opportunities and information sharing by NOT participating!) Recently, I joined the Rose Society of NSW because they offer SPECIAL INTEREST GROUP with membership and I nominated ROSE BREEDING to receive information and participate with fellow Australian rose breeders by sharing Richard Walsh’s “Rose Breeders Forum – Vol 1, No. 1” which started with this article and had me in raptures throughout: “You Need an Aim I am sure you have heard the many sayings associated with having an aim. “If you don’t have an aim, you just might reach it.”  Or, “better to aim at 110% and achieve 80 than aim at 60% and reach it.” I started with aims and have modified them several times as they are achieved or become unachievable. My first aims were: To raise a rose from seed; To raise a rose from seed pollinated by myself; To raise a rose from one of my seedlings; To raise a commercially viable rose. I made my first crosses in 1980 and they all failed to take, BUT I saved some open pollinated hips from Charleston and achieved the first aim….” This first edition of Rose Breeders Forum was captivating and so very, very interesting that Graham asked me to print it entirely – as you know, Graham has already bred an award-winning rose GRA’S BLUE – MOST FRAGRANT ROSE OF TRIALS 2016, BRONZE MEDAL 2016 in AUSTRALIAN ROSE TRIAL GARDENS, ADELAIDE … and he wished he had had access to such information earlier in his breeding endeavours!  To acquire this and future copies, we recommend you join ROSE SOCIETY OF NSW (www.nsw.rose.org.au) for $30.00 annual fee – contact details: Kristin Dawson, Secretary The Rose Society of NSW Inc. PO BOX 637, DAPTO, NSW 2530 Email: rsnswsecretary@gmail.com or subscriptionsecretarynswrose@gmail.com Meantime, enjoy whatever moments you can share with your roses during this flowering season – picking flowers, summer pruning, weeding and mulching or deep-soak watering with the hose on a still morning with a cuppa in hand … aah, what bliss … See you soon at Clonbinane… Graham, Diana, Mooi and assistant Tova.

ROSE RAMBLER 12.01.2017

ROSE RAMBLER 12.01.2017 … Happy New Year to you, our dear Rose Friends!  Welcome to a new year of sharing our passion for growing beautiful roses using the most environmentally sustainable methods so that our gardens are a healthy haven for us all! We hope you’ve enjoyed a lovely time with your family and friends – the weather was perfect for revelling in our Great Australian Outdoors.  We’ve had a lovely rest and are still enjoying more relaxed moments – it’s so beautiful pottering and trimming in the garden during cool evenings – now I’m up in technology isolated Victorian High Country at Cobungra with my lads.  Graham and I promise to forward lots of rose gardening information in weeks to come. Meantime, keep enjoying the holidays … a quickie joke from Gra … Q.  How would you fire Santa?  A.  Give him the sack … and just one more ‘cause I got these out of the bon-bons on Christmas Eve … Q.  Did you hear about the leopard who had a bath every day?  A.  He was spotless! Hope you didn’t buy the same pack of bon-bons …   SILKIES ROSE FARM IS NOW OPEN EVERY FRI, SAT, SUN AND MON 9am – 4pm   PH. 03 57871123 www.rosesalesonline.com.au will continue POSTING potted/flowering roses and will open for bare-rooted online sales in MARCH – meantime, you are more than welcome to call us at the Rose Farm and place a ‘phone order’ for roses to be delivered during winter.  You will pay a deposit when ordering then finalise payment when the roses are ready to be posted from late May to August. If you see a particular rose which you would like to order for winter, store it in your wishlist on the website! Here are some pics of roses which have been stand-out beauties in the recent hot weather and would be worthy of adding to your wishlist … GOLD BUNNY Floribunda rose which sported out to a Climbing rose – warm yellow, full petalled blooms in abundance over the whole flowering season. TINTERN One of the most rewarding roses to grow in almost any location in the garden – it’s a fantastic rose in tubs too! This versatile rose is so stunningly bright and vivacious with orange blooms and a yellow reverse. The shrub is so healthy and so very free-flowering – it produces great hips too! One of the most carefree roses … very highly recommended! GRA’S BLUE MULTI-AWARD WINNING modern patio/miniature rose of incredible beauty, fragrance and proven disease-resistance. GRA’S BLUE is hailed by the growers and all those who see it as a true ‘little beauty’. – yes, it was sold out for a while but we have magnificent plants available NOW. Positive approach … “Keep your thoughts positive because your thoughts become your words. Keep your words positive because your words become your behaviour. Keep your behaviour positive because your behaviour becomes your habits. Keep your habits positive because your habits become your values. Keep your values positive because your values become your destiny.” Mahatma Ghandi Until next next week, cheers from Graham, Diana, Tova & Mooi

ROSE RAMBLER 22.12.2016 …

Yes, dear rose friends, it’s Christmas and we want to end this year of ramblings with you by sending our love and best wishes to you and yours; may 2017 be a lovely year with good health and happiness and may your garden thrive and offer you a special place to uplift your spirit, energise your soul and be your health guardian!

We’ll be open at Silkies Rose Farm from 6th January with normal trading times:  FRIDAY, SATURDAY, SUNDAY and MONDAY from 9.00am till 4.00pm – any other times by appointment.

Thank you most sincerely for your continued support of our business and thank you to our magnificent IT team (FIONA and WENCY at www.mrgraphics.com.au) who compile our ramblings into the lovely document you receive each week!

Graham and I are truly grateful that we are able to share our passion for gardening with you and most especially thankful that we all love roses!!!

ROSE RAMBLER 15.12.2016 …

Hello dear rose friends and HAPPY BIRTHDAY to one of the most precious people in our lives, my darling Mother, Miep / Nan / Grandmere, who is 84 years young today!

I (Diana) am one of her four children who produced 11 grandchildren, there are 18 great-grandchildren and more on the way …

All this from a beautiful woman who courageously boarded a ship in Holland back in 1953 to be with my Dad who came some months earlier to find work and sadly died in a car accident way back in 1973 … he missed so much but I missed him more!

GRA’S GARBLE …

Seriously time to get the tap turned on because as soon as we get hot northerly winds you can be sure the soil is drying out and the plants are thirsty!

It’s absolutely essential to have a thick layer of mulch over the soil – mulch is fundamental in Australian gardens to prevent hydrophobic conditions where moisture simply WILL NOT penetrate for lack of humus and microbes.

An irrigation system that’s simple and low-maintenance is dripper hose attached to a battery operated timer at the tap – readily available from your local hardware.

It is imperative that however you decide to water your roses, you DEEP SOAK THEM AT LEAST ONCE A WEEK with say, 20 litres of water per rose.  Roses which receive 40 litres at each watering will retain lush, healthy foliage and produce lots more flowers.

Q.  What do witches like to read at bedtime?  A. Ghoul Deluxe and the three Scares.

LUDWIG TASCHNER has several rose farms in South Africa and I read this in his recent newsletter – “… one statement that always makes me smile is:  “But, they all get the same treatment, so why is this rose not doing as well as the others?”

My standard reply is: “We always try to treat all our children the same way and why do they not all develop in the same way?”

For sure – every rose variety has its own personality and one needs to be a rose whisperer to understand this.  It can often be something small, that needs to be rectified and the rose recovers in no time.”

You are welcome to send photos of any issues you have with your roses to:  info@rosesalesonline.com.au  – we also love to receive beautiful pics of the roses you grow or identify an unnamed rose if possible.

POSTING ROSES FOR CHRISTMAS GIFTS …

MONDAY, 19^TH DECEMBER will be the last posting however, if you are planning on sending a GIFT ROSE for somebody, I would be most grateful to have your rose in the post today or tomorrow – Monday is the absolute deadline!  Here are a few suggestions – these plants look sensational in the nursery NOW:

MY HERO
Modern Shrub Rose of extraordinary health and vigour
as a pleasant reminder of the hero in your life!

GRIMALDI
Floribunda/Modern Shrub rose with splashes of pale creamy salmon-pink with flecks of darker salmon-pink, constantly in flower.

APRICOT NECTAR
A wonderful floribunda rose which produces clusters of perfectly formed Hybrid Tea shaped blooms. There is a very unique fragrance, a true favourite and highly recommended rose!

HOMMAGE A BARBARA
Delbard Couture Collection Shrub Rose which produces one of the most durable flowers of any rose we have ever stocked – it lasts and lasts on the bush.

GUY SAVOY
One of the MOST stunning roses to place against a post, in a pillar frame or create a hedge-row of continual blooming, fragrant, vase-quality roses

ROSE RAMBLER 10.11.2016 …

Whoo, whoo, we’re finally flowering in most areas of the gardens and definitely the potted roses are looking stunning!  It’s been extremely cold with frosts very late – just last weekend, we were pruning frost-damaged foliage on our roses – they’ll recover but will probably only flower for Christmas this year!

Budburst Festival is on in the Macedon Ranges this weekend – of particular note we recommend you call at PARKSIDE WINERY at 308 Parks Road, Lancefield for the official opening of their Cellar Door for budburst weekend (www.budburst.com).

At Parkside Winery (www.parksideestate.com.au) you’ll be treated to taste magnificent wines of our region served in the historical barn which our son Eric has enjoyed restoring during this past cold, wet winter – every bluestone laid with love as only Eric would … a mammoth task he said and so rewarding to be part of the history!   You MUST take a look … mention to Darryl that the timber cobble floor would look much better finished in blackwood and he’ll know exactly who sent you … enjoy!

CORRECTION FROM LAST WEEK …

There was a bit of a glitch in last week’s Rose Rambler – my rose in the trial gardens is this beauty which we propose to call JUST LOVELY…

Pictures in last week’s R/R are the rose which I hope is released in 2017 because it was so delightful and I fell in love with it!  Sorry for the confusion and thank you to those who responded with such enthusiasm.

RETAINING A ROSE IN PERPETUITY … SAVING A PIECE OF HISTORY …

We get stories from rose lovers wanting to retain a special rose just like Susan’s and NOW is the time to take action – read on …

I wanted speak to you about the other roses your two have come to live with. They belonged to my grandfather and I transplanted them about 3 years ago from his garden to mine before we had to sell the family home. I know that goes against the gardening rules as the nurseries all told me in Sydney that roses can’t be moved but I moved these successfully. I only lost one rose following the move with 7 of them now living in my garden and doing very well about 3 years on. These roses are quite old and one my mother tells me is over 100 years old and it has now lived in 3 gardens, as my grandfather moved it in the 1970’s from my great grandmother’s place to his.

My question is how do I grow more of these original roses? I’ve tried cutting, growing from seeds, I’ve watched lots of videos online and tried a range of different cutting liquids recommended by the nurseries. Can you please give me any suggestions on how to grow more so as other members of the family can have a little part of history growing at their place. Many thanks for any suggestions …Susan

My response:  Hello Susan … it always staggers me that nursery personnel suggest it is impossible to shift / re-locate old roses!  Of course, there can and might be fatalities but one should always TRY no matter what the weather or season!  As long as the gardener puts their head and heart into the task, it will generally be successful!

Seems you have been successful in the relocation – AWESOME!  Now you wish to propagate and share plants of those precious old roses so you need to send me some canes that we can have ‘contract budded’ this budding season from Nov-Jan … please don’t wait but send wood sooner rather than later!!!

Here’s a pic of what you need to send me …

This wood is around pencil-thick and there was a flower or bunch of flowers at the end of the cane which are now finished.

This part you’re going to send me is really the length of cane which you would normally cut back and throw away!

Here is a pic of what the bud eyes look like when they’re cut from the cane and ready to be budded …

Most important that you send the freshest canes wrapped in damp (not sopping wet!!!) newspaper, sealed in plastic and placed in a post pack via EXPRESS POST to

SILKIES ROSE FARM,
C/- WANDONG POST OFFICE,
WANDONG, VIC. 3758

We, in turn, can check the wood prior to forwarding for budding … best wishes … DIANA

It is important for ALL to note that any CONTRACT BUDDING requires no less than 5 plants per variety to be budded so you will have to purchase those 5 plants the following winter.  Contract Budded Roses cost $32.50 per plant and will be available no earlier than late July/August; bare-rooted plants will be supplied with a hand-written identification tag.

We will not take responsibility for failure of any variety to bud successfully – you will only be charged for plants supplied in winter.

Please don’t race out into your garden and take budwood from all the ‘old’ roses in your garden as lots of old roses are still in production and we are EXCLUSIVELY offering this service to customers who wish to retain rose varieties in perpetuity – varieties which are almost certainly not in production today and which are as significant as those in Susan’s story above.

GRA’S GARBLE …

ROSES & RECONNECTION WITH OUR SENSES THROUGH THEM …

Our roses, when we experience them with ALL our senses, can make our soul sing!

• SIGHT – be drawn to your favourite colours and love them all together;
• SOUND – be with the sounds of nature, close your eyes and hear frogs, birds, the breeze;
• TASTE – run your tongue around your mouth and swallow right then – so sensitive;
• SMELL – aah, take note of all the fragrances as they can literally take your breath away;
• TOUCH – feel the texture of rose petals, so soft – wiggle your toes, feel the ground or ‘Mother Earth’.

Experiencing all our senses to connect with the beauty of nature, keeps us vibrantly healthy and alive.  Q.  Why did the lizard cross the road?  A. To see his flat mate!  

Slugs and snails are very predominant in our gardens due to unprecedented rains so I urge you to protect your plants by using an Australian product called ERADICATE which is safe to use around your pets and birds!

Obviously use any snail bait wisely – do not place pellets in heaps but broadcast approximately 70 pellets per square metre so they break down readily as soil/plant nutrient and are not easily accessible or attractive to your pets or birds.

Q. Why did the orange stop in the middle of the road?  A. Because it ran out of juice!  

MOST SPECTACULAR ROSES IN THE NURSERY TODAY..

FIRESTAR
You will not EVER find a more spectacularly robust, healthy, free-flowering, fragrant and simply stunning orange/pink rose which is totally suitable for mass planting or hedging … honour our CFA volunteers and pay the $8.50 royalty to enjoy this beauty in your garden …

MY HERO
One of the first to flower with exquisite fragrance … stunning blooms with a mass of petals on a supremely healthy shrub …

HOMMAGE A BARBARA
Darkest black red, most gorgeous waved petal form, longest-lasting flower on the bush … what more could one ask for?  Fragrance perhaps?  It missed out there but ticks every other box for a ‘must-have’ rose!

If you are ever looking for back-issues of this Rose Rambler, you could spend days trawling through www.allaboutroses.com.au where you’ll find no less than four years of publications along with an encyclopaedia of roses which I plan to update in coming months.

Be sure to put www.allaboutroses.com.au in your favourites so that when you need a quietly relaxing place to visit with roses this lovely website is right there – ask questions, get information and see lovely rose photos.

Be sure to take time to smell the roses as we head into hectic times leading up to Christmas; jump in the car on a weekend soon and wander amongst the roses in our garden; have a chat with Graham and let him show you the compost heaps, mulching methods, watering systems – bring the kids because they just love being here to have a run with Mooi …

Don’t forget….
19th & 20th November
STATE ROSE & GARDEN SHOW at WERRIBEE
Diana will be speaking at 3.00pm SATURDAY, 19TH … see you there!